Features

2018 Fall Arts Guide: Build your calendar around these upcoming Vegas happenings

Image

Concerts

NAMES YOU KNOW

BLINK-182 (October 26-November 17, the Pearl) The pop-punk veterans’ Kings of the Weekend Palms residency—cut short in June due to blood clots in drummer Travis Barker’s arms—resumes for eight dates at the Palms.

CHRISTINA AGUILERA (October 27, the Colosseum) The pop star brings her Liberation Tour, supporting her June album of the same name, to the house that Celine built. Might it be a test run for a future residency there? Bonus: OutKast rapper Big Boi opens.

DAWES (October 30, Brooklyn Bowl) If you’re not familiar with this LA quartet, you’re behind the curve; June album Passwords reached No. 8 on Billboard’s Rock chart—the fourth-straight Dawes LP to place inside the top 10.

GORGON CITY (November 3, Downtown Las Vegas Events Center) London electronic duo Kye “Foamo” Gibbon and Matt “RackNRuin” Robson-Scott bring their production-rich live show—along with material from August album Escape—Downtown for an outdoor dance party.

PAULA ABDUL (November 10, Red Rock Ballroom) The pop star, former Laker Girl and ex-American Idol judge celebrates the 30th anniversary of debut album Forever Your Girl. Straight up.

Metallica (Robb Cohen/AP)

METALLICA (November 26, T-Mobile Arena) The metal giants’ are still touring behind 2016’s Hardwired… to Self Destruct, but if you’re going to hear the hits, that’s okay, too, considering the band hasn’t played a non-festival set in Vegas since 2009. Weirdly, comedian Jim Breuer will open.

FLEETWOOD MAC (November 30, T-Mobile Arena) From Peter Green to Bob Welch to Stevie Nicks, the Mac’s lineup has never been a constant, and this one will feature Tom Petty guitarist Mike Campbell and Split Enz singer Neil Finn in place of Lindsey Buckingham, plus Nicks, Christine McVie and longtimers Mick Fleetwood and John McVie.

FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE (December 1-11, Zappos Theater) This Nashville country duo has been selling out stadiums, but you get to catch Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley in Planet Hollywood’s 7,000-cap music hub.

ALSO: John Fogerty (October 12-20, Encore Theater); Ozzy Osbourne (October 13, MGM Grand Garden Arena); Sting & Shaggy (October 13, Park Theater);Ellie Goulding (October 18, Brooklyn Bowl); System of a Down with At the Drive-In (October 19, T-Mobile Arena); Willie Nelson & Family (October 19, the Chelsea); Jimmy Buffett & The Coral Reefer Band (October 20, MGM Grand Garden Arena); Phil Collins (October 27, MGM Grand Garden Arena); Mike Shinoda (October 30, House of Blues); Maxwell (November 4, the Pearl); Ghost (November 17, the Joint); A Perfect Circle with Tricky (November 18, the Chelsea); Good Charlotte (November 24, the Pearl); Nine Inch Nails with The Jesus and Mary Chain (November 30 & December 1, the Joint); Justin Timberlake (December 1, T-Mobile Arena); George Strait (December 7-8, T-Mobile Arena).

UNDER THE RADAR

CAFE TACVBA (October 19, House of Blues) The longtime rock en Español outfit from Ciudad Satélite, Mexico, released latest album Jei Beibi in 2017, but you can still catch the band playing the hits of its heyday.

DEATH VALLEY GIRLS (October 19, Bunkhouse Saloon) This explosive LA garage band has Iggy Pop’s support. Check out the video for “Disaster (Is What We’re After),” starring the legendary Stooges leader, as he eats a burger in a suit and tie.

SIMPLE MINDS (October 21, the Pearl) Relive the ’80s when the Scottish rock band behind New Wave earworm (and Breakfast Club classic) “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” hits the Strip.

THE BUTTERTONES (October 27, Beauty Bar) For slinky Pulp Fiction vibes, check out this surfy LA garage act, which released fourth full-length Midnight in a Moonless Dream in May.

POWER TRIP (October 29, Bunkhouse Saloon) If you needed another reason to see this Dallas thrash band, frontman Riley Gale is candidly progressive. “This is not a band for white males to enjoy and be dumb rednecks,” he told Revolver in August.

KHRUANGBIN (November 7, Vinyl) This psychedelic Houston trio is all about funky basslines, swirling guitar riffs and hip-swaying percussion. Spin “Maria También” from January release Con Todo el Mundo for a taste.

THE ORB (November 20, Brooklyn Bowl) You probably missed the English electronic-psych pioneers behind “Little Fluffy Clouds” at Further Future in 2015; don’t skip them when they tour behind new studio album No Sounds Are Out of Bounds.

OPEN MIKE EAGLE (November 23, Beauty Bar) The LA-based rapper grew up in Chicago and wrote 2017 album Brick Body Kids Still Daydream about the Robert Taylor Homes, a southside housing project demolished more than a decade ago, displacing generations of families.

JAM ON IT

Jam bands have long favored All Hallows’ Eve week in Vegas—think Vegoose (2005-2007) and Phish’s first local Halloween show in 1998. The Vermont warhorse will celebrate the holiday here for the fourth time—its third at MGM Grand Garden Arena, where it’s expected to follow tradition and cover an unannounced full album (likely not its own), and then play three more shows November 1-3. Those wanting to pre-party can watch another jam behemoth, Widespread Panic (October 26-28, Park Theater), while The Disco Biscuits (late night November 1-3, Brooklyn Bowl) will once again score the de facto Phish after-party. Triumvirate tribute act Pink Talking Fish will do the same thing over at Vinyl (late-night November 1-2), and ditto for Colorado fusion act Eminence Ensemble at Hard Rock Live (late-night October 31-November 1). Back at Brooklyn Bowl, marathon groovers can further bookend the big shows with Leftover Salmon (late-night October 26), Motet and trumpeter/vocalist Jennifer Hartswick (late-night October 31), another edition of the Lunch You in the Eye Bowling Tournament and PhanArt show (early afternoon November 2) and Keller Williams’ bluegrass-flavored Tom Petty cover act (early afternoon November 3).

Performing Arts

CIRCUS COUTURE-ENCOMPASS (October 12, Brooklyn Bowl) An immersive circus performance will “encompass” the audience in this benefit for children with cancer.

SIN CITY OPERA: A NIGHT WITH THE FLYING DUTCHMAN (October 25 & 28, Charleston Heights Arts Center) Romance, an ancient curse and ghosts—Richard Wagner’s classic opera gets a modern makeover.

A PUBLIC READING OF AN UNPRODUCED SCREENPLAY ABOUT THE DEATH OF WALT DISNEY (November 1-25, Majestic Repertory Theatre) Meet the man behind the mouse in what The New York Times calls “a blackly comic inversion of the public Disney persona.”

LV PHILHARMONIC: GLASS, MOZART & BACH (November 3, Reynolds Hall) Donato Cabrera conducts the greats, beginning with Mozart and Bach and ending with a newly commissioned piano concerto by Philip Glass.

NEVADA BALLET THEATRE: DRACULA (October 25-28, Reynolds Hall) Go goth for Halloween with this haunting—and dare we say sexy—ballet choreographed by Ben Stevenson with music by Franz Liszt, playing at the Smith Center.

ALSO: Henderson Symphony Orchestra: Bolero for Billie Jean (October 19, Henderson Pavilion); The Crucible (October 19-28, Nevada Conservatory Theatre); Falsettos (October 19-November 4, Las Vegas Little Theatre); The Dog/The Cat (October 24-November 11, Cockroach Theater); iDroids (November 2-11, CSN's Horn Theater); Contemporary West Dance Theater: Fall Concert Series (November 9-10, West Las Vegas Library); Incognito (November 30-December 16, A Public Fit); Andrea Bocelli (December 1, MGM Grand Garden Arena).

Take Pride

The 2018 edition of Las Vegas Pride feels a lot more programmed than previous years, which should please those looking to round out their weekend beyond the two main events: the Downtown parade (October 19, Fourth Street between Gass and Stewart avenues)—one of the few nighttime Pride parades in the U.S.—and the all-day Pride Festival (October 20-21, Sunset Park), which features performances by dance-pop divas Cece Peniston and Robin S., and RuPaul’s Drag Race favorites Bianca Del Rio and Blair St. Clair, among others (Del Rio will headline her own show October 18 at Zumanity Theatre). Notable parade afterparties include GlamPyres headlined by singer Erika Jayne (Orleans Arena), a shindig at Eclipse Theaters and campy tribute act GayC/DC (Beauty Bar), while post-festival happenings consist of pop acts Superfruit and Betty Who (October 20, Boulevard Pool), Action Adrenaline featuring Drag Race queen/DJ Nina Flowers (October 20, the Space) and the Nightrider closing party with headlining DJ Abel (Voodoo Lounge, October 21). Meanwhile, Charlie’s Las Vegas will feature Pride-related entertainment Thursday-Sunday, with Drag Race personalities Alaska Thunderf*ck 5000 and Willam Belli and American Idol queen Ada Vox of special note.

Laughs

THROWING SHADE (October 18, Vinyl) Erin Gibson and Bryan Safi’s comedy podcast about women’s and LGBTQ issues careens into Vegas at a time when both topics need a much more receptive audience.

ANTHONY JESELNIK (October 20, Mirage’s Terry Fator Theatre) A veteran of several brutal Comedy Central roasts, Jeselnik has developed a merciless shtick that’s darker than Vantablack and drier than our late August.

AMY SCHUMER (November 2-3, the Chelsea) The sharp-tongued comic polymath takes a break from making movies to spend a couple days standing up, with support from Rachel Feinstein and Mia Jackson.

BIANCA DEL RIO (October 18, New York-New York’s Zumanity Theatre) According to her website, the first Latinx winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race is a “love child sired by John Waters and birthed by Joan Rivers.” We need that about now.

DAVE ATTELL (October 22, Comedy Cellar) Patton Oswalt says Attell has “a genius, sewer brain connected to a poetic leaf blower of a mouth,” and his jokes are “un-defendable uppercut(s) of brilliance.” Sold.

Michael Winslow (Photo Illustration/AP Photo)

MICHAEL WINSLOW (October 12 at the Space) can imitate the sound of most anything—a chicken, a car alarm, Sylvester Stallone—and his facial expressions are every bit as funny and inimitable as his beeps and clucks. The preternaturally gifted beatboxer and master of mouth-generated sound effects (and distinguished graduate of the Police Academy series) pays Vegas a rare visit

ALSO: Russell Peters (October 13, the Pearl); Whoopi Goldberg (November 9, Treasure Island Theatre); Whitney Cummings (November 12-13, Comedy Cellar); Jim Gaffigan (November 30, the Colosseum); Steven Wright (November 30, Treasure Island Theatre).

Words

Natasha Tretheway (Rogelio V. Solis/AP)

THE BELIEVER PRESENTS: NATASHA TRETHEWEY & VOGUE ROBINSON (November 29, the Writer’s Block) Pulitzer Prize-winner and two-term U.S. Poet Laureate Trethewey sits down for a chat with Robinson, who happens to be Clark County’s Poet Laureate. It’s verses versus verses

PRISCILLA CHAN (November 24, Zappos Theater) Chan is co-head (with Facebook-founding husband Mark Zuckerberg) of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, an organization devoted to “promoting equality in areas such as health, education, scientific research and energy.” Expect a talk that touches many of those topics.

LAS VEGAS BOOK FESTIVAL (October 20, Historic Fifth Street School) Choosing an autumn read? A dynamite assortment of visiting authors—including George Saunders (Lincoln in the Bardo), Sara Shepard (Pretty Little Liars) and Colson Whitehead (The Underground Railroad)—might have some suggestions for you.

THE MOTH (November 14, UNLV'S Artemus Ham Hall) Vegas has officially flown into the light, literature-wise: The beloved true-life storytelling series is coming to town, thanks to the Beverly Rogers, Carol C. Harter Black Mountain Institute and Nevada Public Radio.

COMIC RELIEF As in years past, the 2018 Vegas Valley Comic Book Festival (November 3, Clark County Library) is packed with talents you might know (including Batwoman artist JH Williams III and Dejah Thoris writer Amy Chu) and up-and-comers you should know, speaking in panels, signing their work and more. This is no sprawling, commercialized comic confab—it’s an intimate, creator-forward event, aimed at hardcore comic readers and makers.

ALSO: The Believer Presents: Lucas Mann & Sarah Marshall (October 16, Writer’s Block); Astrophysicist Mario Livio (October 18, UNLV’s Robert L. Bigelow Physics Building); Poet J. Jennifer Espinoza (November 5, Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art); We’ve Got Issues: Best of the Believer Archive (November 26, Writer’s Block).

Visual Arts

Jess Vanessa’s “Entre Espinas Florece Esperanza,” part of ¡Americanx! (Yasmina Chavez/Staff)

¡AMERICANX! (Through October 27, reception October 12, Donna Beam Gallery) Artists Ed Fuentes and Checko Salgado curate this group exhibition by Las Vegas’ best working Latinx artists

BOBBIE ANN HOWELL, SILENCED SNOWSTORM (Through November 10, CSN Artspace) Snowflakes are just the beginning. The artist’s intricate cut-paper creations are gorgeous and, yes, thought-provoking. Catch an artist talk, workshop and reception on October 25.

CIRQUE DU SOLEIL GROUP SHOW (December 1-30, Core Contemporary) Cirque du Soleil performers and employees share their talents in the visual arts in this annual group show—a local’s favorite.

DESERT FLORA AND ABSTRACT SEWING (Through October 20, Priscilla Fowler Fine Art) This joint exhibition features strong floral designs by artist and CSN instructor Jeff Fulmer and abstract textiles by Kristin Meuser.

ROSANNE GIACOMINI, REMATERIALIZED (November 8-January 15, Summerlin Library) The Las Vegas artist takes a variety of textiles—fabric, beads, paint, wire and glass—and transforms them into abstract and geometric art.

ADJUST FOR INFLATION Award-winning sculptor and performance artist Tamar Ettun, who founded the Moving Company artist collective, is traveling from Brooklyn to Las Vegas for the culmination of a yearslong international art project, Jubilation Inflation (October 12-December 15, Barrick Museum). Defying genre or classification, Ettun’s art pulls from a variety of media to create a “multifaceted examination of trauma, healing and radical empathy,” according to the event description. The playful show incorporates, audio installations, gestural sculptures, a suite of experimental videos and, most fantastically, “four inflatable room-sized environments.” Catch the opening reception during the October 12 UNLV Artwalk, which includes a performance by students from the UNLV dance department

ALSO: Kim Johnson & KD Matheson (Through December 1, Left of Center Art Gallery); Soundscapes (October 12-December 15, Barrick Museum’s West Gallery); CSN Faculty Exhibit (November 30, CSN’s Fine Art & Artspace Galleries).

Share
Photo of Las Vegas Weekly Staff

Las Vegas Weekly Staff

Las Vegas Weekly Staff

Get more Las Vegas Weekly Staff
Top of Story