The unbreakable connection between Elvis and Vegas has persevered through generations, because the entities would simply not exist in the same way without one another.
Elvis & Vegas
We lost the King 45 years ago, and Las Vegas has bonded with other iconic resident performers during the decades since. But despite evolution in entertainment and pop culture—and even though Elvis might not cast as long a shadow across today’s Strip—there’s no other union that could replace this essential amalgam.
Elvis Presley put Las Vegas back on the map, not during his debut in 1956 at the New Frontier—when he hadn’t yet made history on The Ed Sullivan Show or truly captivated the country’s attention—but when he arrived for a four-week engagement at the International Hotel in 1969, famously revitalizing his career after an eight-year absence from live performances. That series turned into more than 600 concerts at the International Theater (still standing inside today’s Westgate Las Vegas resort), a headlining residency that elevated casino entertainment beyond the lounges of the Rat Pack era and attracted a wider, younger demographic to Las Vegas.
Elvis Presley, performing at the International Hotel on August 17, 1971
Elvis’ impact is examined comprehensively in Richard Zoglin’s 2019 book Elvis in Vegas. “As the ’60s went on into the counterculture years, the war, The Beatles and the whole emergence of rock ’n’ roll, Vegas was suddenly seeming a bit old-fashioned,” Zoglin, who covered entertainment for 30 years as a writer and editor at Time magazine, tells the Weekly. “That traditional nightclub entertainment was of no interest to the younger generation. Elvis was a sort of bridge. He appealed to an older crowd, housewives who used to scream at him when they were teenagers, but still had credibility in the rock ’n’ roll world so the critics came out to see his big return.
“And he brought a new audience to Vegas,” Zoglin continues, “people from around the country who were just big fans and maybe weren’t Vegas regulars, some who had never been there before. It was more of a mass, middle-American audience than the high roller you’d identify with the Rat Pack years. And a couple decades later, [attracting] families became the new theme in Las Vegas.”
The post-Elvis era in Vegas has traditionally been heavily stacked with Elvis, from impersonators strumming guitars on Strip streetscapes, to lounge acts obligatorily playing his songs, to celebrity tribute shows flooding stages with a white-suited wonder as their grand finale. Legends in Concert, Million Dollar Quartet and American Superstars are just a few of the productions that have built successful reputations, in part, on the music and iconography of the King, and renowned talents like Pete Vallee (aka “Big Elvis,” still performing these days at the Piano Bar at Harrah’s) and the late Trent Carlini have enjoyed long careers on the Strip through their interpretations of Presley’s sounds and style.
Elvis Presley signs autographs, at the Sahara in 1963.
Travis Allen was a country music artist until 14 years ago, when he started performing as Elvis in Las Vegas on a double-decker bus tour of the Strip. Now he stars in All Shook Up, the only all-Elvis tribute show in Vegas at the moment, performing at 6 p.m. most nights at Alexis Park Resort. It opened in 2014 at the V Theater at the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood and relocated after the pandemic shutdown.
“I was a huge fan my whole life because of my dad, but I didn’t want to play [Presley’s songs], because I didn’t want to disrespect Elvis. He’s the King,” Allen says. “I didn’t start doing Elvis until I hit 30. I was doing my own music, and there was an opportunity and I took it, and I love it. It’s given me a great life. I’ve been busy every day for 13 years.”
Elvis Presley with members of his band poolside at the New Frontier in 1956
He’s not sure why there aren’t more Elvis shows in Vegas today, but Allen knows it’s hard to find a good Elvis right now, because the most talented and experienced entertainers are already doing their own thing, just like he is. “The hard part is trying to find someone who can sing, look OK and move, and entertain at the same time without being cheesy. It’s hard.”
Vegas has seen all the iterations of Elvis through the years, and many haven’t worked. Most recently, the wildly entertaining and musically pristine Heartbreak Hotel in Concert gave it a go at Harrah’s, but it didn’t pack enough Presley punch; Elvis fans didn’t get their nostalgic fix. And of course, Cirque du Soleil launched Viva Elvis at the brand-new Aria resort in 2010, an avant-garde take on the King’s legacy that was shuttered in 2012.
An Elvis busker at the 'Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign
“Part of our success is that we recognize … that the persona of Elvis alone is not going to fill a 400-, 600-, 800- or 2,000-seat room for five to seven shows a week here right now,” says Kurt Brown, producer of All Shook Up. “There are too many other things going on in Las Vegas. But Elvis will always be a big part of Las Vegas. Extravaganza [at Bally’s] has an Elvis character. Vegas! The Show, which will be reopening soon [at V Theater] has somebody singing several Elvis songs. It’s just part of Vegas history.”
There’s a new chapter of Elvis history being written right now with the June 24 release of Baz Luhrmann’s biopic Elvis, starring Austin Butler as Elvis and Tom Hanks as Colonel Tom Parker. Depending how the film fares with critics and audiences, it could have a significant impact on the appetite for all things Elvis, in Las Vegas and beyond.
Baz Luhrmann’s ‘Elvis’
“There are Elvis fans out there who don’t want to see a portrayal; they just want to see him. It’s almost taboo,” Brown says. “Then there are fans who are also fans of tribute artists, and … they are definitely fired up about this movie.”
Though he has mixed feelings about the film’s portrayal of the King’s life, Allen says he’s excited to see it—and he has already noticed its appeal for younger fans. “I just did a show in California and did a meet-and-greet, and this young girl walks up, and … her mom says she’s kind of a fan because of the Elvis stuff in [Disney animated movie] Lilo & Stitch,” he says. “And I said, ‘Do you know Austin Butler?’ And she got a little giddy, and [said] she was going to see the movie. So there you go.
“It will definitely make [Butler] more famous, but I’m hoping it will shine the light on the icon of Elvis a bit, Allen says, “and maybe these kids will think, man, Elvis was cool.”
Click HERE to subscribe for free to the Weekly Fix, the digital edition of Las Vegas Weekly! Stay up to date with the latest on Las Vegas concerts, shows, restaurants, bars and more, sent directly to your inbox!
