In past years we have had big shows like Celine come to town and big casinos like Wynn rise into the skyline. This year's highlights are likely to fall more in the category of fine-tuning: more hipster clubs, more celebrity chefs, more Broadway shows, and, of course, more Cirque.
Here we take a look at what's to come in 2006:
Item: The Amazing Meeting 4
Place: Stardust
Date: January 26-29
Thing to Notice: This benefit for the James Randi Educational Foundation offers a perfect blend of stimulation for the intellect and entertainment, too. Last year it featured everything from Penn & Teller to fake séances to Christopher Hitchens bad-mouthing Mother Teresa.
Item: Hairspray
Place: Luxor
Date: February
Thing to notice: There has been a lot of attention focused on this being an abbreviated version of the Broadway original. Still, this camp extravaganza about racism, dance and suburbia shouldn't suffer too much from well-placed trims.
Item: Chef Guy Savoy opens restaurant
Place: Caesars new Augustus Tower
Approximate Date: Early 2006
Thing to Notice: Another European chef with a three-star Michelin rating comes to Las Vegas. This will be Savoy's first restaurant outside of Paris.
Item: Hooters Casino
Place: Old San Remo
Approximate Date: First Quarter 2006
Thing To Notice: Las Vegas cocktail waitress uniforms could already be the subject for a Women's Studies dissertation. Hooters' suburban naughtiness seems almost tame by comparison. Still, the Hooters brand has to be a better marketing concept than San Remo, doesn't it?
Item: International Ventriloquists Convention
Place: Imperial Palace
Date: April 28-30
Thing to Notice: The voices in your head may belong to someone else.
Item: Cirque du Soleil's Beatles show
Place: Mirage
Approximate Date: Mid-to-Late 2006
Thing to Notice: This has been one of the best kept secrets in Las Vegas. Please let's hope that the rumor of a Yellow Submarine restaurant is false. Even if you are sick of Cirque it will be fascinating to see what they do with the most successful popular music of the 20th century.
Item: Mario Batali's restaurant
Place: Venetian
Approximate Date: Mid-to-Late 2006
Thing To Notice: The creator of New York's Babbo and star of shows on the Food Network finally comes to Las Vegas. In a September 2003 interview with The Institute of Culinary Education newsletter Batali said: "If I was to do anything in Las Vegas, for instance, it would have to be … idiot-proof. And I still haven't decided if I'm capable of that."
The big picture:
Also, keep an eye on the transformation of Aladdin into Planet Hollywood that should begin to happen in earnest this year. Finally, Harrah's entertainment has been long rumored to be heading for a shakeup and since they now own Imperial Palace, Harrah's, Rio and Caesars they have a lot to work with (though expect Penn & Teller, Celine and Elton to all be unaffected).