Danny Gans at The Mirage

06/28/07

Very good and diverse impersonations!

by ladie81

I really enjoyed this show. His impersonations were pretty spot-on and he portrayed people/acts from the 1940s-the present. He did the standard acts like Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin and a really heart-warming impression of George Burns. He also had some really surprising ones like Anita Baker and Louis Armstrong. More recent acts portrayed included Creed and Dave Matthews Band. Basically, the vast majority of the performance is impersonations. However, I never found myself bored. I did get these tickets for free and had a great time. The tickets are $100 each full-priced, I don't think it's worth such a hefty price but if you can get discounted or free tickets, definitely go.

• Pros: Good impersonations, something for everyone in the act.
• Cons: Somewhat hefty price.

12/11/06

Amateurish Hack Not Worth Anywhere Near the $100 Ticket Price

by dbcreates

At $100 per ticket, this show is the worst value in LV. Mr. Gans may have an adoring family who egged him on, he may do loads of charity work--but he really should work on his impressions. Any impressionist who has to state whom is being imitated needs to hone his act BIGTIME. If they sing & charge money it should be on key. If they who tell jokes they should hire writers who can write funny stuff. Any performer not known outside Vegas (ie, no guest spot on Jay Leno or David Letterman, no HBO special) should be avoided like the plague---at the very least! I'm reminded of an old Mad magazine bit where movie reviews were taken out of context to seem like they were favorable. Same ruse here. 'Entertainer of the Year' left out 'in Lower West Borneo', but that'd be insulting the people of Lower West Borneo.

The large theater holds apx. 2000 people, so that's 200K per night. More than enough to invest in an Antares pitch correcter for Mr. Gans' often off-key voice. Enough to pay some really sharp FUNNY writers. Enough to rent some tapes of Rich Little, Frank Gorshin, other great impressionists, & the actual people he tries to impersonate. Mind you, gentle reader, we were in the minority. All but about 5 of us thought the show was great, laughing & applauding wildly at every well-milked pause.

Bottom line, if your taste goes for amateurish high-school-ish talent shows, a singer who doesn't know the limits of his voice, and impressionists who only vaguely sound like their subject, by all means, go. I realize many who read this will think I am the one who's off the mark. So be it. But if I can keep one fairly intelligent, mildly sophisticated and reasonably well-rounded person from squandering $100, this review will have served its purpose. As my husband said, 'It would have been more entertaining to light two $100 on fire!'. As for the masses who loved it, as Dorothy Parker said,'You can lead a whore-to-culture, but you can't make her think!'

• Pros: Big theater, great back-up band
• Cons: Amateurish Star, sang off-key, mediocre impressions