Years ago, it wouldn't have been newsworthy that a big-name musical act planned to play Las Vegas three times in a year.

Even on Monday, news of Brooks & Dunn's three stints at the Las Vegas Hilton probably wouldn't have commanded a press conference, had the duo not been in town already for the Academy of Country Music awards. Heck, they already played the Hilton during the National Finals Rodeo from 2000 through 2003.

But the event -- coming three days after the Flamingo Las Vegas had its own news conference to announce Toni Braxton -- suggests the casinos are remembering star power as a time-tested answer to Cirque du Soleil saturation and the still-iffy tide of Broadway musicals.

The Brooks & Dunn booking also shows how unusual the old formula has become. On the Strip, only the Colosseum at Caesars Palace, the MGM Grand's Hollywood Theatre and the Stardust -- for a few more months -- have the flexibility to book multiple engagements by a headliner.

"We're riding a wave of popularity and artists who come in just love the room," noted Ken Ciancimino, the Hilton's executive vice president of administration. This was not long after Reba McEntire had told reporters, "I've been telling the guys how much fun it was, just like Barry Manilow told me."

Brooks & Dunn will return for the National Finals Rodeo Dec. 4-6, then in March 2007 during NASCAR and again in July.

Nailing down multiple dates in advance not only brands an act to a casino, but has a collective marketing power that single concerts lack.

"You can market to the database, you can plan events on the property. It becomes comprehensive and it's a wonderful thing to be able to do," Ciancimino noted.

The catch, of course, is that stars are expensive and so are the tickets, so the curious need not apply. With an average ticket price of $117 (not counting $195 "VIP" seats, which include a meet-and-greet) and only 1,800 seats, each Brooks & Dunn show could gross upward of $211,000. You can figure the act will be guaranteed better than half of that, leaving the casino to sweat any empty seats.

But, as Brooks noted, it's not like they need nonfans to fill four nights in a comparatively small venue. "You can do your thing here. It's not like Vegas is something weird and different anymore." ...

More proof that suburban "mall country" culture has spread beyond the rodeo circuit. Last weekend, Harrah's Las Vegas unveiled its new topless country revue, "Bareback." And the first show on May 19 was blessed by the presence of Big & Rich, the kings of stripper anthems such as "Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)."

"I was a little on edge to tell you the truth," says Darryl Ross, one of the show's featured singers and its backstage vocal captain. "I'm just so glad they were positive."

You'd think Big & Rich would be happy with just about any show that features nightly exposure for three of their songs, as well as one each from Gretchen Wilson and Cowboy Troy, both acts that they oversee.

"Bareback" replaces "Skintight," with Ross and the female dance cast held over from that show, along with new male singers and dancers. ...

Another adult revue, "X Girls -- The Show," at the Desert Passage mall, has made some promising changes. Enrique Lugo, who co-choreographed and starred in another Desert Passage show, "Fashionistas," crossed the mall to stage some new numbers for "X."

"Fashionistas" is produced by porn mogul John Stagliano, who said that Lugo's work pushed the envelope more than he would have. That's saying something. ...

More choreography news: "So You Think You Can Dance," the dance competition returning to Fox network TV today, has Mia Michaels as one of the five judges who thin the herd of contestants in Las Vegas-based callbacks. Michaels is the choreographer of Celine Dion's "A New Day" at Caesars Palace. ...

Sometimes -- not as often as the boss would like -- we interview entertainers well in advance of their Las Vegas show dates. So when Donny Osmond was on the phone a couple of weeks ago, he kept being cryptic about an upcoming venture -- "something to do with New York ... pretty darned exciting" -- that he hadn't yet signed on the dotted line.

Later it was revealed: Osmond, who brings his variety act to The Orleans June 8-11, will join the Broadway cast of "Beauty and the Beast" as the villainous buffoon Gaston for nine weeks starting Sept. 19.

Mike Weatherford's entertainment column appears Thursdays and Sundays. Contact him at 383-0288 or e-mail him at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com.