Soapbox orator tackles trivial

Taking a break from my usual Sunday effort to hold you with one topic for the entire length of a page, I'm inspired by the blogosphere to weigh in most stridently on topics mostly trivial.

• In a Jan. 14 column ("Please Bring These Shows to Town") I said Las Vegas should stage Pink Floyd's "The Wall," since custom theaters on the Strip can do giant puppets and tumbling walls better than anyone.

Recently, I was astonished to read of plans for a Broadway "Spider-Man," directed by Julie Taymor with music by Bono and The Edge. Who gets fired for letting this one get away? Anyone who has seen "Ka" can tell you Vegas is the only place for a Webslinger-Doc Ock fight right over our heads.

C'mon casinos, show some initiative. Quit waiting for Broadway producers to give you shopworn titles like "The Producers." ...

• "Monty Python's Spamalot" comes with a couple of quirks.

The musical is "recommended for adults and children 8 years or older." As the parent of a 7-year-old, I catch myself watching shows with an eye toward which ones she could see.

Otherwise, I might not have wondered who decided 8 is the age when youngsters now are familiar with the "s word" and gay jokes. Given our coarse society I'm sure it's true, but you still wonder who decided. Casino officials say they don't know; they're mirroring the Broadway policy.

Also, the show has a key audience-participation gag where a person is pulled up from the audience. It's always the same seat because of a big prop bearing the seat number. What happens if you request the seat? The gag loses its punch if people want to go up onstage.

A co-worker says he was told it was not available until July. Wynn officials say box office attendants are instructed to tell you it's already sold. So be cagey. Of course, it is on Row D, so it's a popular seat anyway.

• Finally, the jet set. A recent interview with Bill Maher got me thinking about criticism of Al Gore for flying all over the world to talk about global warming, or Prince Charles giving up his private jet. Cutting carbon emissions from aircraft is said to be a tougher fix than from cars.

Barry Manilow and Jay Leno fly back and forth from California for gigs instead of spending the night. Neither are strongly tied to environmental causes in their generous charity work, but you gotta wonder: What's so bad about having to spend the night in a VIP suite?

"I have an electric private jet," Maher joked, before adding seriously that in his case, "There's no other way to make the gig. You can't prevent a person from working." But he was quick to add he likes spending the night in Vegas.

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