Vaudeville vibes and funny flying objects

It's a variety act that plays legitimate theaters. It hails back to the turn of the previous century but blasts away the old-Vegas sequins with smart humor and a New York sensibility.

Why bring up Penn & Teller, you ask? They've lived here since 1994.

Ah, but these are the Flying Karamazov Brothers, a quartet of comic jugglers whose history of nearly 40 years ignored Las Vegas before landing at The Venetian.

So what took them so long?

"I'm asking myself that: What was the problem?" says Paul Magid, the group's guiding hand and original member.

So happy is he with the first half of a stint that resumes today through Saturday, Magid is wondering why no one thought of this Vegas thing until Venetian entertainment director Chris Yancey saw the Brothers in New York and approached them about working here.

"We never really pursued it. But now that we've done it, it seems like something we should keep doing," Magid says. "I'm hoping we can make something work there on a much larger, longer basis."

Las Vegas long ago completed the link to New York's neovaudeville titles, and the years between Penn & Teller and "Absinthe" erased most of the old questions about those shows being "too hip for the Strip."

Yet the slapstick Brothers do pull their name from Dostoevsky's "The Brothers Karamazov." And, like the Blue Man Group, they mix some dry wit with their child's play.

"I was in theater first and also in music, so when I started this (40 years ago), I always thought of it as a theater experiment," Magid says. "I never knew it was going to go this far or anything."

Magid calls the Venetian show "a compendium" of 20-some different Karamazov productions, which include their riff on Shakespeare's "Comedy of Errors."

With the end of his 50s on the horizon, Magid knows "at some point I'll have to phase myself out." But for now he's still up to the nightly challenge of audience members bringing up an object for him to juggle, under the threat of a pie in the face if he loses.

"Here we are in Las Vegas making a bet. This is a real bet. I could lose," he says. "I've been getting great stuff (from Venetian audiences). "I even lost once. But we've had some pretty good nasty, smelly, sticky, slimy things." ...

Speaking of nasty things and of Penn & Teller - or at least Teller - the silent one's contributions to a theatrical adaptation of "The Exorcist" are now on display in Los Angeles, at the Geffen Playhouse through Aug. 12.

In earlier emails, Teller stressed the philosophical approach would mean no green barf, spinning heads or flying beds. But reviews have spilled that a Teller-assisted levitation is involved.

Also on the boards: longtime Las Vegan Jerry Lewis directing an adaptation of "The Nutty Professor," through Aug. 19 at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center in Nashville, Tenn. ...

The Rio no longer has too many shows you probably didn't even know were there.

The King's Room annex to the Crown Theater has shed most of the titles sharing it: stand-up headliner Grandma Lee, "The Dirty Joke Show," "Happy Hour Comedy" and "Comic Therapy." Only comedian Eddie Griffin remains.

"I don't really blame anybody," says Joe Sanfelippo, who produced all the shows except "Dirty." Subcontracting from theater operator Darin Feinstein made it too hard to be part of Caesars Entertainment's big picture.

"It doesn't really work unless you're dealing directly with a casino," Sanfelippo says. ...

The nontopless "iCandy Burlesque," last seen in the open lounge area of the Tropicana before Christmas, plans to reopen as a longer, ticketed affair in the Saxe Theater at the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood Resort on Aug. 2. (It was announced in press releases as today, but pushed back.)

The revue is again helmed by Nannette Barbera, this time in partnership with veteran producer John Stuart. ...

Should we question the timing at Planet Hollywood Resort? It was recently announced that Cee Lo Green is postponing his "Loberace" showcase until Feb. 27. In March and April, it will run four nights per week.

Before that came the announcement that Holly Madison leaves "Peepshow" Dec. 30. A replacement has not been announced. Until that happens, rumors float that "Peepshow" will simply fade away to that great burlesque hall in the sky.

Granted, Cee Lo won't be around all the time. Could that be why there is also a move to rebrand Planet Hollywood's larger 7,000-seat concert hall - one relegated to R&B shows advertised on utility poles in the R-J neighborhood - as "PH Live," and book bigger acts such as Nicki Minaj?

Just asking. Even if "Peepshow" stays open, I predict January will bring a redecorated theater facade, with "Loberace" taking up most of the real estate. ...

Finally, the death of Sherman Hemsley prompted a dusting of old clips from the Review-Journal's vaults. I remembered the actor as a perhaps-unlikely enthusiast of progressive rock groups such as Yes (due Aug. 19 at the Palms) that I grew up loving.

Still, it was a little surprising to reread a quote from the R-J feature about Hemsley's Sahara stint in 1989.

"When people accept this (variety act), then I can take another step ... a whole ballet," he explained. "Busby Berkeley-style, but hip. If it was up to me, I'd have lasers in here, people hanging from the ceiling."

He didn't specifically mention acrobats in surreal costumes, but it seems as though he was on the right track.

Contact reporter Mike Weatherford at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0288.