ENTERTAINMENT: “Peepshow” debut and party both breezy

    At least this time the show was better than the party. Disappointing if you ran out and bought a new dress, but the right order of priorities if you have a stake in “Peepshow.”

  April winds put a bit of a damper on the after-party for the debut of the new burlesque-meets-Broadway revue at Planet Hollywood Saturday, which had its official rollout to an audience that included Donald Trump and Charlie Sheen.

    The party was on the same sixth-floor pool deck as the one that followed the June 2007 debut of “Hans Klok — The Beauty of Magic.” That one reflected happier days of sushi chefs and jumbo shrimp. This one, befitting the current state of the casino industry, offered mini-burgers and fish sandwiches in Sterno-warmed chafing dishes losing the battle against the evening breeze.
   The munchie menu suited a show that gives beer tastes a champagne budget.

  A full review will run in Friday’s Neon section. But for now it’s enough to say “Peepshow” is an ambitiously mixed bag with strong elements and cheesy ones, and a bit of an identity crisis about just what kind of show it’s trying to be. It’s not the slam-dunk producers are looking for in this economic climate, but it’s not the giant stink bomb that was Hans Klok, which the guests happily trashed as they munched their sushi. Here, most partygoers at least had something nice to say.
  I told producer Scott Zeiger that it’s hard for me to separate the critic’s part of the job from the columnist/reporter side that covers the business of entertainment. I kept thinking about the huge marketing challenge they will have with the title “Peepshow,” given that women tend to call the shots in choosing which Las Vegas shows a couple will see. If my own wife is any barometer, it could be a tough sell getting women through the door to discover the revue is far from sleazy — some gents might say it isn’t sleazy enough — and that it also tries to put up some beefcake for the women in its own manner (with a gay-male sensibility).
    Then there’s the $12 million budget, which allows for extravagances such as live singers and a band. Clearly the show doesn’t belong in the category of topless cabaret revues such as “Fantasy,” “X Burlesque” or the new “Sin City Bad Girls” at the Las Vegas Hilton. But good luck explaining that. From a business perspective, the cabaret shows thrive on a second tier for a reason. They don’t offer much more than skin because they don’t really have to. This one attempts to elevate “B show” material to “A show” status with $71 to $110 tickets. Compare it to the way Hollywood now makes its tent-pole titles such as “Iron Man” from the superhero and sci-fi genres that once were its ghetto. Maybe a Las Vegas show can work that way too. It’s an intriguing concept and good for the town if it works. But it’s a tough year to try it.