By Don Chareunsy
Spiegelworld’s debut and OG production “Absinthe” at Caesars Palace celebrated its 13th anniversary in April, and it remains of the best and unforgettable headliner shows on the Las Vegas Strip. I remember the grand opening like it was yesterday, and I have attended numerous performances over the years.
I’ve been the victim of cast members on more than one occasion, and it’s always been in fun – envelope-pushing and raunchy fun. The incredible acts have rotated and changed in 13 years, and they’re always interesting and never boring. But one character remains constant: The filthy rich and filthy The Gazillionaire.
A return Sept. 25 was practically an entirely new show, save The Gazillionaire. Penny Pibbets was now Wanda Widdles. There was a female acrobatic troupe! But one thing remained constant: The 9:30 p.m. audience was into it, a game crowd of “divorced Dads,” a Kohl’s polo-clad tourist and a man in pajamas.
At the anniversary show in April, Spiegelworld Impresario Extraordinaire Ross Mollison, as his business card says, entertained guests in the Pier 17 Yacht Club, the new speakeasy bar hidden inside The Green Fairy Garden that surrounds the “Absinthe” tent. The raunchy show and fun must go on.
Mollison told guests, “It’s been 14 years since I first met then-President of Caesars Palace Gary Selesner, who gave Spiegelworld a shot at creating a new show on this hallowed fake Las Vegas turf. … Without the belief and support of Gary, we would have never opened and certainly never survived. …
“And here we stand, 13 years later, by all accounts a bigger hit than ever. Congratulations to everybody who makes ‘Absinthe’ happen every night of the year. … I love Vegas. I love our Caesars Entertainment partners who take a punt on us, including the incredible Tom Reeg, Anthony Carano and Regional President the devilishly handsome Sean McBurney. And I especially love Gary Selesner.”
Selesner died at age 71 on Sept. 9. “Absinthe” is one of the many legacies he left behind, and Caesars’s longest-serving president should be most proud.
More: Spiegelworld.com + Caesars.com
