Night Clubs Reviews

Jun 14, 2004 - Greg Thompson's "Showgirls" at Harrah's Reno has sensuous late-night class

By Jack Neal

Producer Greg Thompson's "Showgirls" does what an adults-only casino nightclub show should do; it stylishly glorifies the beauty of the female form.

Adorned in stunning Mistinguett costumes - lots of feathers with as little cloth as possible, gorgeous headwear, elegant shoes, color combinations Vincent Minnelli would have loved accented with strands of glittering jewelry - the show's six female dancers are not only uncommonly attractive, they're uncommonly fabulous dancers as well.

These lovely-to-look-at ladies - Cyndi Behnke, Christine Jean Blanc, Jamie Karrh, Christina McDonald, Chelsea Thompson and Cheryl Vick - finesse their way through a short history of American showgirls from Ziegfeld's celebrated girls to the Havana-Latin showgirls Barbara Walters' father, Lou Walters, used to such colorful advantage when he was in the nightclub business decades ago in Miami. It was sitting in her dad's lighting booth as a child that Miss Walters cut her teeth on show business and met such stalwart clubgoers as Al Capone. The rest, as the cliche goes, is history - sans, of course, an Al Capone interview.

"Showgirls'" three dashing male singers - Raymond Jones, Christopher Martin, Tim Tenhumberg - energize the production with lots of high-voltage, beautiful-girl singing and dancing. The singing of the Eagle's 1979 hit, "Heartache Tonight," and the popular standard, "I Got That Lovin' Feeling," are are typical of the revved-up flair this hunky threesome dishes out whenever they sing, move and dance.

Costume designer Mistinguett has also provided the show's choreography and it's sensuous, yet tasteful, and exciting to watch. And how these show girls and boys do love to dance; and the perfect venue for dancing and singing is Harrah's Sammy's Showroom where "Showgirls" is now playing.

This glamorous and intimate room created for the late Barry Ashton and his glamor-girl shows for Reno's Golden Hotel and Casino before Bill Harrah bought the property in 1966, is one of the quintessential nightclub venues in the world. That's why this Greg Thompson show is such a smart booking. Sammy's Showroom needs entertainment to match its illustrious name. Mr. Thompson is one of the few producers who consistently creates top notch nightclub shows worthy of the Sammy Davis name and entertainment allure.

As with other Greg Thompson shows, "Showgirls" uses video clips as an introduction to its production numbers. "Showgirls" is far from a documentary, but its visuals provide a neat angle (with lots of interesting information) on which to hang the show's showgirl retrospective.

For the uninitiated, "Showgirls" is a topless show. But it has the intelligence and grace that make it a celebration of adult entertainment appropriate for anyone who loves looking at beautiful women and handsome men with talent, who've been given something to do that also just happens to be solidly entertaining.

"Showgirls" is current and choice and can be seen at Harrah's Reno, 219 North Center Street, Reno, in Sammy's Showroom. Nightly except Tuesdays throughout the 2004 summer season. For information call 1-775-788-2900.