It's confirmed, the international hit musical "Mamma Mia!" will debut in the Mandalay Bay's 1,700-seat theatre next February. The show features the music of the Swedish rock group ABBA. The production opened in London in 1999, where it continues to play at the Prince Edward Theatre. The musical is also playing on Broadway and in Toronto and is on tour in the United States with two production companies.

The musical, set on a Greek island, uses 22 ABBA songs including "Dancing Queen" to tell the story of a single mother and her soon-to-be wed daughter. The bride tries to figure out from her mother's dairy, which of three wedding guests is her real father.

Dirk Arthur, who spent last year, as the magic specialty act in "Jubilee!" at Bally's, will take over the 800-seat showroom at the Silverton in mid-August. His show will be called "Dirk Arthur, the New Art of Magic." His direct afternoon competition will be Rick Thomas at the Tropicana and Darren Romeo at The Mirage.

After a one-year run at the New Frontier and several other engagements at other Las Vegas venues prior to that, "Thunder From Down Under" last month settled into a new home in the Excalibur's Merlin's Theater.

The male strip revue highlights Australian hunks doing lively athletic dance routines and heavily involving the mostly female audience. One outrageous bit is a "faking it" contest, where three ladies from the audience are asked to pretend into a microphone onstage that they are having a "good time," if you catch the drift. Liberated fun is what this show is all about. Tickets are $34.95.

Elvis impersonator Pete Willcox is the new Dean Martin character in "The Tribute to Frank, Sammy, Joey & Dean" at the Greek Isles. He has replaced long standing Martin impersonator Rick Michel, who will emcee the new "Baywatch"-themed luau show going in at the Flamingo.

The music that made Frank Sinatra an icon will be discussed in a rare, free public forum when Frank Sinatra Jr. and guests are joined by host Joe Delaney at the MGM Grand Hollywood Theatre on Wednesday, Aug. 14 at 1 p.m. The event will take place one day before Sinatra Jr. and his 36-piece orchestra return to the MGM Grand to perform "Sinatra Sings Sinatra" from Aug. 15-21. Tickets are $47.50 plus tax and handling fee, call 1-800-929-1111.

The guests joining Sinatra Jr. will be Bill Miller, the accompanist to Sinatra Sr. for 51 years, and Terry Woodson, the custodian of the Sinatra music library who was with him for 18 years.

The two-hour program, under the auspices of The Arnold Shaw Popular Music Research Center, will enable music students and the general public to ask questions about the music that influenced several generations. Veteran entertainment columnist Delaney will conduct the interview forum.

Producer David Saxe is adding two more shows to the tiny Bourbon Street mini-showroom where he already stages "The Fielding West Show: Comedy, Tricks & Naked Chicks" at 10:30 p.m. The new shows are a Louisiana-themed revue, "Creole Heat" that has opened in a 7:30 p.m. time slot and "Ladies of the '80s" featuring impersonations of stars like Cyndi Lauper and Madonna with a live band. The second show will debut Aug. 20 in the 9 p.m. slot.

Veteran singer Bobby Vinton will headline at athe Orleans Showroom, Aug. 15-18. Tickets are $39.95, $49.95 and $59.95 plus tax, call 702-365-7075.

The hit songs Vinton has given music lovers over the years have become classics. After a stint in the army, which served as inspiration for one of his biggest hits "Mr. Lonely," Vinton recorded his first hit single, "Roses Are Red." The record climbed to the No. 1 spot and eventually sold over four million copies.

Another one of his recognized tunes "My Melody of Love," became No. 1 in the nation and was embraced by Polish Americans around the country as their new national anthem. Not long after, his best selling autobiography "The Polish Prince" was published.

Pop icon and comedy goddess Judy Tenuta will headline a special performance at the Improv Comedy Club at Harrah's, Aug. 13-18. She'll be joined on stage by fellow comedians Michael Loftus and host Benny Ricardo. Tickets are $39.95 plus tax, call 702- 369-5111.

Tenuta's acerbic wit and over-the-top irreverence have earned her the unofficial title of "fun-feminist," as she preaches that all women should be worshipped as a "Love Goddess" and all men have an equal opportunity to "be her furniture."

Tenuta has served as special correspondent for "America Journal" and "Entertainment Tonight," and has recorded an album entitled "Buy This Pigs," for Elektra Records. In 1987, she hosted her own nightly talk / variety show, "The Princess of Pop Culture" via the Alternative Entertainment Network.

On Aug. 17, the Improv will celebrate its 40th anniversary with a special taped for network television that will air later in the month. The Improv at Harrah's opened in 1995.

TOP OF NEXT COLUMN

The two shows "Flying Fiddles" in the afternoon and "Divine Divas" in the evening only lasted a month at the Fremont downtown. The hotel will wait for fall before making another attempt to supply entertainment in their new venue.

The Scott Brothers, leading practitioners of the dance form called popping, have joined the "Splash" production show at the Riviera as a specialty act. The popping, locking and breaking routines originated in Oakland, California, in the late 1960s and early 1970s and spread throughout the state until the media in

Los Angeles picked it up and made it a nationwide phenomenon in the early 1980s. The Scott Brothers, Michael and "Spider" Rob, were the last of the "name" popper to come out of the period and area.

The Scott Brothers went on to appear in music / dance videos, worked with big names like Prince, Quincy Jones and Carmen Electra, and tour the world promoting their dreamlike mime and robotic movements. In 1999, they worked their way up to finalists on the television program "Destination Stardom" and viewers voted their episodes the most popular. The duo will appear on FOX TV Network's "30 Seconds to Fame" later this year.

One of the greatest jazz vocalists and Grammy winner Dame Cleo Laine and composer / conductor John Dankworth will grace the Suncoast Showroom stage in northwest Las Vegas, Aug. 16-18. Tickets are $34.95, $39.95 and $44.95 plus tax, call 702-636-7075.

Laine began her singing career in the early 1950's in her native England and was encouraged by her Jamaican father and English mother. In her mid-twenties, she auditioned for the renowned British band led by the acclaimed musician Dankworth and that began a successful personal partnership that's lasted 43 years.

Combining her singing and acting abilities, she received a Tony nomination for her role in the hit musical "The Mystery of Edwin Drood." She also received raves for her role as the Witch in the Los Angeles production of Stephen Sondheim's "Into The Woods."

In a career that spans more than 40 years as a composer, performer and conductor, Dankworth founded the London Symphony Orchestra's pops program in 1985, and he has served as the orchestra's Pop Musical Director.

On Aug. 1, the Rio extended and changed "Tony 'n' Tina's Wedding" show performances in the Calypso Room to nightly at 7 p.m. Tickets for the interactive improvisational dinner theater show based on an Italian wedding are $65 for general seating and $75 for VIP seating plus tax, call 702-777-7776.

An addition to "Tony 'n' Tina's Wedding" is Melissa Adamson, who was cast after the show's producers held a nationwide search. She has appeared in several films, television shows, music videos and is also signed as a recording artist with the independent label Phyrst Mpulse Entertainment Group.

The Imperial Palace Race & Sports Book beginning on Aug. 10, will offer "Super Saturdays," the Strip's first weekly handicapping contest on a weekend with a progressive bonus jackpot that starts at $2,000.

For a $10 entry fee with a maximum of three entries, contestants will select one main horse and one alternate horse in either six or eight races split between East and West Coast tracks on the contest day. You earn points for a "Win" (win price + 20 points), "Place" (place price + 10 points) or "Show" (show price + 5 points). At the end of the day, all the players' point totals will be tallied and the top 25 players win cash and / or prizes.

Every "Super Saturday," the first place winner will get $300, followed by $200 for second and $100 for third place. The first 25 places will receive a buffet and a logo shirt. A "Sprint Payoff" of $100 will be awarded to the leader of the first half of the contest, following the East Coast races. The winner must be present to collect the "Sprint Payoff" prize.

Before the contest each week, a target point total will be posted. If a contestant's total points exceed the posted target, they win the progressive bonus jackpot that starts at $2,000. If two or more contestants reach the target number, the highest point total will receive the bonus.

Lee Ann Womack will perform in concert at Buffalo Bill's Star of the Desert Arena in Primm, NV on Friday, Aug. 16. Tickets are $28.50 and $38.50, call Ticketmaster at 702-474-4000. Primm is located 35 miles south of Las Vegas on Interstate 15 at the Southern Nevada / California state line.

Womack is presently touring in between studio breaks where she is recording her upcoming fourth album entitled "Something Worth Leaving Behind." The release date is set for Aug. 20, so during the concert fans will be sure to get a sneak preview of the album.

If you're a poker player, the Palms and the Stardust are running special promotions. At the Palms, card room players can win a seven-day Mexican Riviera cruise for two through Aug. 30. Poker players receive one entry for each hour played with some restrictions applying. On Sept. 2, the casino will hold drawings at 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 p.m. and give away one cruise for two plus $300. The second place prize will be $100 and winners must be present.

The poker room at the Stardust has a drawing every Sunday at 2 p.m. for $200 cash. Poker players receive one free daily entry with additional entries awarded based on play. If the prize isn't collected within five minutes, the cash is applied to the following Sunday's drawing.

CONTINUE ON TO...:
>THIS WEEK'S LAUGHLIN SEGMENT
>LAST WEEK'S LAS VEGAS SEGMENT
>VEGAS VIEWS FULL ARCHIVES
>Return to "Heard Around Town"
>Return to Las Vegas Leisure Guide