ATLANTIC CITY, NJ - JANUARY 16: 2011 Miss'd America Pageant drag show production at Boardwalk Hall Arena on January 16, 2011 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. (Photo by Donald Kravitz
ATLANTIC CITY — Entertainment will become a real drag at Resorts Casino Hotel beginning May 5. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
That’s when the born-again First Game in Town will debut the gender-bender production show Believe: Divas In A Man’s World for an extended run.
The show will raise its audiences to new heights, too, because it will be presented in the vastly underutilized Screening Room, a 350-seat theater that’s mostly flown under the radar because it’s located on the building’s 13th floor. (Resorts is one of the few buildings in the country that actually has a 13th floor.)
Divas In A Man’s World will feature a cast of celebrity and female impersonators, sort of a mash-up of the old Atlantic City casino revues An Evening at La Cage and Legends in Concert, which were two of the city’s longest-running shows.
When the curtain rises on Divas, Steven Andrade, a Philadelphia native and celebrity impersonator, will fulfill a decade-long dream to produce this kind of show.
“I have entertained nationally and internationally, [and] so has the rest of the cast,” Andrade, who will portray Cher, said when the show was announced. “Our show, through song, dance and dazzling costumes, is an homage to the legendary divas that have shaped the entertainment landscape for the past several decades.”
Divas will feature clones of both contemporary and long-established celebrities in its lineup. No drag show would be complete without a Joan Rivers clone serving as the host, and the new show is no exception with Gary Dee hosting as the iconic comedian.
Other familiar faces in the cast will include Prince (Frank Moore), Liza Minnelli (played by La Cage regular Phyl Craig), Bette Midler (as seen through the makeup of Jimmy Electra), Patti LaBelle (played by Eddie Summers) and modern-day music phenomenon Lady Gaga (as interpreted by Jay Sanchez).
The addition of the show to the Resorts line-up is another indication that the casino, which was rescued from the brink of closing by new owner Dennis Gomes and his financial partner, Morris Bailey, will use a variety of entertainment offerings to try and lure business back to Atlantic City’s first casino, which celebrates its 33rd anniversary next month.
Plus, the Trail of Two Cities, Diva Bingo and the Album of the Week
The entrepreneurial drive and outside-the-box disposition that Resorts’ late CEO Dennis Gomes was so well known for manifested itself in the Pro Bar — the first in-casino gay nightclub in Atlantic City’s history that opened a year ago in tandem with the celebrity- and female-impersonation revue show Believe: Divas in a Man’s World.
“I wish I could say I did it dancing, but the truth is that I tripped over my dog."
Turns out, 'Believe' is a bridge of understanding and acceptance too — between worlds that might otherwise not meet.
Resorts has provided AC Weekly with terrific time-lapse video showing the raising of the new Resorts Event Pavilion, where the circuses will be performed through Sept. 11, 2011.
Female impersonators are nothing new in the Atlantic City landscape. Bally’s hosted An Evening at La Cage for 11 years and the town has hosted the Miss’d America Pageant, a spoof of the Miss America Pageant featuring cross-dressing gentlemen. However, the town has never hosted a show as enticing and hilarious as 'Believe - Divas In A Man’s World.'
'Everything we do as a society is based on love. I want to welcome everyone. Our arms are open to all aspects of our culture.'
This GLBT population consistently frequents areas/genres that cater to multiple orientations. They are not limited to the old definition, but are more so driven to openly enjoy themselves in environments that are mutually sensitive — and not offensive.
Definition of a drag queen? A man who likes to eat, drink, and be Mary! It may sound funny to some and it’s easy to crack a joke here and there, but until you get to an event such as this past weekend’s Miss’d America Pageant, you cannot imagine the talent, sincerity, and camaraderie that fills the room.
The show was created in the early 1990s by former Atlantic City Councilman John Schultz and his partner, Gary Hill, and held at their old Studio Six nightclub, once considered the epicenter for gay life in Atlantic City.
The openly gay comic takes the reigns of the city's newest tradition, Miss'd America, which takes place at Boardwalk Hall Sunday, Jan. 16.
So last week, there was Hitchen, head to toe decked out as “Knockers Johnson,” filming the opening skit for this year’s pageant on the beach. Other characters were Lucy Luckyano and Ally Capone, possibly the first time some of America’s most famous gangsters ....
“I’m very much looking forward to visiting Atlantic City,” says de Medici, who will also be in attendance during Saturday night’s post party at the Pro Bar at Resorts.
Girls Night: The Musical provides a basic female bonding plot involving four female friends — and a fifth who is there in “spirit” only — letting down their hair and enjoying ’80s music, gossip and belting out female empowerment songs at a Karaoke bar.
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