Saturday, August 25, 2007

Star Trek Experience - Las Vegas Hilton


The other week I dragged my Grandmother to see the Star Trek Experience at the Las Vegas Hilton. The whole family was in town, but she was the only one brave enough to attempt the journey. She was secretly a fan of Star Trek and so actually was the only volunteer. Most everyone backed out at the ticket prices. When the SO and I went before we got the Latinum Package, or something like that, that included the back stage tour. It was definitely worthwhile.

To begin, the Hilton did a great job of highlighting the Experience. The casino entrance to the experience includes a mini-casino with science fiction inspired slot machines and decor. One can never get enough of the Twilight Zone and MIB video slot games. There are also actors in costumes that greet you and speak to you in the surrounding environment. You can have your picture taken with a Borg, or like myself discuss the joys of colder climates with an Andorian woman. There is also a restaurant designed to mimic Quark's from Deep Space Nine and the obligatory gift shop. There is also a worthwhile museum which extends into the lines for the rides. The museum has beautiful examples of the wool costumes worn by the cast. Wool was used because it doesn't wrinkle and so looks futuristic, although the set had to be heavily air conditioned. It is amazing to see how properties have changed over the years to improve the appearance of hand props.


The rides themselves are worth the price of admission. The two rides are the Borg Invasion 4D and the Klingon Encounter. If you need to choose only one, I would recommend the Klingon Encounter.

The Borg Invasion 4D is essentially an immersion movie experience. They can seat more so the line moves faster. The three dimensional movie is accompanied by things that trigger the other senses. It is not to say it is a bad experience, but it pales to the Klingon Encounter. I recommend therefore that you attempt this experience before the Klingon. This is coming from a huge fan of Captain Jane Way. The movie is well done, and the three dimensional graphics are nothing like you expect from the old fashion red and green glasses experiences from the seventies and eighties. The fourth dimension that they refer to is the movement of the seats. This is the movie that William Castle wish he had the technology to make. It will have you jumping out of your seat.


Unfortunately, I am sworn to secrecy concerning the Klingon Encounter. Needless to say, even my Grandmother jumped out of her skin on a few occasions. The effects are stunning, and it is fully immersive. The shuttle craft ride is amazing, and makes the Back to the Future Ride at Universal Studios look antiquated. The exhilarating and excitement is amazing.

The backstage tour is worth the extra expense. The tour guide we had, memorized every person on the tour's name before we even began. He had a great rapport, a great sense of humor, and knew everything that you could possible know about Star Trek. He was challenged on a few occasions by the tour group, and was able to answer any question about any version of the show. The Hilton has done its homework. Even the Klingon actors must be fluent in the Klingon language in order to join the cast. The knowledge and enthusiasm of our tour guide, and what we were able to see from a different perspective made it worthwhile. We are quiet fans, but have our badges from the backstage tour posted on the wall. This was truly a worthwhile experience.




Liam Sullivan at the House of Blues

Friday night we went out to see Liam Sullivan perform at the House of Blues in the Mandalay Bay. You may also know Liam as Kelly the girl obsessed with shoes. For the SO and I it was the first time seeing Liam perform live. She had not seen any of the videos on the web so it was a new experience for her. The opening comedian was especially funny, and a Vegas local. Being a long time fan I was delighted to see the new video for "Let me Borrow that Top." Which has not been released publicly yet.

Perhaps the only shortcoming of the show was that there were too many videos shown that you could have seen on the web. The DVD's menu options being visible on the screen and the DVD for sale afterwards not being the most discreet thing in the world- whatever happened to suspension of disbelief? The difference is when you watch them on the web you are normally the only one in the room. Watching the video with a roomfull of people who can sing the "Shoe" song along with you is a very different experience. I know that when you are with a group you are more likely to laugh, and this was no exception. Regardless, we wanted to see more of Liam and more of Kelly live. Rachael Lawrence made a suprise appearance toward the end of the show. I was hoping to see her and Liam sing their "Relationshit" song, but was not disappointed in her cameo.

It was great to see the loyal cult following. From the model bear couple who had custom printed tees especially for the event, to the group in front of me that had made their own home-made tees that advertised for Cunningham's "Isreal-Palestinian Conflict Muffins," this was a show for the fans. There was even a mother who brought her three daughters, and a large sign that said, "WE LOVE KELLY!" spelled out in glitter paint. The fans were not disappointed either.

If there were any two things that stood out it was the desire to see more live material in a live venue, and to have a tighter show. I know that Liam is primarily a television and video actor, and so this might have been the reason for it. Normally a show that starts at 7:30 should start at 7:30. Holding the house for half an hour can be expected if you want to make sure every seat is filled, and perhaps people in Vegas normally arrive late. The show did not start until after 8:30 and had a few technical glitches that could have been fixed by stronger management or tech. I also understand it was the first time on the road, and so that may be a big part of the problem. Other than that it was an enjoyable time and something I would definitely encourage others to go an see.

The venue itself was beautiful, and was a joy to look at. Accousticly it was right on, and security was tight but polite. The drink prices were a little steep ($9.75 for a Bud Light and a Diet Pepsi), but not too crazy when you add the "concert venue tax," and the "Vegas strip when you are not gambling tax." Ticket master was a beast as to be expected. The $15 show tickets for center of the house seemed to be unbelievable. By the time the tickets were actually purchased they ran about $27 each with new fees added each time we clicked on a screen. The will-call window was not seperate and so we also had to wait in line behind two girls who had brought the two windows to a halt either for leering or trying to decipher what they wanted.
In order to try to cut the line, we decided to eat at the House of Blues as well. The venue was beautifully decorated with folk art, visages of great blues artists, and homages to the past. It turned out the "skipping the line," was unnecessary. We wish we had known that however. Service at the HOB, for those in the "know," was sluggish. We had to ask for our check early to make sure that we could make it to the show on time. The medium well grilled flatiron steak sandwich was served at most medium-raw, without enough time to correct the error by the time it arrived. We muddled through and it was still a decent burger with the garlic aoli and ciabatta bread making the sandwich worthwhile. My SO opted for the "Crispy Catfish Nuggets," but found it to be too gamey to be palatable. She did however go crazy for the sweet potatoe fries and spicy tartar sauce. Perhaps our experience was biased since when we rushed to leave I found my pants stuck to the chair. A large wad of green gum had been placed there by a previous patron. An ice cube managed to solve the problem, and management was quick to offer to pay for cleaning or replacement for the slacks. The casino floor itself was large and open. We watched several people hit some large bonus rounds, and hit a few ourselves. For a stip casino, the slots seemed to be rather decent with the payout percentage. It was crowded, both before dinner and the show and afterwards. The crowd seemed fairly young demographically, and quite energetic. We only stayed for a short while, but will do more exploring later.


Welcome

I hope with this blog to introduce some conventionally unexplored and some explored areas of Las Vegas. I am new to the area, and will share my experiences at different venues in hopes that it might help illuminate those traveling to the area or relocating here. Please feel free to comment on any of the entries. I will try not to make this a Wiki on how to become a Slot Zombie, but the key word is try...