La Cage, starring Frank Marino, is playing inside the La Cage Theatre at the Riviera Hotel & Casino. This venerable production has been around for over 22 years, and it still seems to be as popular as ever. The cross-dressing celebrity impersonators do an amazing job at bringing to life some of the greatest female stars of our time, and usually make you do a double and a triple take. Are they really men? ...Well, yes of course they are, but they certainly make you question this reality, and as you watch these performances and start feeling an attraction to these "women," it makes you begin to question your own sensibilities...and that is the fun of it all.

The show, which consists of men dressing up as women and impersonating celebrities, has become an icon and a regular stop for many of our tourists...the largest demographic coming (oddly enough) from the Midwest and the Bible Belt. Perhaps it is an offering that is not available in their area, and it is just kitschy enough to make them feel as if they have gain something from their Las Vegas experience.

In spite of the fact that the show does its best to stay updated and topical by changing out the acts and bringing current events into the comedy, the show seems to be feeling its age. It’s time for a makeover. The Riviera’s showroom, the costumes, the choreography, the set, and the staging all need a little work. There is a dinginess that seems to pervade the entire experience. In some ways, because of the nature of the production, the dingy aspects work; but overall the show needs a freshness brought back into it in order to bring it back into the forefront of shows on the Las Vegas Strip.

La Cage features a lot of talented performers. They are adept at their craft, and they do a good job at emulating their respective personalities...usually capturing the gestures and mannerisms that define these people, and then extending them just enough to be clever. The Celine Dion impersonator does this brilliantly. And I must say that the Britney Spears impersonator is absolutely stunning...this is the impersonator that made me question my own sensibilities. I would forget that "she" was a "he," and found myself attracted to this "woman"...and then I would remember that she was a man...and it made me laugh at myself. This is the essence of what La Cage is all about.

The star of the show is Frank Marino. He opens the show as Joan Rivers---delivering a stand-up comedy set that gets everyone laughing and puts everyone in a good mood for the show. He is then featured as the emcee throughout the show to introduce each of the acts...and to show off his spectacular wardrobe. He has a different gown for every appearance on stage (17 costume changes in all,) and you begin to look forward to every one of his entrances just to see what he is wearing next. Frank has been with the show from the very beginning and has become the longest running headliner on the Las Vegas Strip...and after more than 22 years, what can I say...the man still looks good in a dress. If you haven’t seen him perform yet, then you should.

La Cage is a fun evening. It is filled with laughter and amusement. And in spite of the fact that I think that the show needs a complete makeover, it is currently the third longest running show on the Strip (behind Jubilee and Folies Bergere.) So they are certainly doing something right.