L.A. to Vegas: Carrie Underwood and Garth Brooks Extend Their Residencies Los Angeles Magazine

Welcome to LAMag's semimonthly update on major restaurant openings, club news, hotel announcements, celebrity and influencer sightings, and everything else you need to know before you venture to Sin City.

Garth Brooks is back on the Las Vegas stage. Brooks has launched his new Garth Brooks/Plus ONE residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace. The show comes nearly a decade after his four-year residency at Wynn Las Vegas ended in 2014. At Caesars no two shows will be the same, with varying band members and an occasional special guest, and fans are promised a once in a lifetime performance each night. With 2023 dates already sold out, Brooks has announced 18 new dates for 2024. "When the 2023 shows went on sale, I felt extremely fortunate and blessed. To even think I would get do this for another year makes me happier than I can explain. Thank you for the chance," Brooks said in a statement. Fans who previously signed up and were unable to purchase tickets for the 2023 dates will have first access to purchase tickets to the 2024 shows with a special Verified Fan presale.

Brooks next plays select dates July 6-23 and a few days later Kelly Clarkson will launch her exclusive Las Vegas engagement called chemistry…an intimate night with Kelly Clarkson, on July 28 at Bakkt Theater at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino. Clarkson and her longtime band will take fans through her two-decade long catalog of award-winning hits. "I am so excited for these shows and couldn't think of a better place to get back on stage than Las Vegas. The crowds in Vegas are such an amazing collection of people that simply want to have a great time and that's what we’re going to do!," Clarkson tells Los Angeles. "So many of my musical idols have had, and still have, incredible residencies on The Strip, and I’m so excited to create my own."

At Resorts World Theatre, Carrie Underwood has added three new dates in December, bringing to 21 the number of additional shows she will perform this year once she resumes her residency on June 21. Meanwhile, on July 28, Underwood's theatre mate, Katy Perry, returns to Resorts World for her Katy Perry: PLAY residency, as the show winds down to her final performance on Nov. 4. On May 27, the pop star made a spectacular appearance at Fremont Street Experience downtown for the world premiere of the destination's newest Viva Vision music and light show, created in collaboration with Perry and featuring her biggest hits. Perry's "Waking Up in Vegas" video was filmed on the famous street. Perry flew "superwoman-style" over thousands of excited fans on the SlotZilla Zipline in a bright red outfit complete with fringe chaps and a mushroom hat. Landing on the Main Street Stage, Perry danced along to the show and ventured into the crowd to sign autographs and greet fans. Viva Vision shows are free to the public and air in rotation every day from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. at the top of each hour.

And The B-52s have launched their residency at The Venetian Resort Las Vegas through Sept. 3. The band is keeping audiences on their feet, dancing to the band's biggest hits including "Roam," "Private Idaho," "Rock Lobster," and, of course, "Love Shack." A limited number of tickets for the remaining shows are available here.

In true L.A. to Vegas fashion, "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" fan favorite, Erika Jayne, whose estranged husband, Tom Girardi, has been indicted by federal grand juries in Los Angeles and Chicago on charges of stealing more than $18 million from his clients, is launching her own residency amid the scandal. The TV-personality and Billboard chart-topping dance artist announced Bet It All On Blonde, will begin on Aug. 25 and will run into December at House of Blues Las Vegas at Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino. "This is such a monumental moment for me and my incredible fans and I’m beyond thrilled to have this opportunity," Jayne said in a statement to Los Angeles. The residency will see Jayne debut her first set of new music in over five years.

Celebrity chefs Michael and Bryan Voltaggio have started a one-year culinary residency in Las Vegas with Retro by Voltaggio, which is now open at Mandalay Bay. The original restaurant is inspired by the tastes, sounds and pop culture of the 1980s and 90s. "The concept of Retro is really a story about Bryan and me, from childhood through our professional careers," said Michael Voltaggio. "Retro is all about taking nostalgic, familiar dishes of the past and elevating them to a new level. From baking melt-in-your-mouth pizza rolls with fine meats and cheeses to preparing homemade pot roast with Wagyu beef, along with serving top-shelf appletinis and craft wine coolers, there will be great flavors that elicit fun memories," added Bryan Voltaggio. Retro by Voltaggio is open Monday to Saturday, 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Reservations can be made online.

Meanwhile, down the Strip, the French Riviera-inspired LPM Restaurant & Bar is scheduled to open at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas this fall, taking over the former Milo's space across from STK. The location will mark LPM's ninth location worldwide and second in the U.S. after Miami. LPM presents guests with sharable dishes prepared à la minute such as warm prawns in olive oil and lemon juice, marinated lamb cutlets layered with kalalamata olives, Aubergine Caviar and pine nuts and, for dessert, vanilla cheesecake with berry compote. Beverages pay homage to the golden age, including levitating cocktails and stylish drinks that enchant all the senses through creative ingredients, perfumes and art deco glassware.

Lettuce Entertain You Restaurants will bring its popular California-inspired restaurant, Summer House, to Station Casinos's Durango Resort & Casino when it opens in late 2023. The opening of Summer House marks the restaurant group's first expansion off the strip, where it operates concepts like RPM Italian, Eiffel Tower Restaurant and Mon Ami Gabi, and Joe's Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab. Designed by award-winning architecture and design firm Rockwell Group, natural light, white-washed walls, earth-toned tile and greenery will create an open and airy space.

The Lexi Hotel Las Vegas, the only cannabis-inclusive property in Vegas, has opened just off the Strip after a multi-million dollar renovation of the former Artisan hotel. The one-of-a-kind boutique property boasts 64 newly designed rooms and suites and is the first new hotel to open in Las Vegas this year. "We’ve blended playfulness, a bit of cheekiness, and pure Vegas spirit to create a new type of destination," said Alex Rizk, CEO of Elevations Hotels and Resorts. According to the hotel's web site, "only those staying in designated guest rooms on the fourth floor can consume cannabis. Those accommodations are outfitted with state-of-the-art RestorAir filtration system in each room, which employs Advanced Oxidation Cell (AOC) technology. The Lexi operates in accordance with all local and state laws." At this time, cannabis cannot be legally delivered to the property, cannabis is not sold on the property, and smoking in common areas remains prohibited by law.

The Plaza Hotel & Casino had its formal ribbon cutting ceremony on June 8 downtown to celebrate the upcoming grand opening of its Main Street re-imagination projects which transformed its historic Main Street façade and porte-cochère into a destination for cocktails, gaming, and dining with four new venues: Carousel Bar, Pinkbox Doughnuts, the rooftop patio at Oscar's steakhouse, and Brian Christopher Slots at Plaza, downtown's only smoke free and social media friendly gaming space. All venues will officially open to the public on June 10. "Main Street is where Las Vegas got its start, and the Plaza continues to enhance this historic and exciting thoroughfare," said Jonathan Jossel, Plaza Hotel & Casino CEO in a statement.

Mark Wahlberg got behind the bar to mix drinks with his Flecha Azul ultra-premium tequila brand at the grand opening of Cathédrale at Aria Resort & Casino. The 266-seat restaurant from Tao Group Hospitality honors the legacy and DNA of the flagship Cathédrale in NYC's East Village. Guests arrive through blue velour cascading drapery revealing a dramatically lit tunnel with flickering candles and carved artwork, leading to the lounge where a sculptural metal beaded chain canopy awaits. The restaurant's ingredient-driven menu features coastal cuisine influenced by the regions of France, Spain, Italy and Greece.

Over at XS Nightclub at Wynn Las Vegas, the hot spot was a mecca for celebrities visiting the city. Conor McGregor, Olympian Michael Phelps, Michael B. Jordan, Chace Crawford, Kansas City Chiefs’ Travis Kelce, Sabrina Carpenter, social media personalities Loren Gray, Dixie D’Amelio, and David Dobrik, and music producer Benny Blanco, were all spotted enjoying a Saturday night. In the deejay booth, Phelps hyped up the crowd by removing his shirt as resident DJ Diplo took to the mic exclaiming, "Michael Phelps, he's going to dive, he's going to swim, Las Vegas make some noise!"

Also at Resorts World, Tyra Banks and her crew enjoyed dinner at Carversteak before heading to Katy Perry's PLAY residency show. Also in the crowd that night was Kim Kardashian with daughter, North West, who went viral for her dance off with Perry.

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