IF YOU GO
Who: Singer-comedian-impressionist Gordie Brown
When: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, dark Monday and Sunday
Where: Gordie Brown Showroom at the Golden Nugget
Admission: $43.95-$109.95; 386-8100, goldennugget.com
Running time: About 90 minutes
Audience advisory: For the very easily amused; slowest-loading theater in town
LASVEGASSUN.COM | See additional photos of ENTERTAINER GORDIE BROWN, WHO SINGS, DOES IMPRESSIONS AND TELLS JOKES
There are thousands of hardworking showbiz people in Las Vegas. But the hardest jobs may belong to the five musicians who have to stand behind impressionist Gordie Brown and act as if they think his shtick is funny or even amusing. Night after night.
Imagine a world in which YouTube, ÒThe Soup,Ó ÒThe Daily Show,Ó even ÒSaturday Night LiveÓ never existed.
ThatÕs Gordie BrownÕs world, a place where pop culture pressed ÒpauseÓ at about the time of ÒAchy Breaky Heart,Ó Hootie & the Blowfish and ÒForrest Gump.Ó
If the mere mention of those names makes you chuckle, well, this could be the show for you.
Brown does in fact acknowledge that we have a new president (who talks ... very ... deliberately), and a former president (who was, apparently, very dumb). But for the most part heÕs peddling stale nostalgia. Dick Cheney hunting jokes. Britney kissing Madonna jokes. ÒFantasy IslandÕsÓ Tattoo jokes.
Vanilla Ice jokes, for crying out loud.
The bulk of BrownÕs act consists of singing impressions, tweaking lyrics, playground style, in the voice of the artist heÕs attempting to evoke.
He nods to Strip contemporaries Tom Jones and Santana (turning ÒSmoothÓ into a limerick about plastic surgery). And he makes a momentary and contemptuous attempt at acknowledging the existence of contemporary music, aping not-so-fresh hits by Eminem, Usher and Green Day.
Some of BrownÕs physical impressions come fairly close, and heÕs at his best conjuring fellow comedians or actors. His Joan Rivers, Ray Romano, Robin Williams, Nicolas Cage, Robert DeNiro and Jack Nicholson were all right on — but he gives them nothing really funny to say.
HereÕs a good place to note that plenty of people sitting around me were in hysterics, nearly aspirating in glee. And the crowd rewarded Brown with the obligatory standing ovation.
The comic shows some flashes of spontaneity — he ad-libs quite a bit, and the cleverest moments came when he meandered the aisles, fitting the lyrics to a ÒPhantom of the OperaÓ tune according to the occupations of audience members.
But most of it is Stripshtick by the numbers, a weak, lower-priced version of what Danny Gans was doing. Brown clicks through all the usual suspects: The Rat Pack, check. Louis Armstrong, got it, and of course Michael Jackson, yup. Elvis, natch, doing — you guessed it — ÒSuspicious MindsÓ and ÒMy Way.Ó
The ads for BrownÕs show make a big deal of the fact that Celine Dion chose him to be the opening act for a portion of her world tour. One can only surmise that she gave him the nod out of loyalty to a fellow Canadian (Brown is from Montreal).
A quick and kinetic performer, Brown is obviously intelligent. And heÕs certainly aware that his current act is a museum piece.
ÒQuick, get out your iPhone,Ó he joked to an apparently puzzled-looking young woman in the audience. ÒIÕm giving you time to Google ÔDean Martin.Õ Ó
But Brown has clearly made a calculated choice to play in the shallow end. He could be much better than this.
Joe Brown can be reached at 259-8801 or at joe.brown@lasvegassun.com.
Source: Las Vegas Sun
