With Frank Gatson Jr. onboard, 'Jubilee!' gets a long-awaited makeover - HispanicBusiness.com

<cheap mens halloween costumesp>Oct. 17--As Frank Gatson Jr. watches a performance of "Jubilee!," he rests his chin in his hand. He squints, gazes around the spacious showroom and frequently blurts out questions.

Such as, "Why are they wearing those pants?"

Or, "Why isn't the audience standing up, cheering? They just performed the hell out of that number."

Or even, "Why are we losing track of Samson in this scene?"

They are all relevant questions about the Strip's longest-running, and last remaining, traditional showgirls-driven production, but Gatson is hardly an idle fan. "Jubilee!" is undergoing a significant modernization beginning this week. Gatson is the new show's creative director and choreographer and has been recruited to upgrade the show without compromising the vision of original producer Donn Arden.

"I want to be diplomatic and tell the cast I know exactly what it is like to be in their positions," Gatson says Tuesday night during a performance of "Jubilee!" at Bally's. "The show needs to be reinvigorated, and I have to find the balance between bringing it up to date without losing the vision that Donn Arden had in the first place."

The stated reason for the timing and need for the upgrades to a show that opened at the old MGM Grand in 1981 are multifold. The show's audience is not getting any younger, though officials say ticket counts are not the driving force behind the decision to modify the production (Asian tour groups in particular help boost audience numbers).

There is money now set aside for the type of revisions, and the type of person revising, required to update "Jubilee!" Caesars Entertainment is looking to make all of its performances more vibrant and energetic, nodding (hopefully) to the nightclub crowd that is largely ignoring such classic productions.

"This needs to be a party," Gatson says. "This show has to be the place where young people go to feel that Old Vegas vibe. It has to be a cool thing to do. That is why I am here."

To allow for the time required to make significant changes, to the performance and the show's audio and visual presentation, the show will go dark early next year. In the offing is an announcement that Veronic DiCaire will be extended through mid-January, and, after her run concludes, the theater will close for a few weeks (likely) while "Jubilee!" is revived.

To "modernize" the show while maintaining its classic vibe is a delicate dance, but Gatson is an expert at performing nimble footwork, onstage and offstage. He has been a choreographer, image-maker and confidant of Beyonce since her days in Destiny's Child and helped design the reunited group's smash appearance at this year's Super Bowl Halftime Show.

Gatson also once danced on tour with Up With People (an ideal training ground when addressing the boundless scope of "Jubilee!") and in a 30-year career has helped choreograph and direct videos and appearances by Michael Jackson, Jennifer Lopez, Rihanna, Diana Ross, Vanessa Williams, En Vogue, Usher, Mariah Carey and The Band Perry.

Gatson arrived in Las Vegas this week, flying in from Paris after working with Beyonce on her current world tour. But he's been stealthily watching "Jubilee!" performances over the past several weeks and has seen the show nine times as he's evaluated where and how to tweak the production.

"Every time I see it, I see something different," he says. "It's important for me to see it repeatedly, and with different people, to check my opinions."

"Jubilee!" has not undergone a makeover of any significance in about 20 years. In that span, the audio/visual/performance wizardry of Cirque du Soleil and such extensive and advanced productions as "Jersey Boys" at Paris Las Vegas have wowed audiences on the Strip. The charm of "Jubilee!," of course, is that it is of its time.

The show is unbending in its presentation, with topless beauties striding across the stage in astonishingly appointed costumes designed by Bob Mackie and Pete Menefee. The Titanic and Samson and Delilah scenes are so famously familiar that hardly anyone inside the production has questioned why, for example, there are mannequins in the lifeboat or why Samson might not wear a longer and more dramatic wig.

"When I see the show, I see so much production value. I mean, are you kidding? Look at that staircase," Gatson says. "You have light-blue chiffon costumes. Tuxes. These costumes are a producer's dream."

Gatson has been onboard for only about two months and had not met the cast until Wednesday night. Even during Tuesday's show, nobody onstage realized that the person seated in a booth near the lip of the stage would be so vital to the show's future. During the performance, Gatson stresses that all of his thoughts are preliminary and conveyed offhandedly.

"I am just thinking out loud," he says.

But know that Gatson has authority to make cast changes. He loves tall showgirls, and the show's requirement that all women onstage stand 5-feet-8-inches tall does not seem in jeopardy. But, repeatedly, he says of the guys, "We need bodies up there that are not the women to look nice. This needs to be a sexier show, and some of the guys need to get back into the gym. When you're young, there's no excuse to be onstage and not be fit. I want to see six-packs up there, and I'm not seeing them."

As enamored as Gatson is of the women's costumes, he finds the men's attire lacking in several scenes. The sparkled black T-shirts, matching slacks and white belts worn by the male dancers are not a favorite.

"This does not appeal to women in the audience," he says. "They do not look good."

The order of the scenes might well be juggled to add a more chronological sense of time. The Samson scene is near the middle, Titanic at the end, and there seems no connective thematic thread to the show. The specialty acts, or side acts, too, are under review.

As he watched the male body balancers and the cube act, he wondered, "Why is this act in the show right now? It is taking us out of 'Jubilee!,' and we're going to need to reintroduce the show after this act. ... I'd like to see how we can integrate these acts into the story more effectively. I don't understand why they are being used when Cirque has become so effective at using these types of acts. They're very common now."

Mostly, Gatson is seeking more power from the stage. Moments designed to achieve high drama have become unintentionally kitschy. The culmination of the Samson scene is of the lead male dancer destroying a temple as he is crushed under a big demon head with its eyes flaming red. The capsizing of the Titanic employs ample pyrotechnics and smoke effects, but each of those scenes are tepidly received, greeted only by a smattering of applause.

"We should be on our feet," Gatson says, grabbing the booth's table with both hands. "This should be shaking. We should be feeling the power from the stage, and we're not. They are giving us everything, and we're feeling an absence of power."

The revamping will start with a pep talk to the cast and a look at supercharging the sound system. Gatson talks of bringing in Vintage Vegas-style singers and using hologram figures and additional video to boost the dance scenes. Some of the costumes will inevitably be ditched or upgraded.

But Gatson is not turning "Jubilee!" into a different show. He is making the classic show more dynamic.

"I'm here to improve the presentation," he says. "But there is no other show like this. I'm old school, and I really believe that."

Bally's Las Vegas Step into the light at Bally's Las Vegas. The neon-lit entryway stands out as a symbol of Las Vegas surrounded by a series of neon columns. Bally's opened in 1973 as the original MGM Grand Hotel and Casino, and has since become a mix of old and new Vegas. The 139,251-square foot property includes 1,050 slot machines, 58 gaming tables, 14 poker tables and 2,814 hotel rooms. The showgirls take center stage in "Jubilee," a cabaret show celebrating the classic showgirls. Other entertainment options include "Tony and Tina's Wedding" dinner show and the L.A. Comedy Club. Bally's Steakhouse serves classic steaks, chops and seafood in an elegant New England hunt club-style atmosphere. On Sundays, the Sterling Brunch offers bottomless premium Champagne, caviar and whole lobster. Bally's race and sports book deserves a mention for having about 200 seats and being surrounded by comfort foods like Sbarro's pizza, Nathan's Famous for hot dogs and Ichiban's for sushi.

3645 Las Vegas Blvd., S. Las Vegas, NV 89109

702-967-4111

>Follow John Katsilometes on Twitter at twitter.com/JohnnyKats. Also, follow Kats With The Dish at twitter.com/KatsWithTheDish.

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(c)2013 the Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, Nev.)

Visit the Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, Nev.) at www.lasvegassun.com

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Source: Hispanicbusiness

Phandroid readers make their cases for seeing Android 4.4 KitKat on October 28th [TEASES]

<5s iphone cases for girls quotesp>In case you haven't noticed, Kit Kat has been going a bit crazy on Google+. Yesterday, the company posted a photo of a dancing Android-shaped Kit Kat bar on the day that some (definitely not all) thought Google would announce Kit Kat and the Nexus 5. That didn't happen, and Kit Kat is still posting as many cryptic messages on Google+ as they can.

This time, it was a picture of Kit Kat bars arranged to spell out "This is it." And, quite literally, that's it. Nothing more, nothing less. There was no #Android, no Android mascot, or anything else to help rabid fanatics everywhere figure out what this meant. That said, we were still curious to hear your thoughts, and posed the question to you on Google+. The responses? Nothing short of hilariously ridiculous.

One reader, Richard Colon, was the first to suggest Kit Kat was referring to Michael Jackson's "This is It," a 2009 documentary that launched on October 28th. This is where the October 28th train got rolling.

Reading further, the silliness really started when user Liam Muller jokingly suggested the following:

If you also look, it takes 16 wafers to make "THIS IS IT" and today is the 16th of October so today might be the day :)

So now we have the 16th and the 28th, but Ed Carter suggests we're all thinking about it wrong: Michael Jackson's "This is It" tour eventually got cancelled, which could mean Android 4.4 Kit Kat or the Nexus 5 got cancelled. I know. Just bear with me.

Richard chimed back in a bit later to remind us that yesterdays "Everybody Dance Now" teaser shares the name of the hit song by 28th Street Crew, which he believes lends more credence to seeing Kit Kat and/or Nexus 5 on the 28th.

Finally, Haaris Edhi decided to drop their 2 cents and let us know that there are "8 letters in "this is it" and 2 sentences, meaning October 28." We've all obviously gone off the deep end here, and perhaps that's what makes this entire thing genius by Kit Kat and Google.

They know how crazy we get over this stuff. They know that one image alone is enough to send the hype meter through the roof, and they know they have us right where they want us - salivating for Android 4.4 Kit Kat just as much as most chocolate lovers salivate for an actual Kit Kat bar.

Source: Phandroid

Life sentence upheld in sexual assault case

WILLMAR, Minn. -- The state Supreme Court has upheld the life prison sentence of a Willmar man convicted of second-degree criminal sexual conduct.

Jose Santoya Juarez, 54, was convicted and sentenced in 2011 for sexually assaulting a woman in July 2010 in an alley near the Willmar Eagles Club.

The Supreme Court ruling, issued Tuesday, found that a life sentence for aggravated criminal sexual conduct is not cruel or unusual punishment and that the sentence does not violate the U.S. or state constitutions. The court said Juarez's action of removing his victim more than 200 feet to assault her did meet the "heinous element" required by state law in such 5s iphone cases life proof box. Finally, the court ruled that the District Court did not err in the case.

According to the state Department of Corrections website, Juarez is serving his sentence at the Minnesota Correctional Facility at Rush City.

Source: Grandforksherald

Unofficial iPhone 5s tracker helps customers find gold

Summary: An inventory tracker was developed by an enterprising Apple developer looking for the fabled gold iPhone 5s iphone cases lifeproof discounts.

Remember the rumor that Apple was going to update its Apple Store app to include real-time iPhone inventory status? Well, it never came to pass, at least the way I imagined.

In 2008 a developer built an iPhone 3G tracker by scraping the Apple Store's JSON data feed (Apple quickly pulled the feed). Then in 2009 Apple posted an official iPhone 3GS tracker that was updated hourly and linked to its sales system.

Unfortunately, it's 2013 and the current implementation is incredibly obtuse and difficult to use. There's no simple chart that simply shows where to find an iPhone 5s in stock. It's a huge step backwards from 2009.

To find an iPhone 5s near you, you need to go to Apple's buy page, click on the configuration you want, then click on the tiny blue "check availability" link in the right navigation bar. From there, you can enter your zip code to see availability at five stores at a time, for that configuration. If you want to check another color or configuration, you need to start over.

Enter iPhone-Check by Mordy Tikotzky (@Tikotzky), an Apple Developer from NJ.

Frustrated with not being able to find a gold iPhone 5c for his wife he build a slick iPhone tracker that scrapes store.apple.com for the most up to date iPhone 5s inventory information.

According to Tikotzky iPhone-Check started as a little project running on his local computer and then he decided to share it with the world. Tikotzky wrote it in an hour (using expressjs.com on top of nodejs.org) with the support of his employer (@homeandstone) who let him do it on their time. He spent another two hours tweaking it in the evening.

iPhone-Check must be scratching an itch. The site broke 100k unique visitors Wednesday and has topped 1 million page views since it was launched less than a week ago. It's a shame that Apple couldn't offer a proper iPhone tracker, because clearly there's demand.

Now where all these gold iPhones I keep hearing about?

Source: Zdnet

HERE COMES ISM SERVICES...

<adamsp>Heads up! We are minutes away from the release of ISM's monthly report on the U.S. non-manufacturing sector, due out at 10 AM ET.

Economists expect the headline index to fall to 57.0 from August's 58.6 reading, indicating a slight slowdown in the pace of expansion in American services industries.

We will have the full release LIVE at 10 AM ET. Click here to refresh for the latest updates "
Source: Businessinsider

Samsung Galaxy S4 Swarovski bling cases

5s iphone cases vaja-150x150.jpg">

No matter what type of smartphone you own there are a huge range of accessories that can be purchased for the device that can complement its features or protect it from life's bumps and scraps, and today we have some Samsung Galaxy S4 Swarovski bling cases for you.

A smartphone case can help protect the device while giving it a more unique look and feel and that can certainly be said about the Swarovski cases we have for the popular Samsung Galaxy S4. First up is the pink Gradation Bling Swarovski Crystal case that will certainly add some style to your handset.

The case is available from Amazon and is handcrafted with each of them having a unique pattern using only small crystals to get the best alignment. The case can be customized with names or special dates and comes in a special gift box, and is priced at a whopping $234.88.

Next up is the Premium Leather Swarovski product from Vaja cases that is made from Caterina Leather with a laser etched design that has shimmering Swarovski Crystals. The case has a flip style opening that provides full protection for the screen as well as protecting the four corners of the handset.

There is a new redesigned camera and speaker cut out along with a magnetic closure system, and is available in a number of different colours. Next we have the Swarovski Crystal OtterBox Defender Case Cover for Samsung Galaxy S4, which gives you that famous OtterBox protection along with some Swarovski sparkle.

This only costs $49.95 and has a built in screen protector and various covers for the handsets ports will stop debris getting in, and for more info click here. Last up we have a number of different designs at various price levels from Luxaddiction, and once you have chosen the design you want another page opens up so you can pick the case for the Galaxy S4.

Do you like any of these cases?

Source: Phonesreview

Halloween TV programming 2013

<halloween costumes scary bridep>As the Halloween 2013 season fast approaches, there will once again be plenty of Halloween TV programming to enjoy, from terrifying frights to more family-friendly fare. Here is some of the notable Halloween TV programming airing in 2013. All times are ET; check back for updates and additions.

- Sept. 29 at 10pm on Destination America. The spooky series that showcases stories of the supernatural returns. In the Season 6 premiere, Stephanie Winters and her husband encounter strange noises and objects moving on their own in their new house. They attempt to ignore the activity, but it soon escalates. The couple turns to a paranormal investigator, who suspects that an old admirer of Stephanie's may have conjured a demon to avenge her rejection.

Monstober - Oct. 1-31 on Disney Channel. Disney Channel stars Raini Rodriguez and Calum Worthy from Austin & Ally host "Monstober," Disney Channel's monthlong Halloween celebration. Featuring spooky and fun shows all month long, this year's Monstober highlights include the Season 3 premiere of Jessie, the new series Wolfblood, and more.

31 Days of Halloween - Oct. 1-31 on Syfy. Every day in October, Syfy will be airing some sort of scares (totaling nearly 600 hours of spooky programming over the course of the month, per the network), ranging from movies and shows to marathons of series.

Ghost Adventures - Oct. 4 at 9pm on Travel Channel. The 100th episode of Ghost Adventures finds Zak, Nick and Aaron investigating the notorious Exorcist House in St. Louis, becoming the first-ever paranormal TV show to examine the home where the terrifying events depicted in the popular novel and film The Exorcist reportedly took place.

The Simpsons: "Treehouse of Horror XXIV" - Oct. 6 at 8pm on FOX. Director Guillermo del Toro ( Pan's Labyrinth, Pacific Rim) takes the helm for the opening couch gag sequence as The Simpsons presents the latest installment of its annual Halloween tradition. In the couch gag opener, del Toro offers a sequence featuring monsters and classic characters from horror films throughout history. Then, in the first of three tales, Homer travels around Springfield wreaking havoc in a rhyming take on a popular children's tale. In "Dead and Shoulders," Bart is beheaded during a kite accident, his head is attached to Lisa's body and they must live together as one. The final tale, "Freaks no Geeks," features Mr. Burns' traveling circus, The Burnsum and Bailey Circus, which has stopped in Springfieldland in the 1930s. Trapeze artist Marge and Strong Man Homer are performers, and things go awry when circus freak Moe starts to make advances towards Marge.

RELATED: INTERVIEWS WITH JULIA ORMOND AND JENNA DEWAN-TATUM OF "WITCHES OF EAST END"

American Horror Story: Coven - Oct. 9 at 10pm on FX. For its third outing, the American Horror Story franchise is getting witchy, conjuring up a twisty tale of a New Orleans school where witches are being sent to learn how to protect themselves from a spate of mysterious attacks. The timeline will shift back and forth between the present day and the Salem witch trials. Stars include Jessica Lange, Sarah Paulson, Kathy Bates, Gabourey Sidibe, Taissa Farmiga, Evan Peters, Lily Rabe, Denis O'Hare, Emma Roberts and many more.

Ghost Whisperer Marathon - Oct. 10 from 8am-7pm on Syfy.

The Walking Dead Season 4 - Oct. 13 at 9pm on AMC. The Season 4 premiere of The Walking Dead kicks off AMC's Fearfest 2013, which will run through Oct. 31. In the premiere episode, Rick and the group are as close to an ideal life as possible at the prison. Will they be able to hold on to humanity in the face of a new evil?

Halloweentown II Kalabar's Revenge - Oct. 15 at 8:30pm and Oct. 19 at 3:05pm on Disney Channel.

Friday the 13th event - Oct. 14-17 at 7pm each night on AMC; Oct. 28 at 8pm through Oct. 29 at 6am on AMC.. Friday the 13th movies air as part of AMC's Fearfest 2013, at 7pm each night. Features Friday the 13th Part III, Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, Friday the 13th: A New Beginning, Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives, Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood, Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan, Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday, Jason X.

Being Human Marathon - Oct. 18 from 8am-8pm on Syfy. Marathon of the U.S. version of Being Human.

13 Nights of Halloween - Oct. 19-31 on ABC Family. ABC Family's 2013 installment of its annual 13 Nights of Halloween includes a new Halloween episode of Pretty Little Liars (Oct. 22) leading into the series premiere of the spinoff series Ravenswood (Oct. 22). Plenty of spooky movies and specials will air throughout the event, including Tim Burton's The Corpse Bride, Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, Coraline, Beetlejuice, The Addams Family and plenty more.

Tremors Marathon - Oct. 19 beginning at 10:45am on AMC; Oct. 30 beginning at 10:45am on AMC. Features Tremors, Tremors II: Aftershocks, Tremors 3: Back to Perfection and the network premiere of Tremors 4: The Legend Begins.

Grave Halloween - Oct. 19 at 9pm on Syfy. An American college student studying in Japan risks her own life to save the spirit of her dead mother, who killed herself in the notorious Suicide Forest. Cassi Thomson and Graham Wardle star.

Chucky-thon - Oct. 20 beginning at 12pm, and Oct. 24 beginning at 8pm on AMC. Features Child's Play 2, Child's Play 3, Bride of Chucky and Seed of Chucky.

Halloween Event - Oct. 21-23 at 8pm each night on AMC; Oct. 30 at 8pm through Oct. 31 at 6am on AMC. Features Halloween, Halloween II, Halloween III: Season of the Witch, Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers, Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers and Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers.

The Omen Marathon - Oct. 25 beginning at 9:45am on AMC. Airings of The Omen, Damien: Omen II and Omen III: The Final Conflict.

Alien Marathon - Oct. 26 beginning at 9:30am on AMC. Alien, Aliens, Alien 3 and Alien: Resurrection.

Hub Network's First Annual Halloween Bash - Oct. 26 at 8pm on The Hub Network. The family-friendly network is throwing a two-hour party celebrating everyone's favorite day, the highlight of which will be a nationwide costume contest featuring participants from all 50 states. Saturday Night Live funnyman Kenan Thompson will host, and Martha Stewart will be among the celebrity judges. Then stay tuned for the premiere of the network's new series Spooksville.

The Monster Project - Oct. 26 from 8pm-11pm on Nat Geo Wild. Actor/comedian Judah Friedlander hosts this three-part special (all airing in one evening) that enters the world of cryptozoology and seeks out monsters reportedly seen in America. Hour one investigates the Jersey Devil; hour two the Chupacabra; and hour three will explore America's Loch Ness Monster in Lake Champlain.

Roseanne's Halloween - Oct. 27 from 3am-6am, and from 3pm-6pm on TV Land. These marathons will include every Halloween episode of Roseanne, including the "Tunnel of Terror," Roseanne's visit from the ghosts of Halloween past, present and future, the arrival of baby Jerry Garcia Conner and the final Roseanne Halloween episode's spoof of Rosemary's Baby. The event kicks off with an episode that guest-starred George Clooney.

Day of the DeadMarathon - Oct. 27 beginning at 10am on AMC. Features The Return of the Living Dead, Flight of the Living Dead: Outbreak on a Plane, Survival of the Dead, and Land of the Dead.

Halloween Horror Movie Marathon - Oct. 27 from 11am-2am on FX. Movies including The Strangers, The Happening, The Sixth Sense, 30 Days of Night, Paranormal Activity and Paranormal Activity 2.

Stephen King Movie Marathon - Oct. 28 beginning at 3:30pm on Spike. Features The Green Mile, Stephen King's It and Christine.

Halloween Movie Marathon - Oct. 30 from 9:30am-1am; Oct. 31 from 11am-9pm on Spike. Includes A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), A Nightmare on Elm Street III, The Wolf Man (2010), Stephen King's It, Halloween (2007), Halloween II (2009) and The Crazies (2010).

Disney Channel Halloween marathon - Oct. 31 from 4pm-10pm on Disney Channel. Encore presentations of Halloween-themed episodes.

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The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror: © 2013 Fox Broadcasting. The Simpsons ™ & © 2013 TCFFC. All Rights Reserved.

A.N.T. Farm: Adam Rose/Disney Channel

Ultimate Spider-Man: Marvel/Disney XD

Witches of East End: © 2013 Lifetime. Credit: Sergei Bachlakov

The Walking Dead Season 4: Frank Ockenfels/AMC

Toy Story of Terror: © 2013 Disney/Pixar

Pretty Little Liars: Eric McCandless/ABC Family

Dracula: Jonathon Hession/NBC

The Good Witch's Destiny: Credit Hallmark Channel

Source: Channelguidemagblog