Las Vegas Weekly

October 29, 2008 · 7:54 AM

Mystery surrounds Angel & Holly as Believe premiere approaches

By Robin Leach

The match-up between Girls Next Door reality star Holly Madison and Mindfreak idol Criss Angel was wrapped in its own magical mystery last night and this morning. She turned up with his mother and aunt to watch the last of the preview shows at the Luxor before Friday’s world premiere. Holly and Criss also wound-up together, ducking into a 4 a.m. breakfast this morning in the Luxor cafe with a friend. They went unrecognized, except for some pre-dawn blackjack players who left them alone while they feasted on pancakes and fresh fruit.

Photo: TVT

Holly Madison at Moon.

However, in between they were both at the Moon nightclub in the Palms shortly after midnight -- but in separate booths! He entertained his Believe co-writer and director Serge Denencourt and their cast in one VIP area and Holly, hosted her pre-Halloween party in another. The closest they came was when their backs bumped up against each other. She was dressed up as a Pamela Anderson look-alike Baywatch babe duplicating her Playboy rival with similar full blown-blonde hairstyle in that famous red plunging swimsuit!

Photo: TVT

Holly Madison wraps up her galpal.

Criss ended his four-week run of preview shows last night (Tuesday) with the addition of one more fantasy. He told me early today (Wednesday): “It’s the very best we’ve done to-date. It all worked perfectly including one more illusion I’d promised. We’ll continue polishing it right up until curtain time on Friday but its there now. Everything is moving together in harmony and unison -– and we’ll keep it fresh in the months ahead adding new elements and changing subtle things so its unique and exciting for every performance.”

He gets a day off today (Wednesday) from the grueling schedule but for him though there is no rest or vacation. There will still be last minute audio and lighting checks along with final rehearsals of the new tricks that have been added this week.

I don’t want to take away the surprises by listing all the 23 illusions, but I will say I was genuinely wowed when I saw him two days ago “walk” down a wall as part of the dream sequence onto and through a wedding gown. I told him so backstage, and he laughed: “Now you’re just not going to see any illusionist doing that live on the Strip -- or anywhere else in the world for that matter. All of our magic is right there out in the open and not inside boxes. I wanted everybody to see it actually happening so they realize for themselves that’s what we do on Mindfreak. The new finale where he vanishes from atop a thin table with a dancer below to show there’s no way he can “escape” underneath is a showstopper that left our audience speechless!

The list of stars coming in for Criss Angel’s “black carpet’ on Friday night is growing by the day. It will be a star-studded premiere and our fellow Vegas magicians are leading the parade! Vegas “masters of the impossible,” Siegfried & Roy, have been invited but no word yet on if they will be attending. Fans on the red carpet will definitely see Rio headliners Penn & Teller, Flamingo magician Nathan Burton, Hooters mentalist Gerry McCambridge, Paris hypnotist Anthony Cools, Excalibur comic Louie Anderson, Red Rock singers Zowie Bowie, Riviera trans-dresser Frank Marino and fellow Luxor headliners Carrot Top and the “Fantasy Girls” along with Vegas singer Clint Holmes, rockers Vince Neil of Motley Crue and Sully Erma from Godsmack, showman Jeff Beacher, and porn princess Tera Patrick with rocker beau Evan Seinfeld.

Photo: TVT

Holly and a galpal.

Still more stars are being added as the hours tick down to the premiere, but so far the Hollywood invasion comprises Girls Next Door bombshells Holly Madison and Bridget Marquardt, singer Deborah Gibson, actors Alan Thicke, Laurence Fishburne of CSI, Neil Patrick Harris, a member of the Magic Castle; That 70’s Show’s Wilmer Valderrama, Baywatch’s Jeremy Jackson, actress Tanya Roberts of Charlies Angels; reality star Tila Tequila, members of the rock group Hinder, N.Y. Giants star Michael Strahan and Muhammad Ali’s daughter Rasheeda.

Criss himself will walk the “black carpet” shortly before the curtain rises for the premiere and he’s promised one unique surprise that I’m sworn to secrecy about -- but if you will be among the crowds attending don’t take your eyes off him for a moment!

One final day of our countdown remains tomorrow as Criss performs his first of his two shows a night schedule with performances at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. for hundreds of print, internet, radio and television journalists who have flown in from all over North America.

Don’t forget we launch our brand new state-of-the-art VegasDeluxe website on Saturday morning where you will find all our video and photo coverage of our “curtain up” interviews with Criss, the “black carpet” celebrities the gala poolside party -- and his special surprise!

— From Vegas Deluxe

Link Share This