Las Vegas Weekly

October 12, 2009 · 11:20 AM

Exclusive Photo Gallery: From small town girl to Strip headliner

By Robin Leach

Angelica Bridges of Fantasy at the Luxor.

Photo: Tom Donoghue/www.donoghuephotography.com

Angelica Bridges grew up in a small Missouri town of just 150 people. She was involved in the Bible-belt Miss Missouri Teen Pageants, so when the redheaded knockout went topless for a sexy magazine photo shoot, not only did it shock her family, but she also broke every taboo in the book back home!

Ironically, now the stunning, statuesque beauty has signed on for a three-month guest stint, with another three-month possible renewal, starring in Fantasy at the Luxor, and her hometown wants to name a street after her! I immediately suggested Bridges Boulevard with some added bling on the sign when we chatted at the Fantasy showroom as contributing photographer Tom Donoghue shot our exclusive sneak peek gallery.

Angelica joins five new dancers for the show that will feature eight new routines -- all to celebrate its 10th anniversary with a brand new look starting tomorrow. Does Angelica go topless in the show? I can only advise that until you go see the show for yourself that she has three songs for three wardrobe changes, but each eye-popping outfit is even more revealing than the last!

Angelica has one incredibly busy month ahead of her for an entertainer who’s just landed her first Las Vegas show. While on a rush round-trip visit to New York City this month, she will appear on Sean Hannity’s Fox News program as a member of his Great American panel.

Then she jets to Los Angeles and shoots a new Playboy cover and pictorial layout for the February issue.

“The last cover I did for Playboy was November 2001, so I’ve changed a bit since then -- a lot of change, actually,” she laughed. On Oct. 31, her own rock band Strawberry Blonde, in which she is the lead vocalist, will open for Lady Gaga at Hugh Hefner’s Playboy Mansion Halloween party.

Angelica, a former Baywatch beauty, is one smoking redhead who is proud to be 35 years old with vital statistics of 34D-24-34 and 120 pounds. She stands 5’8” with blue-green eyes, and as the single mother of two young children, I nominate her for the Cougar of the Year Award (although maybe she’s a little too young to be considered a cougar yet)!

Although it’s Angelica’s first headline, she has played Las Vegas once before. Strawberry Blonde performed at Tangerine in Treasure Island before it became Christian Audigier the Nightclub. “The stage was so small, we couldn’t get all our instruments on it, and we almost fell off a couple of times,” she laughed.

“I never imagined I would land a Vegas show like Fantasy. I never thought of it,” she continued. “I performed in Vegas only once before and thought it rocked. I didn’t dream I’d come back. My dream was to be like Ann-Margret. I must have watched her a dozen times in Viva Las Vegas with Elvis Presley. That was my dream, and now it’s come true. I’m proud to have been picked as the new headliner. I guess I’m the facelift bringing some new and different energy. I’m honored to be singing and dancing with these great dancers -- they are classically trained. They have amazing bodies, and there is no shame about their beautiful dancing even if nearly nude.

“I’m not completely new to this. The people back home in Missouri really loved it when I became the hot chick of the month in Maxim. You know 95 percent of Europeans are favorable to nudity, but 80 percent of people in America are uptight about it. When I pose nude, it’s a wonderfully sexy feeling, a powerful control of myself and my body. There’s a glow from inside that knows I’m making people happy. “

Angelica said she became newly single a year ago after a troubled marriage. “I’m really starting my life all over again now. I’m a very caring mother, and I have my own mother and a nanny with me for the two children while I am here in Vegas. I’m very responsible, and I don’t do anything in my life that anybody can criticize.”

Two new rotating singer hosts have been added to the new-look show because of the seven-night-a-week performance run. Nikki used to sing with Buck Owens in their mutual hometown of Bakersfield, Calif. The new dancers are Yesi from Cuba, Jennifer from Alabama, Mariah from Colorado and Jaylene from Korea. Tracey from England is the dance captain, with Amber from Texas, Lindsay from St. Louis, Cece from Maryland, Dee from Memphis and Amber, a former Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader. Sonya, a silks aerialist, also has been added to the lineup now that she’s recovered from a June accident at a Hilton charity show when she broke her wrists, sustained a fractured pelvis and suffered a concussion. She was treated at Sunrise Medical Center’s trauma care unit, but at 20, she’s recovered, ready and raring to go.

To celebrate the new look and 10th anniversary of Fantasy, guests tomorrow night will be given a 32-page souvenir photo book depicting the history of the show. It will then be available for sale for the next 12 months instead of the usual calendar.

Producer and choreographer Anita Mann told me: “The show is 80 percent new. We only kept the three most popular numbers. It was time to give it a major refreshed look, and it’s already brought up the energy and excitement to a whole new level. When we launched this show a decade ago, we had no idea the success we would achieve, and we’re so proud to be celebrating this milestone with brand new numbers and a stunning new star.”

Anita and Luxor President Felix Rappaport dismissed all notions that they’re trying to compete with Holly Madison in Peepshow. Anita had offered a role to Holly in Fantasy long before she accepted her Peepshow role.

Felix told me: “Competition for the entertainment dollar has become fierce on the Strip. I just wanted to see the show reinvigorated, rejuvenated and re-imagined. This 10th anniversary marked the perfect occasion to introduce audiences to the new energy and talent, particularly with Angelica. Fantasy is the next evolution of the Vegas showgirl putting a sexy and contemporary twist on a classic icon so cherished and revered. It’s been a tremendous entertainment draw at Luxor for 10 years, and Angelica’s addition to the cast takes the show to another level.”

Angelica, who has momentarily traded the cameras of Hollywood, where she appeared in more than 20 TV series, for the bright lights of Las Vegas, was named one of the 50 Sexiest Women in the World by Maxim. She’s been a cover girl for numerous magazines, including GQ and Esquire.

Angelica summed up: “I’m ready to go. We’ll make it a knockout. This is so much fun, and we’re having the best time. Now we’ll make certain our audiences do, too.”

I’ll be there for tomorrow night’s first show of their hoped-for second decade, and we’ll tweet the topless news if and as it happens. My bet is that the new tall temptress is about to take Vegas by storm! She is one wondrous wow of a woman!

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

Follow Robin Leach on Twitter HERE.

Follow Vegas DeLuxe on Twitter HERE.

Follow VDLX Editor Don Chareunsy on Twitter HERE.

Share This