Discounts, Entertainment

Spiegelworld’s Opium Show at Cosmopolitan

Spiegelworld, the company behind Absinthe, has opened a new , campy, space themed show called “Opium” at   the Cosmopolitan. The concept is that we (performers and audience) are on a spaceship traveling from Uranus to Las Vegas.

I really enjoyed the variety of acts.  The show includes live music, a  great hooping act, comedic juggling, a girl in the balloon act, a flashy whip trickster, a really cute balancing act with a chihuahua and a few things that are better kept as surprises.   The segues between acts were very entertaining, too. Those segues create a nice through-line for the show of otherwise random (but still good) acts.

There were only two acts that were subpar. There is an act where an audience member is tasked with reading the lines from a scene with one of the performers. The words are strategically positioned on the performer. I loved the concept, but it went on about 2 minutes too long. The other was the sword swallower. He spent too much time talking down to his audience volunteer.    And, while the ability to swallow a sword is impressive, the act itself was boring.  I spent much of the sword swallowing act wondering when he was going to use the LED sword / lightsaber that he entered with. He never used it. I’ve never known a sword swallower to bring on an LED sword and not use it. Very odd.

I still enjoyed the show a lot and highly recommend it.  While definitely from the same creators, it is  less political and more widely accessible than Absinthe. There is still a lot of adult humor and sexual innuendo.

I have a feeling the show is still evolving.  Some of the photos and descriptions published in June  were not part of the show I saw in July. Since most of the acts are independent or not tied to a show through line, it is easy enough for them to swap acts in and out during the run based upon performer availability.

The theater itself is fairly small (only 7 rows deep) – great for a show like this where you want to be close to the action.  It didn’t look like there were any bad seats. I had  a Terrace seat.  It was a great vantage point. The Impresarios Reserve / VIP seats are actually the furthest away. I wouldn’t suggest them unless you really really don’t want to be pulled onstage (and there’s still no guarantee that they won’t approach you).

Quick Tip: I suggest getting to the theater about 15 minutes before showtime. They don’t open the theater until then and there is limited seating in the lounge and none in the bar. It was a fairly awkward scene before the show with people standing in the bar, not knowing what to do and being compelled to get a drink since they were in the bar.
Tickets and Showtimes:

Shows are 8pm Wednesday – Monday with additional 10pm shows Thursday – Sunday.
Ticket prices range from $79-129.
You can  find   discount tickets from Goldstar.

Here is the  show description from Goldstar:
Black light, b-movie sci-fi and ballsy burlesque come together in “Opium”, the trippy new Las Vegas variety show at The Cosmopolitan’s Chelsea from the creators of the hit “Absinthe”. Starring Spiegelworld’s patented sexy cirque performers and billed as “fast, funny and funky,” this adults-only extravaganza unfolds aboard an ’80s-era rocket ship, where you’ll find out-of-this-world entertainment the “Las Vegas Review Journal” praises as an “interplanetary farce” with “wild musical numbers, raunchy comedy and unique side acts.”