Diva Las Vegas

Diva Las Vegas
Tour by Bette Midler
Location	MGM Grand Hotel and Casino Las Vegas, Nevada
Start date	18 January 1997
End date	18 January 1997
Shows	One Night Only
Bette Midler tour chronology
Experience The Divine Again! (1994) Diva Las Vegas (1997) Bathhouse Betty Club Tour (1999)

The Divine Miss "M" takes center stage at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas for this performance of raucous music and comedy show. Featuring Ms. Midler's signature mix of heavenly singing, bawdy comedy, and brazen costumes, Diva Las Vegas is proof that Midler has the right to refer to herself as 'The Divine'. Features the songs: The Rose, Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, From A Distance, Friends, Wind Beneath My Wings, Stay With Me, Do You Want To Dance? and many, many more.^[1]

This wasn't a full tour for Bette, but only a one-stop concert at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada which was meant to be filmed and aired on television. HBO released this as a TV special and it aired on January 18, 1997. They re-aired it again a few weeks later on February 2, 1997.

Bette's daughter Sophie von Haselberg appears for a short time during the song Ukelele Lady. She is sitting with the rest of the cast and musicians on stage playing a ukulele and singing the words.

Cast and Personnel

Cast

• Bette Midler – Herself, Headliner, Vocalist

Dancers

• Michelle Foreman
• Wendy Pasquale
• Karen Russell
• Natalie Webb

Musicians

• Bobby Lyle – Piano and Keyboards
• Buzz Feiten – Guitar
• Danny Jacob – Guitar
• Reggie Hamilton – Bass
• Larry Cohn – Keyboards
• Rayford Griffin – Drums
• Lenny Castro – Percussion
• Lynn Mabry – Vocals
• Carol Hatchett – Vocals
• Melanie Taylor – Vocals
• Rhae Ann Theriault – Vocals
• Marc Shaiman – Additional Music

Crew

• Marty Callner – Director/Producer
• Madalyn Minch – Writer
• Bruce Vilanch – Writer
• Lon Weyland – Writer
• Bonnie Bruckheimer – Executive Producer
• Toni Basil – Choreographer
• Troy Okoniewski – Editor
• Jeff U'ren – Editor
• Robert De Mora – Production Design/Costume Design

Set list

The set list is according to the DVD chapter stops (28 in total). The soundtrack to this concert film has a different tracklisting and is much shorter in length.

1. Viva Las Vegas
2. Opening Fanfare
3. Friends
4. I Look Good
5. Miss Otis Regrets
6. Las Vegas
7. Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most
8. Bed of Roses
9. The First Wives Club
10. You Don't Own Me
11. The 70's
12. The Rose
13. Burlesque - Pretty Legs (& Great Big Knockers)
14. Burlesque - Rose's Turn
15. Las Vegas Interlude
16. Drinkin' Again/MacArthur Park/Infomercial/Call Me
17. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy
18. Bigotry/Bridge Over Troubled Waters/In The Navy/The Greatest Love of All
19. New York, New York
20. Ukelele Lady
21. From a Distance
22. Do You Wanna Dance?
23. To Comfort You
24. Stay With Me
25. Wind Beneath My Wings
26. Cast Introductions
27. The Glory of Love
28. Closing Credits

Technical Aspects

The concert was filmed in full frame (1.33:1) and the sound was recorded in Dolby Digital. On the DVD of this concert film, there is English subtitles, an animated menu screen with scene selections, but there are no bonus materials on the disc.

The concert runs for 123 minutes (2 hours and 3 minutes) in total - including credits. The DVD was not rated with an MPAA rating, but some releases are rated with an "M" for mature audiences (undoubtedly due to strong language and sexual innuendos).

To date, the special has not been officially released to home video in the US. A PAL VHS was issued in Europe, followed by a region 2 DVD. Most recently, a PAL DVD for regions 2-6 was included in a 2009 UK reissue of The Best Bette.

External links

• Bette Midler's performance of "I Look Good" from her HBO concert special "Diva Las Vegas"
• "Diva Las Vegas" at IMDb

References

1. ^ Amazon.co.uk: Bette Midler - Diva Las Vegas [1997]: Bette Midler, Bobby Lyle, Buzz Feiten, Danny Jacob, Reggie Hamilton, Larry Cohn, Rayford Griffin, Lenny Castro, Lynn Ma...