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Discount steak, Buffet caviar, anD an atM BonusStop the presses. One of Las Vegas best dining

deals has sustained a price increase, kinda.

The excellent 24/7 complete steak dinner at

Ellis Island has been raised by a buck to $8.99,

but theres a way to get the dollar back. Simply

play $1 in any slot or video-poker machine and

you get the special at the old price of $7.99. It

actually makes more sense to play $1.25. Playing

a single dollar on one of Ellis Islands 9/6 Jacks

or Better games means playing short-coin. That

eliminates the royal-flush bonus and drops the

games return to 98.02 percent for an average

loss of 2 cents to get $1. Thats a good trade,

but playing $1.25 in a quarter machine is better.

That takes you to full-coin status and a return of

99.54 percent, which means your expected loss

drops to just six-tenths of a cent.

You have to be creative to keep pace on

the gourmet-buffet scene, and Bellagio has

stepped up its game by adding unlimited caviar

to its dinner buffet on Fridays and Saturdays

($37.99). The caviar is described as tradi-

tional, ikura and tobiko. An everyday unlimited

drinks option has also been added for dinner,

offering Bellinis, Bloody Marys, sparkling wine

and beer for $8 more.

The same El Cortez deal for cashing IRS

or government checks at the cage that I wrote

about a few weeks ago is now in force at

the ATM. Get 5 percent in free play by using

your EBT or ATM card at an El Cortez ATM

machine. The minimum withdrawal is $200,

and the limit is $50 in free play, so taking out

$1,000 gets the maximum bonus. Theres a

$3 charge for the transaction. I dont know of

any bank in Nevada, or anywhere, thatll lay a

premium like that on you.

Las Vegans with local ID can get 30 percent

off meals at Mood at the Artisan in March and

April, and half-price tickets to Madame Tussauds

through March 15.

Lo and behold, theres another good $1 oys-

ter happy hour in town, this one at Rhythm Kitch-

en (6435 S. Decatur Blvd.), where you can get

em raw, charbroiled or Rockefeller-style from

4 to 6:30 p.m. seven days a week. And the rest

of the offers arent too shabby either, with more

than 20 discounted appetizers and $2 beers.

The new center bar at the Palms is called

Social. Theres a Wednesday happy hour from 5

to 9 p.m., with 50 percent off select whiskey and

wine by the bottle or glass, but the video-poker

machines have been taken out. No video poker at

a Palms bar? Now thats news.

Anthony Curtis is the publisher of the Las Vegas

Advisor and LasVegasAdvisor.com, a monthly

newsletter and website dedicated to finding the

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Boutique is suDDenly in on Las Vegas Boulevard. From Victor Drais just-starting reboot of Bills to the Nobu Tower at Caesars Palace to the Delanos takeover of the erstwhile THEhotel at Mandalay Bay, brands-within-brands and specialized service are all the ragea trend that promises to remake the Strip.But the original boutique hotel-

within-a-hotel on the Strip, the Four Seasons, is generating some buzz of its own with a two-phase renova-tion thats just started its second half. Sharing the Mandalay Bay complex with the Delano Las Vegas, its got something the other boutique proj-ects dont: a history in town.When Mandalay Bay opened in

March 1999, much of the attention was on the boutique Four Seasons component. It was an unusual arrangementthe Four Seasons had its own lobby, spa, pool area, restaurants and meeting rooms in a structure to the south of the main resort, with guest rooms on foors 35 through 39 of the Mandalay Bay hotel tower. Partnering with Four Seasons was the cornerstone of Mandalay Resort Group CEO Glenn Schaeffers bid to establish Mandalay Bay as a property rivaling Bellagio, Caesars Palace and the Venetian and tran-scend the companys value-property past (Circus Circus, Excalibur, Luxor, Monte Carlo).Then, in 2005, MGM Resorts

acquired Mandalay, and the fagship property was no longer a fagship. That didnt impact Four Seasons as much as the main resort, since the boutique hotel has its own manage-ment thats responsible to Four Sea-sons brass, not its Las Vegas landlord.Still, the guest rooms at Four Sea-

sons hadnt been substantially reno-

vated since their opening in 199914 years ago, an eternity in Las Vegas (the Stardusts hotel tower was 16 years old when it was declared hope-lessly outmoded and imploded in 2007). And while there is something timeless about the ultra-high-end design of Four Seasons, that brand is no longer the undisputed champion of boutique Vegas; the arrival of Man-darin Oriental at City Center in 2009 means another option for guests looking for a non-gaming hotel with exacting service standards.So last year, the property renovated

its 343 standard rooms and 81 suites. In a project fnished in early Decem-ber, the rooms were given a new art deco-inspired look. Thats an inter-esting choice, and one that presents a marked contrast to the barefoot chic of the Delano South Beach (pre-sumably a template for the Las Vegas model) and recent MGM remodels at Bellagio and MGM Grand. We wanted the new rooms to refect the energy and the excitement of Las Vegas while maintaining a level of sophistication Four Seasons guests expect, says Four Seasons Las Vegas general manager Mark Hellrung.Those guests, Hellrung says, are

looking for something signifcantly more stylish and modern, so at the end of the day the room renovation is about following customer tastes.The latest phase is spicing up the

lobby and pool garden area with Press, a relaxed yet sophisticated

indoor/outdoor bar that speaks exactly to the exigencies of the post-recession Strip: It will be a true multipurpose outlet, serving coffee, pancakes and networking oppor-tunities in the morning; beer and paninis in the afternoon (with ESPN playing on TV); and becoming a full-service bar that also offers small plates in the evening.Multiuse is in style because of

shrinking margins across the Strip. Pools double as dayclubs, vibe-dining restaurants transition into nightclubs, and properties try not to let a single square foot go to waste. Another addition could start a

trend: When Press opens in April, guests will enjoy free Wi-Fi and charging outlets, no matter when they visit. Thats a welcome acknowl-edgement that, in 2013, guests expect to be connectedand for free. In Las Vegas, visitors will likely share pictures and videos of their exploitsthe kind of social-media marketing for which most hotels would pay far more than the cost of bandwidth.The renovation is a great example

of how competition is necessary to the citys continuing appeal as a tour-ist destination. If Four Seasons was the only upscale boutique property in town, there wouldnt be much incentive for this kind of change, and it would inevitably grow stale. This is the kind of competition

that built Las Vegas, and with 150,000 or so hotel rooms in town, visitors have plenty of choices. As long as someone wants an edge, be it free Wi-Fi or newer rooms, it will never pay to rest on your laurels, which ultimately means better quality all around. Even if youre not staying in a boutique room, youll see the results.

Keeping a Season AheadA rendering of the Four Seasons new lobby bar, Press.

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to be youNg is to believe wholeheartedly in certain rosy, soothing illusionsthat age, infrmity and death will never come to call, that divorce and the suburbs are fates that only befall other people. And yet we will all know illness, we will all die, and many of us will move to the suburbs.Young families have been

moving to the suburbs for as long as there have been young families and suburbs. That many of the young families moving to New York suburbs should be Brooklynites, that many of them should fancy themselves creative types, and that they, like their parents

and grandparents before them, should believe them-selves capable of bringing their superior sensibilities to the land of compromises and comfort should come as no surprise. See Revolutionary Road.And yet The New York Times

has seen ft to print yet another Style section feature on the sub-urban exodus of Brooklynites calledwhat else?Creating Hipsturbia. Meanwhile, Wil-liamsburg on the Hudson ran way back in August 2011.What seems to be entirely lost

on these suburban pioneers (and on the Times) is that, despite their tattoos and their gluten-free baked goods and

The Hipsturbia MythThe New York Times reports Smug Urbanites Bailing for Bigger Houses

and Better Schools. Whoa, pioneers! Exactly whats new here?

By Kim VelseyThe New York Observer

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since 2007, Boulder City resident Tony Taylor has regularly made the three-hour drive to Flagstaff to spend a few days volunteering for the Grand Canyon Trust. At the trusts headquarters, Taylor, a retired Nellis Air Force Base employee and an avid hiker, hops on a van packed with other volunteers and group leaders and heads out to remote reaches of the Colorado Plateau. There, the group tackles projects rang-ing from eradicating invasive cheatgrass on ranch lands to planting native crops on a Navajo farm cooperative. In Au-

gust, Taylor spent several days in the Hopi village of Polacca, clearing trails and staging areas for the annual 30-mile Water Is Life run, which attracts some 800 runners.You see things you

wouldnt see as a tourist, says Taylor of his repeated volun-teer treks with the trust. You get a whole new perspective, you meet real people. I appre-ciate the trusts mission.Even with 2,000 people who

have donated up to 18,000 hours annually, volunteers are just part of the Grand Canyon Trusts mission. The

organization, now in its 28th year, supports the protection of the Colorado Plateau, a vast landscape stretching from northern Arizona into Utah, southwestern Colorado and northeastern New Mexico. Moab, Utah-based biologist

Bill Hedden, a Harvard Ph.D., has been the trusts execu-tive director since 2003. He has steered the trust through numerous undertakings, including its recent high-profle projectsopposition to a large-scale development in the community of Tusayan, near the entrance to the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park, as well as a controversial gondola and riverside tourist attraction at the eastern edge of the Grand Canyon on Navajo tribal lands. All of our projects are interesting, notes Hedden, who joined the trust in 1996. We take chances on things.The controversial Tusayan

development, proposed by an Italian company, includes 3

million square feet of commer-cial space, hotels, a spa, dude ranch and more than 2,000 residential units, possibly increasing the communitys population tenfold. Besides sprawl and a lack of infrastruc-ture, the major environmental issue the development faces in the arid landscape is a ques-tion of water. Where are they going to get the water? asks Roger Clark, the trusts long-time program director. The existing wells in the area are already affecting springs in the Grand Canyon. Therefore, we are opposing any new wells.The divisive Grand Canyon

Escalade, the proposed gondola and tourist attraction, has the trust working on behalf of Navajo families opposed to the development, which they feel would desecrate a sacred, fragile environment at the confuence of the Colorado and Little Colo-rado rivers. The Escalade proj-ect, the developers maintain, would bring economic develop-

ment and jobs to the remote site, a promise similar to that made for the Hualapai Tribes Grand Canyon West, home to the still-unfnished, mired-in-lawsuits Grand Canyon Skywalk, a glass walkway that extends over the canyon. Bernie Propst, Grand Canyon Escalades chief fnan-cial offcer, previously served as CFO for the operator of Grand Canyon West.Its a contentious project,

admits Clark, who joined the trust in 1989. We support sustainable economic develop-ment, but we are opposed to any development below the canyons rim.

The trust uses all the arrows

in the nonproft quiveradvo-cacy, management, political action, sustainable economic development, collaboration, preservation, restoration and more. The trust has just 28 em-ployees in Arizona, Utah and Colorado, but it has more than 3,000 members across the

A Deep TrustAt the Grand Canyon rim, a passionatebut

pragmaticnonproft is on guard

By Nora Burba Trulsson

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nation and a $4.25 million an-nual budget. The money comes from major donors, smaller donations, memberships and other sources. None of it comes from taxpayers.Not bad for an organization

that had its roots in a wild and woolly 1984 dory trip down the Colorado River. Veteran river runner Martin Litton piloted former California Secretary of Resources Huey Johnson, among others, down the rapids, and the group bonded over a deep love and concern for the Grand Canyon. It was the Reagan era, and Interior Secretary James Watt loomed over pristine landscapes, hostile to envi-ronmentalism and advocating development of public lands. The idea of protecting the Grand Canyon surfaced, and, a year later, the Grand Canyon Trust was born, with a mission to not only protect the canyon itself, but the surrounding Colorado Plateau.

The early trust members were hardly a bunch of sandal-wearing, granola-crunching backpackers. The members in-cluded former Secretary of the Interior and Arizona Governor Bruce Babbitt, as well as former congressman and Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall. Not-ed fnancier, conservationist and rancher James Trees came on board, and his Harvard/East Coast connections put him in the same orbit as philanthro-pists, investment bankers and other big-money types, not to mention a constellation of media members. Edward M. Norton, a Harvard alum spe-cializing in environmental law (and the actors father), served as the trusts frst president.Jim Trees was the catalyst to

get the big donors on board, Clark recalls. He and Ed Nor-ton had a method of inviting prospects on Grand Canyon rafting trips, then asking for donations. Actress Candice Bergen, director Louis Malle and anchorwoman Diane Sawyer were among those who rode the whitewater at the behest of Trees and Norton.

If the Tusayan and Grand

Canyon Escalade projects resolve themselves as hoped by the trust, they will be added to

the organizations long list of en-vironmental accomplishments, beginning with the 1987 passage of the National Parks Overfights Protection Act, which banned fights below the Grand Can-yons rim and created fight-free zones. In the 1990s, the trust fought for better pollution con-trols at two coal-burning power plantsthe Navajo Generating Station near Page, Arizona, and the Mohave Generating Station in Laughlin, Nevada. Also in the 1990s, the trust helped defeat a proposed NAFTA superhigh-way running north across the plateau from Flagstaff. It also ad-vocating for better management of the Colorado Rivers Glen Canyon Dam, allowing regular high-fow releases from the dam to restore beaches and habitats. By 2000, with Heddens infu-

ence, the trust became more active in Utah, with projects such as purchasing and retiring 50,000 acres of oil and gas leases in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and buying the historically sensitive ghost town of Grafton on the banks of the Virgin River near Zion National Park. The trust also got 16 million tons of uranium-mill tailings removed from the bank of the Colorado River near Moab.More recently, the trust

bought the grazing rights to

two ranches850,000 acresadjacent to the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park as a vast land-health and grazing laboratory. The organization has also pushed for new forest conservation programs in Utah and Arizona, and helped steer Interior Secretary Ken Salazars decision to order a 20-year ban on new uranium claims on the plateau. We get things done, Hed-

den says. We look for solutions to the regions toughest prob-lems. We can sit down and talk to anyone.We are a centrist organiza-

tion, Clark says. We are not a litigious organization. We can access thought leaders and politicians that other groups cannot.

On the road to getting things

done, the trust has hit a few speed bumps. Rather than complying with pollution-control mandates, the Mohave Generating Station shut down in 2005, citing costs, which idled a supplying coal mine in Arizona that employed largely Navajo and Hopi workers. While many welcomed the victory for air, land and water resources, the closure resulted in lost jobs for some 200 tribal members, in an area with high

unemployment. Navajo Gen-erating Stations future is also hazy, given cost estimates of up to $1 billion or more to install pollution devices.However, the trust, Clark

points out, has long embraced its Native American members and partners, collaborating on numerous economic-development projects, ranging from tourism to solar power. Theyve worked behind the scenes to help open new hotels on Hopi land and at Monu-ment Valley, and helped form a Navajo community-owned renewable energy retail and installation company. We are not just a naysayer to develop-ment for the protection of the environment, he says. One of our biggest missions is to work with communities to focus on a sustainable economy. Meanwhile, the trust has

successfully weathered the Great Recession. Weve been fortunate, though, in that weve controlled our expenses and done well with our donors. The current political land-

scape has also been more diffcult for an organization that prides itself on bringing people to the table. Politics was more moderate back in the 1980s, Clark recalls. We com-promised, we found solutions. There were no hard party lines like there are today. Nonetheless, the trust pushes

forward with new projects and initiatives. The volunteer program, which began in 1997, is another recent bright spot, meant to bring the trusts work to a hands-on, individual level. Led by botanist Kate Watters, the program has worked to re-store beavers to Southern Utah streams and rivers, remove non-native tamarisks and Rus-sian olive trees from the banks of the Paria River and surveyed sensitive archaeological sites. Watters has recruited many

of the volunteers, who range from urban high school stu-dents and university spring-breakers to retirees. They come from around the country and as far away as Germany, she says. They like to see wilderness areas and engage in the environment. The economy is bad for jobs, but great for us. Weve been getting a lot more volunteers in their 30s and 40s.The bottom line, says Watters,

is that the trust is an enduring presence. We really want to change this part of the world.

we Get thinGs done. we look for solu-

tions to the reGions touGhest problems.

we can sit down and talk to anyone.

Mending fences: The Grand Canyon Trusts 2,000 volunteers serve 18,000 hours each year.

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Where would you say Split-breed falls in the electronic music spectrum?

Taui: Hip-dub-electro-hop-magicalno, I would say hip-hop. Hip-hop/electronic.

Kalani: Were not afraid to drop anything, well drop whatever. If we like it and we think it fts in the setI mean, obviously theres a time and a place for everything.

Taui: Weve defnitely made our name in this town doing a lot of hip-hop/dubstep for sure, but we have tracks from straight hip-hop all the way to anything you can think of.

Kalani: We kind of embody

our name a little bit. BGenius: Also Sony Music in

Europe released one of our singles thats a complete pop song called Make a Baby. Its totally like pop/reggae. If you heard that song and then heard the stuff we were doing [in Vegas], you would think its two different groups.

For those who havent checked you out, what kind of a performance can they expect?

Taui: With everything we do, if the crowds not jumping up and down, were doing some-thing wrong. Thats the way we

look at it, really. Anyones that come to a show or anything, theyll say, Those guys are insane, or Those guys are crazy. They got us out of our seats, going nuts. Leave it all out therethats our motto. Leave it all out no matter what, whether its 10 or 500 or 1,000 people.

You have two MCs and have previously incorporated a drummer into your sets. Do you see 2013 as being the year were people say, OK, DJs/EDM is cool, but I need some-thing more?

Kalani: People need to inno-

vate. The DJs, the lighting and all that is cool, but every year you want to be progressing and innovating more.

Taui: Theres always going to be a place for that no matter what. I love watching a really good DJ kill it, but there is a hu-man aspect too that comes into play no matter what genre it is. It helps if you have a human aspect to actually talk to the people; it can do nothing but help the show.

Kalani: What were trying to do is ft in between so we can get booked everywhere. You need a DJ set? We can do that!

Taui: We make sure were always constantly doing some-thing. Another thing is, we all produce together. Even if were just dropping tracks, well still be there performing with it.

Kalani: We play 80 percent of our own music, even when we do DJ sets. Sometimes you gotta play that banger to get them hyped up.

What was the moment when you decided dubstep was

gonna be your thing?Taui: The Music Box [in Los

Angeles], April 8th, 2011, we found dubstep! Ill never forget that date! Were tradition-ally from hip-hop, but our DJ friend Metaphase was like Hey, why dont you guys come check out this show? We went, were onstage and just like This is crazy! We were on the way home, drunk as hell, saying, We really gotta dive into this.

Kalani: We studied for six months on how to make it. We watched, listened and started developing our own sound. Obviously we mix in our own style.

Many critics, and even EDM fans, think 2012 was the year dubstep came and went. What are your opin-ions on that?

Kalani: Its just morphing. The tempos are going up and down. Its not going away, its evolving. Think about dubstep in 2010, and think about it now. Its completely different.

Taui: You hear dubstep in a Taylor Swift song. I dont think its going anywhere. Its good that its progressing and morphing. Thats what music is about.

Will you add in some more trap?

Kalani: Were hip-hop guys, so we like trap. Its cool, its simple. Its really simple to make.

Taui: I like it all. A good song is a good song.

Kalani: It really comes down to the producer. A good pro-ducer can make any genre cool.

Who have been you major supporters thus far?

BGenius: B-Rob [Bryan Robinson] defnitely. Hes the mood director for 9Group at the Palms.

Kalani: Calamity of Noise, Stellar, Pegboard Nerds. Re-volvrs a really good friend.

Taui: B.J. Penn, a two-time UFC champion, he supports us a lot. We get a lot of support in this town. Were pretty much cool with everybody.

Does Splitbreed think dubstep has longevity? Or will trap take over? Find out at VegasSeven.com/Splitbreed.

Aloha, Las Vegas Electronic trio Splitbreed puts it all out there for dubstep fans

By Deanna Rilling

EvEn if you havEnt been able to get into dubstep, the brand of hip-hop-infuenced bass music Split-breed offers is a lot more user-friendlywhile still retaining some grit. With all its current members deriving from families with musical backgrounds, it seemed only a natural ft for brothers and emcees Kalani and Taui Moe, along with DJ/producer BGenius, to pursue a career in the industry. Together for almost three years, the members of Splitbreed have ditched their day jobs to focus on the group full time, which has served them well and resulted in a Beatport glitch-hop chart-topping EP We Are One with Pegboard Nerds, plus gigs around the world. Vegas Seven learns more about the trio that calls Las Vegas home before they play Body English on March 21 and the Frequency stage at Extreme Thing on March 30.

From left: BGenius, Kalani and Taui.

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You started producing at age 11. How did that affect you?When I was 11, I decided I want-

ed to be a producer. Later in life, in my long and ever-changing life [laughter], I discovered DJing and other aspects of electronic-music production. One of my main concerns when I started was to make sure my head was focused, so for the frst couple of years I refused to do any photos or video interviews. I made sure that all the attention was on the music, and I am thankful it was, so that I could build a fan base

that liked my releases. It would have been easy to say, I am 15 and DJing, and it all could have disappeared quickly, because the nature of that gimmick is that its not lasting. It would have been a mistake to not believe in my musical abilities and to bet on that. Obviously, when I started touring a bit more, it would have been ridiculous to keep on hiding. I could have went the [Deadmau5] helmet way, but that seemed a bit cheesy, and its already been done so much. My youth was something I am proud

of, but it was important for me to manage it and make sure it didnt overpower the musical projects.

How did you land the gig as Gagas opening act?I was playing Lollapalooza and

one of her promoters saw me, liked what he heard and I sent some songs in. We started chat-ting a bit and it felt right. I also really love her as a person and was happy to go on tour with her.

Are you helping produce her new album, ARTPOP?I may. Its a process where we

are trying things and making songs. You never know how its going to end up.

What is she like when the public isnt watching?She is incredibly nice, intel-

ligent and an incredible singer.

You have a studio on your tour bus?

Ive never been able to pro-duce on the road, because I use speakers and I cant mix with headphonesit really bothers me. For this tour, because I was on the road for quite a while, I didnt want to not produce any music for two months. So I got a production laptop, speakers and all the basic gear I needed to make a studio that I could set up on the bus. The bus doesnt have the best acoustics, however, so it doesnt sound great. I experi-ment, though, and change songs and try out new ideas on the piano. When I was last in Vegas for three days I actually set up the studio in my hotel room [at Encore], and because its a larger room it sounded great, even better than at home! I actually wrote a couple of songs that I am super excited about, but obvi-ously one of my concerns was my neighbors. My manager actually moved his room next to mine to make sure we didnt disturb any-onewe did some tests to make sure, and thankfully it was OK.

You tweeted, The past year has been dazzling, and there is more to come. Whats next?

Ive just fnished a track called Technicolor, which is more of an experimental release for me. Its a six-minute journey. Ive played it live, and my fans are asking for it, so I am thinking Ill release that next. I also want to do an album. A lot of my ideas and the things Im working on are more clearly merging, and I can start to see what my album will be like. It will be all original music and collabs with singers, no remixes. I have a lot to say musically.

You often wear a blazer on tour. Would you consider yourself fashion forward?My style consists of owning

fve black jeans, a million white V-necks and a couple of black blazers. I wear the same thing every day!

Lets talk iPhone casesI hear you hate big ones.This is a prototype of the new

Madeon iPhone case [points to a naked iPhone 5]. Its quite thin and slim as you can see! I used to have a big case, but I thought, Lets live dangerously.

Pop Culture ProdigyElectro-pop DJ/producer Madeon presses pause to talk Gaga, his

makeshif recording studio at Encore and his minimalist fashion sense

By David Morris

Hugo LecLercq Left scHooL at age 16, taught himself music and perfect English, and then caught the ear of Lady Gaga, who was so im-pressed by the now-18-year-old native of Nantes, France, that she asked him to open for her on her North American tour. Madeon, as he is better known, may be most recognized for his button-pushing mash-up Pop Culture, but his musical depth extends much deeper than simply re-tooling the material of others. He has quickly followed up with a series of his own hits (Icarus, Finale and The City), is the only DJ to have played the New York Stock Exchange and will headline the main stage at Ultra Music Festival in Miami on March 16. But frst hell be at Surrender on March 15.

Follow Madeon on Twitter at @Madeon. Get the specs he used to mash-up 39 songs in three minutes in the video for Pop Culture at VegasSeven.com/Madeon.

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[ Upcoming ]

March 15 RobKardashiansbirthdayparty

March 29 KendrickLamarperforms

April 9 MajorLazerStrikesBack

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terms of Broadway subscribers, Martin says. Before we opened, I said if we could get to the same level as Dallasthey opened a couple of years before us with 6,000 subscribersI thought that would be pretty good for us, and we opened with 11,000.Straight drama was not on

the bill during the Broadway series, though oneWar Horseis among the titles for the 2013-14 season. Reason for the dearth? Lack of choices.This isnt an artistic decision

as much as a touring decision, Martin says. The Broadway touring model is based on mu-sicals. Out of all the great plays Ive seen on Broadway this year, I know that none of them are currently slated to tour. While musicals as a genre

began with a built-in fan base, quirkier presentations brought in a whole other audience.

Seventy percent of the audi-ence that came for DRUMLine had never been here before, he says. Two full nights of people who had a blast seeing this show based on the historically black college marching bands.Yet expectations had to be

downscaled for other attrac-tions, such as the lecture series, whose highlightan evening with Broadway legend Stephen Sondheim reminiscing about his storied careerdid not sell out the 2,050-seat hall. Being a perfectionist,

anything less than completely sold out was a failure, Martin says. Well, the reality is, 1,800 people came to see Stephen Sondheim in Las Vegas, and thats pretty cool. We can always block out the balcony and make it feel really intimate for a speaker series. Among upcoming guests who might

not require that accommoda-tion: TV icon Alan Alda.After departing UNLVs Ar-

temus Ham Hall, the Las Vegas Philharmonic and Nevada Ballet Theatre became roomies again at Reynolds Hall. Though there was statistical overlap as the Philharmonics season began at UNLV and continued at The Smith Center, it enjoyed a 20 percent increase in subscrip-tions for the 2012-13 season. Moving its annual production of The Nutcracker to the center from Paris Las Vegas, Nevada Ballet saw a 13 percent bump in ticket sales.

Lend an Ear, Cast an EyeAcoustically, Reynolds Hall

has garnered largely favorable reviews. Among the things we got right were non-amplifed acoustics, Martin says. When the Cleveland Orchestra says

its one of the best-sounding rooms theyve played in, it vali-dates what we thought.Musicals posed a different

challenge. Each tour arrives packing its own sound gear, de-signed to work in average-sized, average-shaped auditoriums. However, the frst to pull in, The Color Purple, revealed that some patrons in certain seating areas were not getting the full audio impact, especially in understand-ing that shows heavy dialect.We would talk to one person

who said the sound was the best theyd ever heard, and someone else maybe 6 or 8 feet away felt like they were missing some of the dialogue, Martin says. Adding line array speakers,

which aim the sound into nar-row, specifc areas, addressed the problem, hitting spots not reached by the cluster of speak-ers on each side of the stage.Visually, the room is nearly

obstruction-freeno poles or pillarsbut sitting in the balcony has produced a few complaints about handrails that popped up in the peripheral views of some seat-holders. Rather than risk safety by removing the rails, the center fagged the trouble seats on its website with asterisks, so buyers will know what theyre paying foror choose not to pay for.

Jazz Me Up, Jazz Me DownGorgeous room, great

musicyou cant argue with an opening-season lineup that included Branford Marsalis, Barbara Cook, the San Fran-cisco Jazz Collective, Al Jarreau, Ramsey Lewis, Pia Zadora, the local Composers Showcase and monthly appearances by Clint Holmes. And yet Its not where we want it

yet, Martin says about the Cabaret Jazz club. Live music sounds incredibly good in there. In one weekend, artist X is completely sold out. But we get to Wednesday, or Thursday and its only about half sold and we scratch our heads.Marketing likely confused

some patrons who mistook the

title cabaret jazz for a series within Reynolds Hall. Also problematic is that some jazz heavyweights such as Diana Krall are booked at Reynolds because of their drawing power while the equally esteemed Marsalis plays at Cabaret Jazz. We havent done a very good

job describing what happens there, that you can have a little drink, have a little food, and hear the greatest performers from around the world in jazz and cabaret, Martin says. Its up to me to get the word out.

Stealth StageYes, the Troesh Studio The-

ater hosted shows, including the one-man George Burns tribute, Say Goodnight, Gracie, and The Diary of Anne Frank by the Jewish Repertory Theatre of Nevada. Still, it remains the least publicly known of the Smith complexs three venues.Maybe we havent done as

many publicly ticketed perfor-mances there as other spaces, but it may be our most used room in the complex, Martin says. The Troesh was designed to be a blank slate space. Its a black box theater, a dance re-hearsal space and a place for cor-porate events. Weve even done a handful of weddings in there. Im happy with the productive occupancy in that space.

Hey, They Noticed!Before the opening of The

Smith Center, Martin was fond of predicting that it would cre-ate a newfound reputation for Las Vegas cultural potency.Citing one example, he tells

the story of a colleague who was wearing a Smith Center cap during a visit to Singapore. He was stopped and someone said, Weve heard all about your place, and I cant wait when we come to Las Vegas to see a concert at The Smith Center. I think it says a lot about how people around the world are perceiving Las Vegas differently.Feel better about yourself,

Las Vegas? You should.

Anybody who sAys they opened A $470 million building And everything wAs perfect, i dont know if thAts ever hAppened in the history of mAn.

Clint Holmes swings the Cabaret Jazz monthly.

Nevada Ballet Theatre performs Jewels

in its new home, Reynolds Hall.

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Music

Dont Miss the DeaDline, DarlingIts not too late, Vegas rock bands! Zia Records is still accepting submissions for its annual You Heard Us Back When music compilation before midnight strikes on March 8. The series is in its seventh volume and, according to a press release, the company has sold more than 5,500 copies. If youre in a band, drop off a CD of your music at either of the two Zia stores in Las Vegas or send tracks digitally (preferably via an FTP-sharing site so you can submit high-quality files). Dont forget to complete a submission form, accessible at ZiaRecords.com/CustomPage/1482. Extra coolness: Proceeds from compilation sales, like every year, go to a nonprofit charity. The album will be released April 20, National Record Store Day.

In last years edition (Vol. 6), local bands seemed, to my mind, underrepresented; the compilation also offers music by bands from Tucson and Phoenix. So let me take a moment to ass-prod the following groups that havent yet made an appearance in the series: Mercy Music, the Dirty Hooks, Demon Lung. As one of my all-time favorite bands, Blue yster Cult, once sang: Dont miss the deadline, darling/Its almost the deadline, darling/I couldnt live if it happened to

you. Vegas, represent!More good news: I confirmed with Seth

Hyman, president and CEO of Negative Progression Records, that his Boston-San Francisco-New York label signed local up-and-coming metalcore quintet Scream the Lie for a one-album deal with options. They defy their youth by writing complex guitar riffs and intricate rhythms that are evolved well beyond their years, Hyman says. The band has the potential to be selling out venues all over the U.S. in time. Lets see if Scream the Lie makes good.

Postponed show alert: San Francisco blues-rock quartet the Stone Foxes were set to stun Backstage Bar & Billiards this week, but the concert has been rescheduled for June 7. OK, awesome live music actually happening this week: 8 p.m. March 8, British piano-based alt-rock band A Silent Film unspools at Hard Rock Caf on the Strip with Gold Fields and Royal Teeth. If you crave the widescreen majesty of Coldplay and Snow Patrol, this show should butter your popcorn. Finally, 80s hard-rock/glam-metal band Kix kicks off an evening of fist-pumping music at Fremont Street Experience 9 p.m. March 9 on the 1st Street Stage. The band has radio hits, but my favorite tune is the obscure yet exquisitely titled Bang Bang (Balls of Fire). Hey, dont laugh: Kip Winger co-wrote it!

Your Vegas band releasing a CD soon? Your girl-

friend might swear its good, but shes biased. Email

Jarret_Keene@Yahoo.com for an honest opinion. Photo

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Keep it siMple, stupid isnt just a principle of engineering and graphic design. Its also all-around great advice for working in a band.Toronto rocker, music-magazine

columnist and internationally syndicated radio host Danko Jones is all about the electric six-strings. Indeed, his previous albums offer big guitars. But his bands latest and sixth disc, Rock and Roll Is Black and Blue, sounds like Jones fnally fgured out how to generate riffs on superhero Thors mountain-leveling, lightning-summoning hammer Mjlnir. Was this inten-tional or something the albums producer, Matt DeMatteo, cooked up in the studio?Actually, we told Matt we wanted

to turn down the guitars, Jones says. But by trimming them, they ended up sounding bigger. In doubling guitar tracks in a studio, they some-times sound thin. Our idea wasnt to sound massive. We wanted the guitars to be earthier, more real.It doesnt get more real than

Jones ultra-tight, Juno (Canadian Grammy)-nominated power triobassist John Calabrese and drummer Atom Willard. With the right musi-cians, a three-piece format proves

successful. Consider bands such as Cream, The Jimi Hendrix Experi-ence, Nirvana and ZZ Top. Jones pays homage to the latter by writing an-other song in honor of lovely female extremities titled, yep, Legs.Theres room for two songs

called Legs, Jones says, laughing. Once you hear the riff and the verse of my song, you already know the chorus. What else can you call it? Besides, I believe in the power of womens legs more than anything.Its not like Jones wrote a song

called Hey Jude or Stairway to Heaven. Still, with his new re-cord, an impulse to acknowledge older artists is palpable. Terri-fied boasts Dave Grohl-grade riffs. The punked-up heavy-metal rhythm and middle-range bass in Conceited bear a whiff of Motrhead. Always Away kicks off with an AC/DC intro. Then theres the Led Zep swagger of You Wear Me Down. Im guilty of revering classic

bands, says Jones, who started his band in 96. At least Im honest. If you have a killer riff, youre lying if you say you came up with it your-self. [There are] enough long-wind-ed descriptions where people make

something thats been done before sound unique and original. This is a rock band; there are touchstones.Oddly, for all his reliance on the

riff, Jones feels hes a better singer.I have my moments on guitar,

he says. I have exemplary power-chord skills. For the music we do, thats all I need. But my voice is where Im strongest. Im no Mariah Carey. I have enough power to sing in a band and stand out.That power is evident on a

gospel-infuenced track on Black and Blue: I Believed in God, which Jones delivers live as if leading a revival. In it, unrequited lust is described as spiritual pain: Praise God when you see her face/When she walks by you will speak His name/But when youre brokenhearted/youll know where evil started. People told me for years: Youre

like a preacher onstage. Wed never ventured in that direction before. What began as a simple Misfts punk song led to us bringing gospel singers into the studio. It became a bigger song than wed intended.Again, in the case of Danko Jones,

small aims led to large gains. But dont expect the singer-guitarist to chuck his electric in favor of a now-trendy acoustic.I love loud music, he says. It de-

serves more respect, but it just isnt that way. Yeah, hard rock is vulgar at times, but the music is primal. Thats why we play it.

Danko Jones with Volbeat at House of Blues, 6:30 p.m. March 14, $27.50-$31, 6327600, HouseOfBlues.com.

Giant SizeTo sound huge, Canadian hard-rocker Danko Jones

scales down

By Jarret Keene

Their musics got Legs: Calabrese, Jones and Willard.

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trevor and the Joneses Double Down Saloon, March 1

A group of boyish faces took the stage, but their performance

proved them to be seasoned musicians, not amateurs. Theyre

a self-described garage band, but that label doesnt do the

savvy quintet justice. Trevor and the Joneses are an up-and-

coming psychedelic rock group with a knack for grunge-laden

guitar chords and explosive punk beats. Trevors modest

demeanor juxtaposed his bold and pronounced vocals. I

wanna sneak ya around, in and out of sleazy bars downtown

... crawl inside your brain and turn it inside, inside out, are

some lyrics to Sneak, a song that got the crowd going.

Other treasures included Grooving at the Speed of Light, a

repetitive chant, and their last song, Superslow, a longer

climactic piece. Although their set was short, lasting about 35

minutes, their performance didnt seem rushed. Trevor writes

the songs, but each member of the five-man band contributes

to their elemental sound. The songs played were off their

debut album, There Was Lightning. Although the Vegas natives

formed the band just more than a year ago, the group already

has the potential to be the next wave to hit the shores of

obscure and respected indie rockers. Catch them again March

10, when they open for the Warlocks at Backstage Bar & Bil-

liards, 601 Fremont Street.

Ashley Gates

Boyz II MenThe Terry Fator Theatre in The Mirage, March 1

After 21 years of singing together (sans original

fourth member Michael McCary who left the

group in 2003 for health reasons), Boyz II Men

have established a legendary harmony. Their

talent shined on this night of their new residency

at The Mirage.

Before they sang one note, Wanya Morris ac-

cidently knocked over his mic stand during some

choreographed dance moves, but they kept the

early tempo going strong then transitioned into

what they do best: sing. They crooned On Bend-

ed Knee, grabbing attention. Their performance

of Its So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday

left the crowd mesmerized.

The group paid homage to the Motown era

with the Temptations My Girl and Just My

Imagination as well as the Four Tops Its

the Same Old Song and Reach Out, Ill Be

There. The tribute lifted the crowd to its feet

as they sang along and danced in the aisles.

The highlight was during Ill Make Love to You,

when the performers gave roses to the dozens

of women (and a handful of men) who rushed to

the stage to receive them.

Motownphilly had everyone on their feet as

the rare up-tempo song gave Morris a chance

of redemption for his earlier mic-stand snafu.

He performed dance solos of the Running Man

and the Roger Rabbitmuch to the staged

aggravation of his group, but to the delight of the

screaming audience.

Brjden Crewe

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stage

[ SHOW REVIEW ]

West side story mISSES balancE Of HEaRt and gRItBy Steve Bornfeld

tough to lift West Side Story off the runway with Jet-less Jets.Compromised by questionable

casting and oddly inert, the tour of the 2009 Broadway revival of the 1957 classic ambled rather than rumbled through The Smith Center recently, its gritty essence gutted.Famously repositioning Romeo

and Juliet in 1950s New York, West Side Story banks on menace and tension between warring gang kids, the American Jets and Puerto Rican Sharks, squaring off over the romance of ex-Jet Tony and his im-migrant lover, Maria. Yet from the opening set piece, the

dance in which the gangs taunt each other, the Jets are less thuggish than cartoonish, the toughness steamed out in favor of balletic gracepretty, but an error from which the produc-tion never recovers. Though the Sharks are more predatory, both gangs were hampered by their leaders. Braying annoyingly as Jet honcho Riff, Theo Lencicki lacked magnetism, while Andres Acosta, though physically imposing, couldnt summon the anger-fueled machismo of Bernardo, the Sharks kingpin. Only briefy did the Jets rev up,

after Riffs demise in Act IIs Gee Offcer Krupke. As Action, Riffs suc-cessor, Guy Mandia Jr. energized the otherwise apathetic Jets. However, the most crucial mis-

stepthe portrayal of love-smacked Tonyprobably isnt the fault of actor Addison Reid Coe, who was likely respecting a misguided tradition that has long afficted West Side Story. Fol-lowing Larry Kert, the original stage Tony, Richard Beymer cemented the role in the publics mind in the 1961 movie, imbuing the character with

swooning romanticism but little of the edge Tony would need as Jets co-founder, dragged back into the world of gang violence.Few depictions have dared depart

from that interpretation. Perhaps someday, a director will swallow hard, break with tradition and turn Tony back into a reformed thug with some remnant of steel, rather than a thoroughly gooey-hearted Romeo.Blessed with a voice both angelic

and powerful, Coe did do marvel-ous justice to the iconic tunes, his heart seeming to burst through his chest on Maria, and giving our skin a tingle in Tonight, his duet with well-cast MaryJoanna Grisso as Ma-ria. Dewy, pretty and brimming with nave optimism, Grisso made Tonys love plunge understandable, though she ultimately failed to tap the seeth-ing rage at her lovers murder.As Anita, Marias saucy sister and

Bernardos squeeze, Michelle Alves delivered the roles trademark spark, though her featured number with the Shark gals, the dynamic Ameri-ca, suffered a mild case of lethargy. Several songs soared, including

The Rumble, the Act I-ender that was a crescendo of love and rage, and Somewhere, staged as a sur-real, white-backdrop fantasy as Tony and Maria yearn for a place for us. Dollops of Spanish dialogue and lyr-ics were doled out sparingly, never impeding the action for theatergoers who arent bilingual. Yet you know this classic has gone

fatally wrong when the fnales intended emotional explosionthe shooting and death of tragic hero Tonyis met with scattered giggles.Thats truly a knife to the gut of

West Side Story.

While the dancing sizzled, the rest of West Side Story fizzled.

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movies

[by tribune media services]short reviews

oh, for those innocent days of yore, when The Hangover was a malady and not a movie.It seems like millennia since

the binge comedy became the new normal. But here comes 21 and Over, taking rude to a new level of crude, a post-racial romp through one epic night on one Asian-American col-legians 21st birthday.A couple of Hangover scribes

co-wrote and directed this sometimes inspired, often funny and occasionally psy-chotic pub crawl through the long dark night of Jeff Changs soul. Scott Moore and Jon Lu-cas hope we know that its not ripping off if youre ripping yourself off.Jeff Chang (Justin Chon from

Twilight) is a catchphrase, a punch line and a punching bag,

all in one. As in Just one beer, Jeff Chang. And Jeff Chang is a grown man and he made his own decisions. And I think we killed Jeff Chang.Hes the Ken Jeong Hangover

character here, a wild-partying break from Asian stereotypes. All he may want to do is sleep in the night before a big medi-cal school interview. But his gonzo pal Miller (Miles Teller of Project X) and more responsible friend Casey (Skylar Astin of Pitch Perfect) want to get him blind drunk.All they have to do is take him

back to his apartment, sober and cleaned up, by the time the kids comically stern dad (Fran-ois Chau) shows up. Which we guess, from the flms open-ing scene, they wont manage. Because Miller and Casey are

naked and branded, stalking across campus in the early-morning light, muttering This never happened when we frst meet them.The night starts with beer,

with Casey falling for Jeff Changs gal pal Nicole (Sarah Wright), and it staggers to a sorority house and a pep rally, from a progressive dorm drinking party concocted to resemble a multilevel video game (drink and compete your way to the roof) to the campus police station and infrmary.Jeff Chang is passed out.

Miller and Casey dont remember his address. The night is their quest to get this student in a stupor back home, as Jeff Chang incoher-ently blurts out random needs like Count Chocula.Lucas and Moore swap

the homophobic riffs of The Hangover for comical jabs at racestumbling into a Latina sorority, a minefeld of Asian jokes and the odd Jewish jab.The dizzying drinking

montage of how hapless Jeff Chang got into his stoned state is hilarious, cleverly cut

and packed with Oh-no-he-didnt moments.

21 and Over becomes a drag when a gun shows up, when Jeff Changs dark secret and Millers embarrassing rev-elation come out, when the drunken-driving sight gag arrives.But the bottom line on this

bottom-baring/bottom-brand-ing farce is: Is it funny, on top of all the shocks? Yes, it is. On a number of occasions, all of them involving Jeff Chang.

21 and Over (R)

Hangover for the college setThis wild 21st-birthday party comedy

gets legally crude

By Roger MooreTribune Media Services

Two friends (Miles Teller and Skylar Astin) lead a birthday boy (Justin Chon, center) astray.

Jack the Giant Slayer (PG-13) This giant, straining blockbuster reinvents

Jack and the Beanstalk, as see Jack gape;

see Jack run; see Jack slay giants. Bryan

Singer (The Usual Suspects, X-Men) directs,

and the movie is a bit too much: too much

yelling, too much running, too much flaming

tree throwing. Jack (Nicholas Hoult) trades

his horse for magic beans, and, you know,

the beanstalk connects the human world and

the world of giants. Mayhem ensues. As far

as these things go, its just too much fantasy

action for its own good.

Phantom (R) In March 1968, about 1,800 miles northwest

of Oahu in the Pacific Ocean, the Soviet

submarine K-129 exceeded its crush depth

and imploded, for mysterious reasons. All

crew were lost, and the sub sank with three

ballistic nuclear missiles and two nuclear tor-

pedoes. Capt. Dmitri Zubov (Ed Harris) does

his best to hold off the alternately motivated

KGB agents on board, one of which is played

by the completely out-of-place David Ducho-

vny. The movie is OK, but its remarkable

that they could make a snoozer out of those

reliably suspenseful subs.

Snitch (PG-13) Loosely based on true events, this movie fol-

lows a father (Dwayne Johnson) who goes

undercover for the DEA to nab drug kingpins

in an effort to free his harshly sentenced son

(Rafi Gavron). Gritty and noirish, this flick

actually works. Behind the former Rock is a

solid supporting cast, including drug kingpin

Mr. Big (Benjamin Bratt), conniving politician

(Susan Sarandon), ex-con turned partner

Daniel (Jon Bernthal) and the middleman

Malik (Michael Kenneth Williams). The ac-

tion and violence are well balanced, and its

pretty entertaining.

Safe Haven (PG-13) The new Nicholas Sparks movie begins as

a desperate young woman (Julianne Hough)

flees the scene of a crime in Boston. As-

suming a new haircut, Katie gets off the bus

in Southport, North Carolina, gets a job at

the diner and a cabin, and starts sharing

smoldering looks with town widower dad

(Josh Duhamel). Katie has something to hide;

Duhamel has some grieving to do; and the

filmmakers have some sunsets to film before

things get violent and threatening. Which they

do. Its OK, but like most Sparks movies: meh.

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movies

Beautiful Creatures (PG-13)

Based on the young adult novel, this film

follows high school senior Ethan (Alden

Ehrenreich) who is plagued by a recurring

Civil War-era nightmare. The girl in his

dreams resembles the new girl in town,

Lena (Alice Englert), who is a caster, or

a person with supernatural abilities. Love

between a mortal and a caster comes with

its risks, of course. Emma Thompson,

Jeremy Irons and Viola Davis support, but

its not the strongest effort in the genre.

A Good Day to Die Hard (R)

The fifth installment in the franchise, this

film is a lousy action movie in its own

right. John McClane (Bruce Willis) is back,

traveling to Moscow to retrieve his son (Jai

Courtney). McClane the elder discovers his

son is really a CIA spook trying to keep a

Russian dissident (Sebastian Koch) alive

long enough to turn over a top-secret file.

Chase scenes are over the top, and the vio-

lence takes the film so very far away from

what made the original movie so good.

Identity Thief (R) Unfortunately, this road-trip movie fails its

stellar stars. Denver businessman Sandy

(Jason Bateman) discovers his identity

has been stolen, his credit ruined. To fix

things, he must track down the culprit,

who happens to be Diana (Melissa McCar-

thy), a Florida con woman. The two go on

the road to make things right, all the while

followed by bounty hunters. Bateman

and McCarthy are great performers and

likeable, but the material is so dreadfully

inferior, theres just not much to see here.

Side Effects (R) This sly film from Steven Soderbergh is

a deftly plotted look at pharmacological

states of mind. Emily (Rooney Mara) is a

tense Manhattanite whose husband (Chan-

ning Tatum) gets out of prison. They strug-

gle to connect, and Emily is prescribed

antidepressants by her psychiatrist (Jude

Law), who benefits from enrolling her in a

drug trial. Blood eventually gets spilled, and

Mara is a sphinx of an actress, never truly

giving us a bearing on her characters state

of mind. Its taut and worth seeing.

Warm Bodies (PG-13) This goofy zombie comic-romance follows

the undead fellow known as R (Nicholas

Hoult), who just wants to connect. One

day while hunting zombies, human Julie

(Teresa Palmer) gets saved from being

eaten by R, and both of their heartstrings

go zing. The two of them fall for each other

and wind up sparking a revolution. John

Malkovich plays Julies father and leader of

the movement keeping the zombies at bay.

Its a different twist on familiar themes, but

lacks a certain something.

Bullet to the Head (R) In this pretty clich, grungy, uber-violent

action flick, hit man Jimmy Bobo (Sylves-

ter Stallone) partners up with a crusading

police detective played by Sung Kang, and

the two get swept up in something to do

with police corruption, skeezy develop-

ment deals and an incriminating flash

drive. Stallone is riveting in his way, and

director Walter Hill (48 Hrs.) harkens back

to action movies of old. Its gory, brutal

and youve seen it all before, but its not

the worst movie ever.

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Youve been at this for 25 years. Whats kept you going?Ive been really careful not to

burn out. When you work in a public-interest feld, you meet people who no longer have any friends or family members that will be around them, because ev-

eryones sick of being inundated with the issue. Theres almost always something you can fnd thats amusing about this whole thing. Also, if you get into something because you believe its the moral thing to do, it ap-pears that getting out is immoral.

What was the high point for you?When [the Obama] adminis-

tration decided to seek to with-draw the license application and just stop Yucca Mountain. For years, we had said to each other, How do we know when this thing is over? How do we know if we won? It would be hurry up and wait. Or it would get bogged down in funding. Sometimes we thought people would just forget or it would go away. Then, fnally, the Obama administration said it was going to end the project. They were shockedand so was Ito have [the Department of Energy] take it to court and say [the administration] cant do that. Have you ever heard of someone with a project saying, I dont want to do it anymore, and then being forced to any-way? Its bizarre.

How about the low point?In the early 90s, when they

actually started digging the tunnel inside the mountain.

Why not store nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain?People were against it from

the very beginning, just because nobody wanted to sit next to a garbage dump of radioactive material. That was the immedi-ate reaction. Then, as [aware-ness built], people realized we werent total strangers to

radiation, because of what had gone on at the Nevada Test Site. People who have been here a long time generally knew some-one who had lost farm animals, or had a lot of miscarriages, or had children with something wrong with them. With the Test Site, wed given when we needed to give, patriotically. So why would we need to take another one for the country, or for the nuclear program?As time went on, scientists

demonstrated that it wasnt a good site, that it couldnt con-tain the waste. It was located over the water table, so water draining through there would contaminate a valuable aquifer. All the studies and outcomes kept getting worse.

If not Yucca, then where is our government supposed to put the waste?No. 1, I dont know. Scien-

tists dont know, because they havent checked anywhere else. And the big mistake they made was in choosing just one site, and putting all their eggs in one economic basket. You couldnt do any comparisons, and you automatically had Nevadans fghting, because they realized theyd been selected against their will.Second, its insane that were

asking this question now when we already have [accumulated nuclear waste]. When John

Glenn was in the Senate, he said, This is like if theyd sent me up in space and once I got there, they started thinking about how theyd get me back. They should always have known what they were going to do with the stuff they produced.

That train having left the station, who should decide what to do with the waste?President Obama put in

place a blue-ribbon commis-sion, and they came up with recommendations. The frst was that you have a consen-sual or volunteer site, that you dont impose it on anyone. The question now is, do you frst determine what kind of geological setting would be most suitable, and then ask for [volunteers]? Or do you see whos interested in hosting a facility like this, and then see if their spot works?

Is your goal to see nuclear energy just go away, or is that a different fght?I think nuclear-generated

electricity is nuts. If you want to create steam, theres a lot of ways to boil water; you dont have to do it like this. Many people have said using nuclear energy to create electricity is like setting your dinner table with a chain saw instead of a butter knife. Its such tremen-dous overkill.

Judy TreichelThe Nuclear Waste Task Force leader on her

long Yucca Mountain battle, her ally in the

White House and the perils of nuclear energy

By Heidi Kyser

Sitting in an overstuffed armchair bathed in sunlight, Judy Treichel is the portrait of a patient grandmother, completely unfazed by the coffehouses hissing espresso machine and the repeated whack! as the front door opens and closes behind her. Given her calm disposition, passersby would surely be surprised to discover that this sweet elderly woman has long been Nevadas fercest anti-nuclear-waste activist. Since 1988, Treichelwho is the executive director of the Nucle-

ar Waste Task Force, the main body opposing the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repositoryhas remained a steady force in the face of frequent ups and downs (see our Yucca Mountain time line at VegasSeven.com/Yucca). For instance, even though President Obama pulled the plug on the project late last year, as Treichel sipped her coffee on a crisp winter day, she was awaiting a federal district court decision on whether the Department of Energy could force the administration to go ahead with Yucca Mountain anyway. Game not over. Maybe. Again.And yet Treichel laughs gently at questions that would irritate

most anti-nuclear activists, which is remarkable given shes been hearingand answeringsuch questions for a quarter century.

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