About midway through her residency opening at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace on Friday night, Cyndi Lauper shut down some loud talk with some of her own.
A cluster of ticket holders cried out to the stage a few moments after Lauper related she had spent half her life in Queens and the other in Brooklyn. One of those boroughs would play prominently in her response.
We couldn’t make out the exact phrasing (nor did Lauper) of what was shouted, but clearly a few voices rose as Lauper introduced “Sally’s Pigeons,” from the 1993 album “Hat Full of Stars.”
The superstar took offense, even without hearing specifically what was said through her in-ear monitors.
“I don’t know what the f–k you’re saying, hon,” Lauper says in a video of the incident. “But please remember where you are, OK? Because if you’re trying to shade me, b—- , I’m gonna come for you. I’m from Brooklyn, and if I wanna f—— talk, I will do a tap dance if I f—— want.”
The 72-year-old icon paused briefly, adding, “Sorry, that, of course, is not part of my people skills.”
Lauper noted earlier she’d been seeing a therapist.
The crowd cheered, laughed and the party resumed.
This was bound to happen. Lauper spins a lot of tales in her new production. A timer on this two-hour show measured more than 40 minutes of chat. Lauper’s hardcore fans, who packed the room, ate it up. And if you have followed Lauper’s career, you’ve got to know she’ll run her own script, no matter the length.
But quieter moments always give fans/idiots ample time to interrupt the show. We’re actually fortunate there weren’t more knuckleheads in a crowd of 4,000, on the Strip, on a Friday night.
The episode did not strip the show of its musical highlights. Among them:
— “Money Changes Everything,” a personal favorite and reliably rowdy number in which Lauper collapsed to the stage, fanned by her all-female band.
— The 1957 Chevy Bel-Air replica golf cart Lauper drove to the stage, saying, “I wouldn’t suggest driving that on the highway, though I’ve thought about it.” She pulled a collection of tambourines and other hand-held rhythm instruments from under the hood. Lauper then tossed them haphazardly to the stage before finding a washboard that fit around her neck, a fashion statement and an instrument (this was among the nuttiest moments ever on the Colosseum stage, rivaling Bette Midler’s performance with her Caesar Salad Girls backing dancers).
— “I Drove All Night,” which brought a smile, as Celine Dion covered the song in her Colosseum days. Lauper said she revived the 1989 hit because “there weren’t any songs on the radio about women driving, and driving is like a power thing … It’s a power song.”
— Among the anticipated hits, interspersed in the monologues, “She Bop” was the nostalgia-seizing opener. “True Colors” played to rainbows on the big screen. She ordered the room illuminated with cellphone lights for “Time After Time.”
— “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,” performed after an elaborate intro of the work of 97-year-old Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama. This was a full visual wash of red-and-white polka dots, on the band’s costumes and powerfully filling the video panels. A giant portrait of the artist was shown looming over the scene.
Friday’s show is the latest in a growing trend of Broadway-styled productions at the Colosseum. Recent examples are Alanis Morissette’s show in February (a 2½-hour odyssey featuring white boards, an intermission, and her backing performers acted out roles in an autobiographical story) and David Byrne (an uber-stylish, blue-hued reimagination of Talking Heads hits and his solo career).
The Colosseum, booked exclusively by Live Nation Las Vegas and the jewel in Caesars Entertainment’s portfolio of Vegas venues, is where concert productions are stretched. By design or coincidence, the room lends itself to adventurism.
From Lauper’s show, the line about tap-dancing if she feels like it is the one I hung onto. She does pretty much what she feels like, and says what’s on her mind regardless of how long it takes. To use her own Brooklyn vernacular, “If you don’t like it, get over it, b——.”
Tease this …
A recording star on a rapid rise told me last week of living for a time in the apartments behind Cashman Field. This person is headlining Las Vegas again, soon, and not at Cashman.
Cool Hang Alert
Santa Fe & The Fat City Horns are a winner this Monday, and every Monday, at the Copa at the Bootlegger Bistro. Occasionally, legends in the crowd. Always, superior musicianship on stage.
John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow @johnnykats on X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.