Back on New Year’s Eve Eve (aka December 30), I tagged along with my friends Melinda and Rob, to Voltaire Belle de Nuit at The Venetian® Resort Las Vegas, for the opening night of Christina Aguilera’s series of shows; and was completely blown away.

Of the many alums of The All-New Mickey Mouse Club (1989-1994) who’ve gone on to global fame and fortune (think: Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Justin Timberlake, Keri Russell, Ryan Gosling, et al.) there is little arguing that Aguilera can sing circles around the rest; yet, I felt that the production of her previous Vegas residency—the Live Nation Las Vegas-produced Christina Aguilera: The Xperience, which ran in what was then the Zappos Theater (now the Bakkt Theater) at Planet Hollywood Las Vegas, for 24 shows between May 31, 2019 and March 07, 2020, before shuttering due to the global pandemic—was lacking and fell flat.  So, this time, I’ll admit to being a bit meh about the whole thing, but figured I’d go, check it out, have fun with my friends, and that would be that.  Instead, I witnessed the magic that can happen when an artist and a venue are presented together in such a way that they transcend expectations, each elevating the other to the greatest possible outcome.

The brainchild of Michael Gruber (Venetian’s Chief Content Officer), Voltaire Belle de Nuit is an intimate jewel box of a theater, accommodating only 1,000 guests (which, by Vegas standards, is downright tiny), designed as a keyhole-themed latter-day Art Deco dream—brass, chrome, and mirror elements dazzle among the velvet upholstery and rich palate of violet, mauve, and crimson—by acclaimed Emmy and Tony Award-winning production designer, Derek McLane (Moulin Rouge!).  Not only is the seating particularly comfortable but the theater is laid out in such a way that the performers can (and do) come down into the audience and perform among (and in some cases, on) the tables while posing for photos with guests.  It’s immersive without being intrusive, and that’s a pretty neat trick. *

Our seats could not have been better (the Grubers were holding court at the booth next to ours, hosting the likes of Seth McFarlane (who’d appeared, earlier that night, at The Smith Center, with Liz Gilles), and will.i.am (who, along with fellow Black-Eyed Peas Apl.de.Ap and Taboo, was headlining in The Venetian Theatre, that night and the next) with Black Eyed Peas collaborator and vocalist, J. Rey Soul.

As for Aguilera, not to put too fine a point on it, but she slayed.  Her voice was clear and soaring, and she put it all out there for us, that night.  From contemporary covers of standards by such legendary belters as Dame Shirley Bassey (“Diamonds are Forever” from the 1971 James Bond film of the same name), Miss Peggy Lee (“Big Spender” from the 1966 musical Sweet Charity), and Carol Channing (“Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” from the 1949 musical Gentlemen Prefer Blondes) to her take on Leslie Gore’s 1963 feminist anthem “You Don’t Own Me,” Aguilera nailed every single note.  But it was with her own hits that Aguilera particularly shined.  Whether romping on a bed with a male dancer, sashaying down the catwalk (both solo and with her dancers), or simply belting out a protracted high note, all eyes were on Aguilera (which is precisely where they belonged).  I think I was most taken with her new, soulful arrangement of the Linda Perry-penned “Beautiful” (for which Aguilera won the 2004 Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance), which was, in a word, beautiful. [Hey, when it works, it works.]

And I’d be remiss were I not to mention that the costume design, the set design, and especially the lighting design were all stunning, and served to present Aguilera at her very best.  Further, I feel that with the doors opening at 9:30pm and the 70-minute show starting an hour thereafter, the shows at Voltaire Belle de Nuit are perfectly situated to take advantage of that block of time after dinner and the conventionally scheduled shows have ended, but before the nightclubs open.  So, hats off to Gruber and the Voltaire team for recognizing and acting on this.

Christina Aguilera is set to return to Voltaire Belle de Nuit for a trio of weekends, this season [February 02 and 03, February 09 and 10, and March 01 and 02], and I’ll be making a point to come back.  It’s really that great of a show in that great of a venue!  In the interim, I’m excited to see Kylie Minogue (the venue’s original headliner, whose show I missed, the first time around), as well as the Belle de Nuit troupe of performers (who'll be debuting their own show in the coming weeks). 

As Aguilera vamped—while covering Cher’s “Welcome to Burlesque”—“Welcome to Voltaire!”

The setlist from the opening night of Christina Aguilera's run of shows in Voltaire Belle de Nuit at The Venetian Resort Las Vegas (December 30, 2023), was as follows:

Intro:  Featuring elements of Woohoo and Not Myself Tonight

1. Not Myself Tonight [Orchestral; Shortened; First time performed live since 2019]
2. Your Body

Interlude:  Animated video

3. Diamonds Are Forever [Shirley Bassey cover]
4. Glam [Live debut; Featuring elements of Bree Runway’s That Girl and Cobrah’s Brand New Bitch]
5. Vanity

Interlude:  Featuring elements of Buttress’s Brutus

6. Genie in a Bottle
7. You Don’t Own Me [Leslie Gore cover; Live debut]
8. Dirrty

Interlude

9. Guy What Takes His Time [Ralph Rainger cover; Live debut]
10. Ain’t No Other Man
11. Show Me How You Burlesque [Performed by backup dancers]
12. Welcome to Burlesque [Cher cover; Live debut]
13. Lady Marmalade [LaBelle cover]
14. Candyman [Performed by backup singers]
15. Fighter [Orchestral introduction; Abridged]
16. Beautiful [New arrangement]
17. Big Spender [from Sweet Charity]

Encore:

18. Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend [from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes]

Christina Aguilera
VOLTAIRE Belle de Nuit | The Venetian® Resort Las Vegas
Click HERE for info

Get into it!
#Voltaire

[Editor’s Note: A friend once asked if I was a fan of immersive theater, to which I replied, “My life is immersive theater, and frankly, it’s exhausting.”]