Miral Kotb is the creator of one of the hottest new shows on the Las Vegas Strip, the art and technology-infused iLuminate at The STRAT. Audiences may be familiar with this talented dance crew and its unique, LED-covered uniforms from past appearances on TV and during live tours, but this version of their vibrant performance can only be found in Las Vegas. After breaking through and building buzz in 2021, Kotb and her talented cast and crew are ready to take iLuminate to the next level this year.
After opening iLuminate last year, you took it through some pretty big changes and came out on the other end with a really fun, celebratory show. What was that process like?
I’m new to Vegas and you always respect every city that you open a show, and how it has a different culture. I wanted to bring something with a little bit of comedy, dance and technology, and what I realized was what people want, knowing us from America’s Got Talent and what we’ve done nationally and internationally, is just that fantastic energy, dancing, the joy, and the mystifying illusions. So we just brought it back, and the audience response has been incredible.
It’s a fascinating show for many reasons, and one is just the level of talent onstage, dancers who are expressing so much despite performing on a dark stage wearing full-body suits and masks.
It’s an incredible cast. Every single person brings something unique to the table, and they are each über-talented. We’re almost like a jazz band in that every person is talented in their own way, and we feature that, then it all comes together in unison and that’s also great.
The way each scene is so carefully choreographed, with the lights on the suits working with the performers’ movements, must take a lot of time and planning. Does all that programming make it difficult to adjust or add elements in the show?
That’s kind of the magic behind it all. I look at myself as almost a light conductor. It is those little details that matter, that millisecond timing that takes it from a cool show to an incredible show. Every single moment is programmed so there are literally millions of cues running in this show, and not only are the dancers wearing the suits, but each light suit has many colors, and each part of the body can be a different color, and it all depends on the music we’re using and mood we want to create for each scene. The preproduction and rehearsals are intense, but once the show opens, you can still see me at the computer nudging something a bit or adding a little something. I call it adding more sparkle.
Now in the new year, iLuminate has a new and different schedule at the STRAT Theater.
We are very excited to move to the 8 p.m. slot, plus on the weekends we have matinees. It was great to see how many people came with their families at 10 p.m., so hopefully we’ll have more of that now at 8, but also some more dates. It’s a great date show and just for people coming to Vegas to party, because it gets your night started, it gets you into the spirit of having fun.
Between the soundtrack, the energy of the dancers and the unique technology, it is a lot of fun and a different kind of fun than Vegas has seen before.
It’s such a happy show. You will be dancing in your seat, even if you’re not a dancer, and you will be amazed by the technology, even if you’re not used to going to live shows. If you want to have a good time and smile and laugh, this is the perfect show.
The STRAT, 702.380.7711
Click here for your free subscription to the weekly digital edition of Las Vegas Magazine, your guide to everything to do, hear, see and experience in Southern Nevada. In addition to the latest edition emailed to every week, you’ll find plenty of great, money-saving offers from some of the most exciting attractions, restaurants, properties and more! And Las Vegas Magazine is full of informative content such as restaurants to visit, cocktails to sip and attractions to enjoy.
