Twenty-four years ago this month, Fantasy: The Strip’s Sexiest Tease creator Anita Mann was adding the finishing touches to her contemporary take on showgirl productions before previews began. The show’s initial six-month contract left no room for Mann to consider she and her team were launching a show that after nearly a half-century would continue to thrive and draw capacity crowds to its home inside the Luxor.
“We’re having a fun year. We’re excited that we’re celebrating 24 years,” says Mann. “I look forward to our 25th celebration already!”
And 24 is the age where most people have mastered the art of young adulthood and prepare for the final phase of life experience before age 25. For Mann, age 24 was the year that she reached her peak as an in-demand professional dancer before crossing over into being a full-time choreographer.
“I did every show on television as a dancer until I was 24,” recalls Mann, who was a featured dancer in the ’60s pop music variety series Shindig! and appeared in 1968’s iconic Elvis: The Comeback Special at age 22. “When I turned 25, I became a choreographer.”
That’s when, her longtime friends tell her, she grew up. Mann went on to choreograph specials for CBS, work for Lucille Ball and participate in the Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon, where one year she danced a tribute to the late Gregory Hines with tap legend Jason Samuels Smith. She also choreographed several Miss America pageants, but it was her work on Top 10 countdown series Solid Gold in the ’80s that was a precursor to her current creation.
Once Mann’s proposal for an adult-themed show at Luxor was accepted, she had six weeks to cast, rehearse and costume dancers. Mann’s show opened on Nov. 1, 1999, although the previous month’s soft openings led to a tradition of celebrating anniversaries in October. “I remember it so well because we were on at midnight. It was called Midnight Fantasy in 1999.”
The original show had a Cinderella theme threading through it, but luckily the show did not turn into a pumpkin when the clock struck midnight. “I sat there with Beverly (Jeanne, executive producer), who still runs my company, holding her hand, not breathing. … And it was good!”
After an additional earlier show was added, the title became simply Fantasy. Now Mann has an entire history of choreography to draw on as she prepares for the next phase. Classic numbers will be revived alongside new elements and new choreography.
“I just feel so incredibly blessed. We have this home, this theater. I just wake up every day with gratitude,” she says. The idea that the show would become such a major part of her life and the lives of many dancers was beyond her comprehension 24 years ago. “I thought, ‘If we get through six months, I’ll be happy.’”
Luxor, 702.262.4400
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