Paul Rodriguez on stage in "Paul Rodriguez and the Whole Enchilada"
When I walked into the Tropicana Casino Hotel last night to see Paul Rodriguez perform, I had the thought that this casino has been around for as long as I have. I just looked it up. The Tropicana (or The Trop, as us locals call it) is just a few months older than me. Its grand opening was April 4, 1957. And this was the first time I went into it.
Everyone is talking about the new owner of the Tropicana, Alex Yemenidjian, saying he is planning to turn the Tropicana into a Latino themed casino. Bringing in the new show “Paul Rodriguez and the Whole Enchilada” appears to be a good step in that direction. I went in last night to check it out.
I have been a fan of Paul Rodriguez for I don’t know how long. When Freddie Prinze suddenly ended his life, somehow Rodriguez took his place for me. It was a real joy to watch him in person for the very first time last night. I also had the opportunity to ask him a few questions before the show, and I’ll write about that tomorrow.
Shayla Rivera and Paul Rodriguez talk to reporters
“Paul Rodriguez and the Whole Enchilada” has three opening acts before Rodriguez takes the stage in this 90 minute show. There are “The Enchiladas” who are the scantily clad dancers, pumping up the energy in the room. If it weren’t for the glitter they’d probably all catch their death of cold. They handled a heckler as only a woman could, the head dancer sent two of the girls down into the audience to drag him out of the room. Sure, it was staged, and it was pretty funny. Also, we were treated to the comedy of Martin Adler, who had plenty of jokes about being the only Jew in the act. The official opening comic, Shayla Rivera, was escorted to the stage by the dancers and turned out to be quite a powerhouse. She’s a Puerto Rican rocket scientist and mother turned comic. It is quickly evident she’s hysterically funny, besides being beautiful and brilliant. Who knew a geek could be so witty and have you laughing your ass off.
After Shayla left the stage, Paul Rodriguez was introduced. First they showed some slides of his career which brings back to mind all those great movies he appeared in. By the time you are deep in thought about how much you’ve loved this guy’s work over the years, the curtain goes up and there he sits on a stool in front of the most awesome antique, 1957 Chevy, and some home furniture. People began laughing because he wasn’t saying anything. He just sat and stared at the audience. Eventually he said something like, “What?! Do you start right away when you get to work?” And so it began.
Paul Rodriguez got huge laughs all night
I’m not normally a laugh out loud type of person. I’ll chuckle to myself even in the funniest of shows. Yeah, I’m a comedian’s worst nightmare in a small crowd. Last night was different. I laughed out loud all night. Rodriguez is still good, still funny, and very topical. He covered a little bit about politics and immigration, his life growing up, about being Mexican and told a lot of stories. The crowd ate it up and laughed like crazy.
The end of the show started to drag on while I was expecting it to end, but it didn’t. He just kept going. It was evident he was having such a good time, too, that he didn’t want to leave the stage. While he was ‘not ending’ his show on time, a guy came out from back stage, behind Rodriguez. He took off his shirt, and his pants, pulled the covers back on the bed that is on the stage and got in. I don’t think Rodriguez even knew he was there. Once in a while he popped up to see if Rodriguez was still going. Then he pulled the covers back over his head. The audience took control in the end and chose a spot to end the show and clapped him off. Nobody wanted it to end, I’m sure, but like me, when you gotta pee, you gotta go pee!
I’m really glad Paul Rodriguez is back on stage doing stand-up. He’s been missed. It is such a bonus that he’s playing Las Vegas.
“Paul Rodriguez and the Whole Enchilada”
Tropicana Casino’s Tiffany Theater
Ticket prices are $39 – $49, plus tax
Two for One special available for locals
Show is Monday – Saturday, 9pm
Performances completely in Spanish are on June 5 and June 12 at 7pm, followed by the 9pm show in English.
Tomorrow I will post my interviews with Paul Rodriguez and Shayla Rivera.