Latest / Vegas Revealed / Interview: Chef Kwame Onwuachi at Maroon, NKOTB Remix Las Vegas Show, Fuel Up Promo at El Cortez, Rocky Horror Picture Show Coming to Sphere, 4th of July Events | Ep. 326

Transcript

Interview: Chef Kwame Onwuachi at Maroon, NKOTB Remix Las Vegas Show, Fuel Up Promo at El Cortez, Rocky Horror Picture Show Coming to Sphere, 4th of July Events | Ep. 326 · Vegas Revealed

• 0:02
  Dayna Roselli: It's episode 326 of Vegas Revealed.
• 0:05
  Dayna Roselli: After the success of Wizard of Oz, a new movie experience is coming to sphere.
• 0:10
  Sean McAllister: Fill your gas tank with a little help from the El Cortez.
• 0:14
  Dayna Roselli: Maroon is now open at the Sahara.
• 0:16
  Dayna Roselli: We talk with celebrated chef Kwame and Wache about the only Caribbean steakhouse in Vegas.
• 0:21
  SPEAKER_00: The steaks are rum-aged?
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, they're rum-aged, yeah.
• 0:24
  SPEAKER_00: What is that process?
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: We dry age them and then we wrap them with a rum with cheesecloth for another extended period of time to infuse that flavor into it as well.
• 0:33
  Sean McAllister: A popular event is back for the 4th of July at New York, New York, and the F1 attraction has a deal for those coming into town for conventions and seminars.
• 0:42
  Dayna Roselli: The Grand Canal shops at Venetian are doing something special on the 4th of July.
• 0:46
  Sean McAllister: And we check out New Kids on the Block as they remix their residency at Park MGM.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_01: But the new kids are not complete.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_01: With an all of you.
• 1:03
  Dayna Roselli: Let's get to it now on Vegas Revealed.
• 1:08
  Dayna Roselli: Welcome to Vegas Revealed, episode 326.
• 1:11
  Dayna Roselli: Dana Roselli and Sean McAllister here.
• 1:14
  Dayna Roselli: So much to go over.
• 1:14
  Dayna Roselli: I can't wait to talk about new kids on the vlog.
• 1:16
  Dayna Roselli: I know we've talked about them before, but we just saw the remixed residency, the right stuff.
• 1:22
  Dayna Roselli: And man, it's just so good.
• 1:24
  Dayna Roselli: So we'll talk about that later in Vegas News for the Celebrity Twist.
• 1:28
  Sean McAllister: And Dana, you're comparing uh the remixed residency to what you saw before.
• 1:33
  Sean McAllister: And I went and saw it for the first time.
• 1:35
  Sean McAllister: So I've got a fresh perspective on it.
• 1:38
  Sean McAllister: All right.
• 1:38
  Sean McAllister: So looking forward to that coming up a little bit later in the show.
• 1:42
  Sean McAllister: But hey, let's kick things off with food.
• 1:44
  Sean McAllister: Obviously, it's summertime.
• 1:46
  Sean McAllister: People are outside grilling.
• 1:48
  Sean McAllister: You might use whatever spices have been, you know, passed down, whatever recipes you throw on the grill.
• 1:55
  Sean McAllister: There's a new steakhouse here in Las Vegas, though, that is using Caribbean spices.
• 2:00
  Sean McAllister: It's a Caribbean steakhouse.
• 2:02
  Sean McAllister: It's called maroon over at Sahara.
• 2:04
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, I went over and had dinner.
• 2:06
  Dayna Roselli: Oh my goodness.
• 2:07
  Dayna Roselli: The jerk chicken, Sean.
• 2:09
  Dayna Roselli: I'm still thinking about it.
• 2:10
  Dayna Roselli: And I brought home leftovers and I ate it the whole weekend.
• 2:13
  Dayna Roselli: It's amazing.
• 2:14
  Dayna Roselli: But we did have the honor to have a conversation with Chef Kwame and Wachi.
• 2:19
  Dayna Roselli: He is a celebrated chef, a really a culinary star.
• 2:22
  Dayna Roselli: It was really interesting to chat with him and learn more about why he brought Maroon to Las Vegas.
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_00: It's always been a dream of mine to have a restaurant in Vegas.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: And we're here.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: It's really cool.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_00: We serve really good food.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_00: It's food with intention.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: It's food that has a story.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_00: But you're gonna have a good time at Maroon.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: So important what happens in these four walls.
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_00: Like that's what we're super focused on.
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_00: Like these human interactions with people, um, making people feel taken care of, feel team, and giving Vegas something that, you know, that they need.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's what we've been able to achieve here.
• 2:59
  Sean McAllister: And Vegas obviously has steakhouses every five steps, but what you've done is brought something different.
• 3:06
  Sean McAllister: Kind of walk me through how you conceptualize what's being delivered on plates every night.
• 3:13
  SPEAKER_00: You know, for me it's important to start with a story.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_00: Like if addition the story has a soul.
• 3:18
  SPEAKER_00: A restaurant has a story, it has a soul.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: And um, I wanted to tell the story of the maroon people.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_00: And um also bring Afro-Caribbean cuisine to Las Vegas in in a new way.
• 3:30
  Sean McAllister: Talk to me about the importance of spice and flavor.
• 3:35
  SPEAKER_00: You know, spice always tells a story about what's happening in that place and in whatever time, um, based off the ingredients that went through there.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: So spice is is more than just flavor, it's history, but um for me it's an expression, right?
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_00: Like it's a way that I can um add depth of flavor to my food.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_00: Really cook the way that um that I that I grew up eating, honestly.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_00: You know, my my mom is Creole and Trinidadian, my dad is Jamaican and Nigerian.
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_00: These are all things that I grew up eating.
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_00: Now they look very different, but um, but the the inspiration is the same.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_00: Very salad, you gotta get the toro bujot, you gotta get the mac and cheese, um, the oxtail fried rice, and then just a couple things on the jerk fit.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe the jerk chicken or the lamb or the ribeye or the strip.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: Um, they're all rum-aged, like all the steaks, so they have a unique flavor.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_00: The steaks are rum-aged?
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, they're rum-aged, yeah.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_00: What is that process?
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_00: We dry age them and then we wrap them with a rum with cheesecloth for another extended period of time to infuse that flavor into it as well.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_00: I have never heard of that.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_00: But I yeah.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_00: Did you develop that?
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_00: I I think so.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_00: You're doing it.
• 4:58
  SPEAKER_00: I'm doing it, yeah.
• 5:00
  Dayna Roselli: It was great to talk with Chef.
• 5:02
  Dayna Roselli: He lives here in Las Vegas now as well and bops around to all the different locations that he has restaurants, but he's won so many awards.
• 5:10
  Dayna Roselli: He is fantastic.
• 5:11
  Dayna Roselli: The food was amazing at Maroon.
• 5:13
  Dayna Roselli: You have to go, and it's a vibe.
• 5:14
  Dayna Roselli: The music's pumping, it's a lot of fun.
• 5:16
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, I'm excited to get over there and try it.
• 5:19
  Sean McAllister: I haven't gone for dinner yet, but when we were going over for the interview, as we were walking up to the restaurant, you could actually smell the spices out in the like it smelled like uh almost like a barbecue steakhouse.
• 5:35
  Sean McAllister: The the aroma was just wafting out into the casino area down the hall.
• 5:40
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, well, he said in the interview, which we didn't add, um, because we did some editing, um, his actually his voice was going a little because he was yelling at the Knicks game the night before.
• 5:48
  Sean McAllister: He's a New Yorker, so he was crazy excited about that.
• 5:51
  Dayna Roselli: But he did say that's part of it.
• 5:53
  Dayna Roselli: He wants you to walk in and immediately smell food because he said it brings on that comfort feeling of being in his restaurant.
• 6:02
  Dayna Roselli: So yeah, I mean, I think that's that's whole all part of it.
• 6:05
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, he's definitely so smart when it comes to opening restaurants and running them.
• 6:09
  Sean McAllister: And the that little tidbit that he gave us about the rum dry aged steaks that he does.
• 6:17
  Sean McAllister: That's so cool.
• 6:18
  Dayna Roselli: I had the steak too.
• 6:19
  Dayna Roselli: Oh my gosh, the bread, the freaking peerie peerri salad.
• 6:23
  Dayna Roselli: All of it was so good.
• 6:24
  Dayna Roselli: You gotta get over there and try it.
• 6:25
  Dayna Roselli: It's delicious, and you know, have a nice night out.
• 6:28
  Dayna Roselli: There were a lot of people on dates there, there were groups of friends, so it's a great addition to the Sahara on the strip.
• 6:34
  Sean McAllister: Well, hey, we know a lot of people are coming into Las Vegas this summer and they're driving in.
• 6:40
  Sean McAllister: They might be coming from Southern California, Arizona, Utah, maybe even further away.
• 6:46
  Sean McAllister: Um, and the El Cortez is doing something cool for people who are staying at that hotel casino and filling up your gas tank on them.
• 6:56
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, I mean, there's so many different kinds of deals.
• 6:58
  Dayna Roselli: And I saw this one, I go, Oh, this is different.
• 7:00
  Sean McAllister: It's unique, yeah.
• 7:01
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, it really is.
• 7:02
  Dayna Roselli: So here's the deal.
• 7:03
  Dayna Roselli: Um, you know, we won't get super specific.
• 7:05
  Dayna Roselli: You can go look for yourself, but leading uh the summer lineup for the El Cortez, as it's celebrating 85 years, um, they have a fuel up on fun package.
• 7:15
  Dayna Roselli: It's available now through September 3rd.
• 7:18
  Dayna Roselli: You have to book exclusively at ElCortez Hotelcasino.com.
• 7:23
  Dayna Roselli: The package includes a$50 gas gift card and a special room rate for stays of two to seven nights.
• 7:31
  Sean McAllister: I mean, that even as a Las Vegas local, that makes me want to like go book a couple nights, go book a weekend stay and get a gas card out of it.
• 7:40
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, right.
• 7:41
  Dayna Roselli: I know.
• 7:41
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, gas expensive, so we need everything we can get, right?
• 7:44
  Sean McAllister: That's great.
• 7:45
  Dayna Roselli: So, yeah, so that's kind of a cool.
• 7:47
  Dayna Roselli: We've talked about so many different kinds of inclusive deals and summer deals, and here's another one to add to your list, and it goes to September 3rd.
• 7:54
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, it takes you all the way through summer.
• 7:56
  Sean McAllister: So that's a good added perk for staying downtown at the El Cortez as they celebrate a big milestone, 85 years.
• 8:04
  Sean McAllister: Yeah.
• 8:05
  Sean McAllister: Hey, uh, 4th of July, obviously, uh, right up upon us, and we've talked about the Saturday night fireworks that are going on through the end of July uh to mark America's 250th anniversary.
• 8:19
  Sean McAllister: Uh, but on the 4th of July, there's gonna be a lot going on on the strip and inside our resort casinos as well.
• 8:29
  Dayna Roselli: Uh New York, New York is bringing back Nathan's famous hot dog eating contest.
• 8:33
  Dayna Roselli: And I know a lot of people like this.
• 8:35
  Dayna Roselli: It's all part of America's 250 bridge bash at the Brooklyn Bridge.
• 8:40
  Dayna Roselli: So that's from 4 p.m.
• 8:41
  Dayna Roselli: to 5 p.m.
• 8:42
  Dayna Roselli: But Sean, I was even noticing it's just like a whole big fun event if people want to go.
• 8:46
  Dayna Roselli: Um, there's gonna be a lot of things to do there, like family uh friendly fun, including$2.50 food and beverage offerings, oversized games, face painting, live music, and more before watching of the competitive eaters even take the stage.
• 9:02
  Dayna Roselli: So it's a whole big thing on the bridge, and that's a lot of fun.
• 9:06
  Sean McAllister: Those competitions kind of get to me a little bit.
• 9:11
  Dayna Roselli: It's hard to watch sometimes.
• 9:12
  Sean McAllister: Like the dunk the dunk the hot dog in water and then just devour it.
• 9:19
  Dayna Roselli: But hey, they're good at it.
• 9:20
  Dayna Roselli: I don't know how they do it.
• 9:21
  Sean McAllister: And you know what?
• 9:22
  Sean McAllister: And it pays the bills.
• 9:23
  Sean McAllister: If you can win in Vegas, you go to the the grand championship in Coney Island.
• 9:28
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, for next year, July 4th, 2027.
• 9:31
  Dayna Roselli: So it's a big deal.
• 9:32
  Sean McAllister: And that's where the that's where the big prize comes in.
• 9:34
  Sean McAllister: So good luck to all the competitive eaters.
• 9:37
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah.
• 9:37
  Dayna Roselli: The event starts at three o'clock on the bridge, um, and then goes until nine, that's when the fireworks.
• 9:42
  Dayna Roselli: So you could be on the bridge for the to watch the fireworks on the strip that night, too.
• 9:46
  Dayna Roselli: So that's a that'll be a good time.
• 9:48
  Dayna Roselli: Um, for more information, you can go to the New York, New York website.
• 9:52
  Sean McAllister: And up the strip a little bit at the Venetian, inside the Grand Canal shops.
• 9:58
  Sean McAllister: Uh, they've got entertainment going on, and this is a free activation as well, celebrating the 4th of July.
• 10:05
  Sean McAllister: Uh, there's live music, you'll get a one-of-a-kind personalized keepsake if you head over there.
• 10:11
  Sean McAllister: Uh, this is part of their spectacular Saturdays, and this is from noon to three on July 4th.
• 10:18
  Sean McAllister: If you gather beneath the wishing tree in the luxury wing of the Grand Canal shops, um, there's gonna be a whole bunch of experiences that blend artistry, music, summer celebrations.
• 10:31
  Sean McAllister: So you might want to add that to your list of to-do items as well on the 4th of July.
• 10:37
  Dayna Roselli: It sounds really nice.
• 10:37
  Dayna Roselli: And I, you know, I told you I recently went to Boa Steakhouse and I I really like the Grand Canal shops.
• 10:42
  Dayna Roselli: It's really pretty.
• 10:43
  Dayna Roselli: There's a lot of variety of stores, restaurants, little places to stop and have a drink.
• 10:47
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, it is a nice, yeah, a nice spot.
• 10:50
  Dayna Roselli: And that wishing tree is cool.
• 10:51
  Dayna Roselli: You won't miss it.
• 10:52
  Dayna Roselli: You'll see it.
• 10:52
  Dayna Roselli: Just walk around for a little bit.
• 10:53
  Dayna Roselli: If you're like, where is it?
• 10:54
  Dayna Roselli: You'll see it.
• 10:54
  Dayna Roselli: You'll know where the wishing tree is.
• 10:57
  Dayna Roselli: All right, let's quickly talk about the new movie announced at the sphere.
• 11:01
  Dayna Roselli: We don't know tons of information, but you know, the Wizard of Oz has been so successful.
• 11:06
  Dayna Roselli: People come from around the world, and now uh there's gonna be a new sphere experience coming in 2027, and it's the Rocky Horror Picture Show, which premiered back in 1975.
• 11:18
  Dayna Roselli: And, you know, I wasn't sure what the response would be, but boy, people seem really excited about it.
• 11:24
  Sean McAllister: Oh, Rocky Horror Picture Show has a massive fan base, it's got the occult following.
• 11:30
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, but it's recently become even more top of mind because Rocky Horror Picture Show debuted on Broadway.
• 11:40
  Dayna Roselli: Yep.
• 11:40
  Sean McAllister: Uh so that's a huge hit on Broadway right now.
• 11:44
  Sean McAllister: And so I have a feeling off of that popularity comes Rocky Horror Picture Show at Sphere coming next year.
• 11:52
  Sean McAllister: Um, but that excitement is going to continue for fans of the movie.
• 11:57
  Sean McAllister: Who, by the way, uh when there are annual screenings of the Rocky Horror Picture Show with sing-alongs, that type of thing, people go all out and like dress in costumes, they dress as their favorite character from the movie, and there's a whole bunch of interactive things.
• 12:14
  Dayna Roselli: What if they throw things at the screen or something?
• 12:17
  Dayna Roselli: Okay.
• 12:18
  Sean McAllister: Um there's a there's a bunch of things.
• 12:20
  Dayna Roselli: So we can probably expect some some cool visuals, you know, for the Ford if they do the full 4D experience for this film.
• 12:27
  Dayna Roselli: I'm sure they will.
• 12:28
  Sean McAllister: Well, one of the questions that we got from a colleague who is a Rocky Horror Picture Show fan, they asked if uh you would be allowed to bring props into the show.
• 12:39
  Sean McAllister: So we're gonna have to talk with our friends over at Sphere to find out.
• 12:42
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, I don't know.
• 12:44
  Dayna Roselli: I would assume no.
• 12:45
  Sean McAllister: I would assume no as well.
• 12:47
  Dayna Roselli: You can't even bring in a bag bigger than the size of a quarter.
• 12:52
  Dayna Roselli: I could fit lipstick and a mint when I go to the sphere, but I make adjustments.
• 12:59
  Sean McAllister: But I think this will be popular.
• 13:01
  Sean McAllister: It will be interesting to see, you know, after seeing what they did with Wizard of Oz with apples falling from the sky, with the tornado, with the flying monkeys, all of it.
• 13:12
  Sean McAllister: Um it'll be good.
• 13:14
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, they're using you know all their advanced technologies to enhance the original film.
• 13:19
  Dayna Roselli: So similar to Wizard of Oz.
• 13:20
  Dayna Roselli: I'm sure more details will keep coming out.
• 13:22
  Dayna Roselli: Stay with us.
• 13:23
  Dayna Roselli: We always get little tidbits and get videos in from Sphere when they want to put out some teasers, but should be good.
• 13:30
  Dayna Roselli: Uh, let us know what you think about that.
• 13:32
  Dayna Roselli: The Rocky Horror Picture Show coming to Sphere in 2027.
• 13:35
  Sean McAllister: Hey, if you're coming to Las Vegas for a convention, a seminar, for any kind of work thing where you have like your your work badge, whatever, keep this in mind.
• 13:45
  Sean McAllister: The Grand Prix Plaza, which is like the headquarter building uh for Formula One here in Las Vegas, um, they are running this show your badge offer for walk-up purchases uh at that experience.
• 14:00
  Sean McAllister: Um, if you are in town for a convention or a corporate event happening that week and you show your badge, you'll get a discounted rate to get into the Grand Prix experience.
• 14:12
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, that's a great deal.
• 14:13
  Dayna Roselli: I'm glad they're they should do that.
• 14:15
  Dayna Roselli: That's for our visitors, you know.
• 14:16
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, I wa I love the Nevada locals deals, but I like when they do something like this too to just get people in the door, spread the word, and you know, have some fun.
• 14:26
  Dayna Roselli: Plus, people, you know, that come in for conventions, they have groups with them and they're looking for things to do together.
• 14:32
  Dayna Roselli: And this could be really fun.
• 14:33
  Dayna Roselli: They've got the good, you know, the go-karting, the immersive stuff in there.
• 14:37
  Sean McAllister: Well, just the building itself is super cool.
• 14:40
  Dayna Roselli: They said go-karting.
• 14:41
  Dayna Roselli: I don't know if that might have not been the high-tech word for it.
• 14:44
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, no, they've got they but it's cart racing.
• 14:46
  Sean McAllister: Okay, they have cart racing over there, yeah.
• 14:48
  Dayna Roselli: They're probably like cringing all the Formula One fans.
• 14:51
  Sean McAllister: But they're like mini Formula One carts.
• 14:54
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, so it is cool.
• 14:55
  Sean McAllister: Um, but that building is great.
• 14:57
  Sean McAllister: Knowing that you're on the track, the start essentially finish of the F1 race, right?
• 15:02
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, I mean it's crazy.
• 15:03
  Sean McAllister: Even when I drive down Koval Lane, like the road that that's that the building is on, I always think I'm like, I'm on the F1 course right now.
• 15:13
  Dayna Roselli: I know, and no other city can say that.
• 15:15
  Dayna Roselli: They have that separate track.
• 15:16
  Dayna Roselli: We just drive around the road.
• 15:18
  Dayna Roselli: Um, show your badge.
• 15:19
  Dayna Roselli: Uh, that offer is uh for walk-up purchases only.
• 15:22
  Dayna Roselli: So you can walk up.
• 15:24
  Dayna Roselli: Each guest must present a valid badge from a Las Vegas meeting convention or corporate event happening that week to receive the discounted rate, and it's not available for online reservation, so don't go online and book.
• 15:37
  Dayna Roselli: And by the way, Grand Prix Plaza is open Sunday to Thursday from 10 a.m.
• 15:41
  Dayna Roselli: to 10 p.m.
• 15:41
  Dayna Roselli: and 10 a.m.
• 15:42
  Dayna Roselli: to midnight on Friday and Saturday.
• 15:44
  Dayna Roselli: So you can go late night.
• 15:46
  Sean McAllister: Let's get to our celebrity news with a Vegas twist.
• 15:53
  Dayna Roselli: Well, I figured New Kids on the Block have five celebrities involved.
• 15:57
  Sean McAllister: That's right, they do.
• 15:58
  Dayna Roselli: So I was like, well, this fits.
• 16:00
  Dayna Roselli: You know, we wanted to do our little chat about New Kids on the Block um at Park MGM.
• 16:04
  Dayna Roselli: I have seen the show before, you hadn't.
• 16:07
  Dayna Roselli: So they remixed it because they wanted to add some new songs, do some new things.
• 16:11
  Dayna Roselli: So it's the right stuff, residency remixed.
• 16:14
  Dayna Roselli: Um, but also, uh, in case you're not familiar, which I assume most people are, you know, Jordan and John Knight are in the uh group.
• 16:23
  Dayna Roselli: Also Donnie Wahlberg, um, also Joey McIntyre and Danny Wood.
• 16:29
  Dayna Roselli: They have been, well, I think they said at the show, 38 years now since they've been together as a group.
• 16:35
  Sean McAllister: Crazy.
• 16:35
  Dayna Roselli: They were together, they had a little period where they kind of went off and did their own stuff.
• 16:39
  Dayna Roselli: Now they're back together and they are just killing it.
• 16:42
  Dayna Roselli: They just did the American Music Awards, they're on tour all the time, they sell out, and they've got this fantastic show at Park MGM, which I'm gonna call literally one of my most favorite shows in Las Vegas that I've ever seen.
• 16:55
  Dayna Roselli: And here's the deal I'm a New Kids on the Block fan, but I don't roll around the streets listening to New Kids on the Block music all the time.
• 17:02
  Dayna Roselli: So don't take it as she's a fanatic, that's why she liked it.
• 17:05
  Dayna Roselli: I love new kids.
• 17:06
  Dayna Roselli: I love their energy, I love their camaraderie.
• 17:09
  Dayna Roselli: I do like their music, I like them performing together, but I like their performance more than anything.
• 17:15
  Sean McAllister: That's what got me.
• 17:16
  Sean McAllister: Uh it was my first time seeing this uh residency period.
• 17:21
  Sean McAllister: Yeah.
• 17:21
  Sean McAllister: And I had a smile on my face from start to finish.
• 17:25
  Sean McAllister: I think everything from the production, the amount of confetti they use throughout the show.
• 17:32
  Sean McAllister: I was like, God, I feel bad for the cleanup crew after they come through this theater.
• 17:36
  Sean McAllister: But also like the choreography.
• 17:39
  Sean McAllister: All five of them, they're doing their synchronized dance moves the whole time.
• 17:43
  Sean McAllister: There's a lot to remember.
• 17:44
  Sean McAllister: There's a lot to remember.
• 17:45
  Sean McAllister: That's what I kept thinking.
• 17:46
  Sean McAllister: I was like, how do they remember all these dance moves?
• 17:49
  Dayna Roselli: More than two hours of dance moves, right?
• 17:53
  Dayna Roselli: And outfit changes and all sorts of stuff.
• 17:56
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, it is pretty incredible.
• 17:58
  Dayna Roselli: The sound in there is amazing.
• 18:00
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, when you're watching that, I mean, then they don't like take a beat.
• 18:03
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, they stop and talk to the audience, but then like they're just like constantly moving.
• 18:08
  Dayna Roselli: They work the audience, they go into the audience.
• 18:10
  Dayna Roselli: This group cares about the fans more than I feel like any group I've ever witnessed.
• 18:15
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, they love the blockheads.
• 18:18
  Dayna Roselli: The whole place was sold out when I was there.
• 18:19
  Dayna Roselli: I'm sure when you were there too.
• 18:21
  Sean McAllister: Yep.
• 18:21
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, the vibe is great, the music's great.
• 18:25
  Dayna Roselli: They mix up and blend things together.
• 18:27
  Dayna Roselli: Um, what's remixed?
• 18:28
  Dayna Roselli: Well, they brought out a piano for this one, did some songs.
• 18:31
  Dayna Roselli: Jordan was on the piano and they sang kind of different, uh, I don't think they sang full songs.
• 18:36
  Dayna Roselli: They mixed in a lot.
• 18:36
  Dayna Roselli: I think even Donnie was saying we couldn't choose, so we narrowed it down to 10.
• 18:40
  Sean McAllister: A lot of fan requests, I think he said, yeah.
• 18:42
  Sean McAllister: Like deep cuts.
• 18:44
  Dayna Roselli: Yes.
• 18:44
  Sean McAllister: That you wouldn't normally hear.
• 18:46
  Dayna Roselli: I know.
• 18:47
  Dayna Roselli: I feel like they added uh like Boys in the Band and some other uh so many songs.
• 18:52
  Dayna Roselli: It was great.
• 18:53
  Dayna Roselli: I loved it.
• 18:53
  Dayna Roselli: Um, Jordan still did do one solo number.
• 18:56
  Dayna Roselli: I think in the first one he had a couple that he did.
• 19:01
  Dayna Roselli: Um, but he did one, and I like Jordan's solo music, so I love that he kept that in.
• 19:06
  Dayna Roselli: Um you know, they always do the change cam, the backstage change cam.
• 19:10
  Dayna Roselli: That's fun to watch some joking around in the back.
• 19:13
  Dayna Roselli: They have great dancers alongside them.
• 19:15
  Sean McAllister: They do.
• 19:16
  Dayna Roselli: Great props.
• 19:16
  Dayna Roselli: The car drove drives out still.
• 19:19
  Dayna Roselli: They come out on the moving plank there with the subway.
• 19:23
  Dayna Roselli: Uh they still do the boxes in the air where they go way up to the balcony, and the balcony loves it.
• 19:28
  Dayna Roselli: It's so cool.
• 19:29
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, the whole thing is quite a production.
• 19:31
  Sean McAllister: It is such a good show, and I think the the adoration that they do have for their fans is something else that struck me.
• 19:40
  Sean McAllister: I was like, wow, these guys really do they were so appreciative.
• 19:45
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, I mean, they know a lot of their names, they recognize their faces, they're always shaking hands, you know, uh noticing them, calling them out.
• 19:54
  Dayna Roselli: They just, it's a really great vibe.
• 19:57
  Sean McAllister: Actually, the night that I was there, Donnie got a little teary-eyed as he was talking about the fans.
• 20:03
  Sean McAllister: He was like, you know what?
• 20:04
  Sean McAllister: There's five of us up here that make up new kids, but we wouldn't be able to do any of this without all of you.
• 20:10
  Sean McAllister: And then the entire place erupted.
• 20:12
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, and he just he got choked up in the moment.
• 20:23
  SPEAKER_01: Five gentlemen on the stage.
• 20:48
  Dayna Roselli: And I remember seeing an interview with him where he was talking about when he got together with Jenny McCarthy and he told her, like, fans are my prior, like a big part of my life.
• 20:57
  Dayna Roselli: It's a priority, like if I ever see one, I'm not walking by.
• 21:00
  Dayna Roselli: Like, if we're going into a restaurant and there's a fan outside, we're stopping.
• 21:03
  Dayna Roselli: And she was like, I'm in.
• 21:05
  Dayna Roselli: And you can even tell she reaches out to fans because she reached out to my friend who has a TikTok, he's an Uber driver, and said, We want to meet you.
• 21:12
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, she's in too.
• 21:13
  Dayna Roselli: Um, and I think, you know, they're all really great like that too.
• 21:16
  Dayna Roselli: Danny is so great with the fans and he loves it.
• 21:19
  Dayna Roselli: He does a lot of the um experiences and pictures.
• 21:23
  Dayna Roselli: They're just wonderful people.
• 21:24
  Dayna Roselli: And you said he got choked up.
• 21:25
  Dayna Roselli: He got choked up the next night, too, um, when he was talking about the fans, because he was talking about Happy Father's Day, and um, it was great.
• 21:31
  Dayna Roselli: He was pointing out, you know, the fathers in the audience, the fathers who stayed home so their wives could uh go out and and and join new kids on the block for a night.
• 21:41
  Dayna Roselli: Um, they addressed Danny's dad was in the audience.
• 21:44
  Dayna Roselli: Um, and uh he called uh Jonathan a a goat dad.
• 21:48
  Sean McAllister: Because he's a he lives on the farm.
• 21:50
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, yeah.
• 21:51
  Dayna Roselli: So uh, but him and Joey both lost their dad.
• 21:54
  Dayna Roselli: So, but he did point out he he brought it back around to the fans and he said, you know, I had a couple of the blocks.
• 22:00
  Dayna Roselli: Heads mentioned to me that this is a very delicate weekend for them.
• 22:03
  Dayna Roselli: And he got choked up.
• 22:04
  Dayna Roselli: And he said, We want to recognize, you know, the dads that are fathers up with the with our heavenly father looking down.
• 22:10
  Dayna Roselli: It was just a nice moment.
• 22:12
  Dayna Roselli: But he makes they make sure to hit everyone, to make sure that they touch on everyone's personal experience.
• 22:18
  Dayna Roselli: And they did know that a lot of people might have lost their dads and come Father's Day weekend to see them in order to lift their spirits.
• 22:24
  Sean McAllister: Right.
• 22:25
  Dayna Roselli: So they're just they're good at that.
• 22:27
  Sean McAllister: They were so great.
• 22:28
  Sean McAllister: And once again, uh Donnie Wahlberg and Jenny McCarthy went back to their favorite Las Vegas restaurant.
• 22:34
  Sean McAllister: They did.
• 22:35
  Sean McAllister: Barry's Downtown Prime over at Circa.
• 22:38
  Sean McAllister: They did a video inside.
• 22:40
  Sean McAllister: And actually, in that video, Donnie even said to the fans, he said, if you want to find me when I'm in Vegas, come to Barry's because I'm probably going to be there.
• 22:49
  Sean McAllister: Right.
• 22:51
  Dayna Roselli: He's great.
• 22:52
  Dayna Roselli: He does a lot of little rapping in the show.
• 22:54
  Sean McAllister: He does a lot of rapping.
• 22:55
  Sean McAllister: I was surprised at that.
• 22:56
  Dayna Roselli: So much personality.
• 22:58
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, you're thinking like this guy's in TV shows, and all of them have kind of side things.
• 23:03
  Dayna Roselli: Joey's doing stuff on Broadway, and you know, Jordan has his solo music.
• 23:07
  Dayna Roselli: Jonathan has.
• 23:08
  Sean McAllister: Jon's on HGTV.
• 23:09
  Dayna Roselli: They're busy guys.
• 23:11
  Dayna Roselli: That's why I even thought, how do they get all these moves down and remember them for James?
• 23:14
  Dayna Roselli: I know.
• 23:15
  Sean McAllister: I know.
• 23:17
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah.
• 23:18
  Dayna Roselli: So go see New Kids on the Block.
• 23:20
  Dayna Roselli: Now they're here.
• 23:21
  Dayna Roselli: Um they got shows this weekend.
• 23:24
  Dayna Roselli: The podcast drops on.
• 23:25
  Dayna Roselli: When when are we posting this?
• 23:26
  Dayna Roselli: 25th this weekend.
• 23:27
  Dayna Roselli: Uh, then they're back beginning of July.
• 23:29
  Dayna Roselli: Um, and if you miss the summer shows, um, because they're here 4th of July weekend, but uh come back in October.
• 23:36
  Dayna Roselli: They're back again.
• 23:37
  Dayna Roselli: I'm kind of sad to think that this residency might s end.
• 23:41
  Dayna Roselli: I kind of feel like it just needs to be a part of Las Vegas.
• 23:43
  Sean McAllister: Although we did get uh there was a note in one of the uh communications we got about their residency that said this is the only place to see Las Vegas is the only place to see new kids on stage in 2026 and 2027.
• 24:01
  Sean McAllister: So maybe that just means that uh the extension into 2027 hasn't been announced yet.
• 24:07
  Sean McAllister: Maybe not.
• 24:07
  Dayna Roselli: We'll have to see.
• 24:08
  Dayna Roselli: I don't know, maybe they I feel like people are gonna say this show needs to stay.
• 24:13
  Dayna Roselli: Whether they come back and forth, even if it's once a year.
• 24:17
  Dayna Roselli: I mean it's an event.
• 24:18
  Sean McAllister: It's a good addition to the whole lineup here.
• 24:22
  Dayna Roselli: So I think like that show and Mark Anthony are my two favorites this year so far.
• 24:26
  Dayna Roselli: Um when it comes to shows, but you know, I'm no show expert or reviewer.
• 24:30
  Dayna Roselli: I've seen a lot of shows living in Las Vegas and can compare.
• 24:34
  Dayna Roselli: I really enjoyed Mary J.
• 24:35
  Dayna Roselli: Lide.
• 24:36
  Sean McAllister: Based off of like just the whole vibe.
• 24:38
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, the vibe.
• 24:39
  Dayna Roselli: Because I had my friend with me who had never seen New Kids on the Block.
• 24:42
  Dayna Roselli: She likes New Kids on the Block, but not again, like isn't you know a super fan or anything.
• 24:47
  Dayna Roselli: And she was like, that might have been the best show I've ever seen.
• 24:50
  Dayna Roselli: I'm like, I told you, it's so good.
• 24:52
  Dayna Roselli: She her hands were in the air, she was dancing.
• 24:55
  Sean McAllister: Well, and it makes a difference when there's an entire theater full of people who are into it.
• 25:01
  Sean McAllister: Right.
• 25:01
  Sean McAllister: You know, you go to some residency shows and there's like uh maybe three-quarters of the audience is still sitting.
• 25:09
  Sean McAllister: Some people are sporadically up dancing, people behind them are getting irritated because they're up, but the people behind them are sitting down, and then it's just throws off the vibe.
• 25:21
  Sean McAllister: Yes.
• 25:22
  Sean McAllister: When everybody is on the same page, having fun into it, and that was another thing.
• 25:27
  Sean McAllister: I think I was up on my feet the entire show.
• 25:30
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah.
• 25:31
  Sean McAllister: Oh, entire maybe two songs, maybe two songs we sat for, but everyone was up the entire time.
• 25:37
  Dayna Roselli: So I don't know if this is a no-no, but I discovered a new way to be half sitting, half half up.
• 25:43
  Sean McAllister: Oh, do you keep your chair folded?
• 25:45
  Dayna Roselli: So the chair folded and the guy next to me was sitting on the top of the like he wasn't like all his weight, he was like leaning on the top of the folded chair.
• 25:54
  Dayna Roselli: And I was like, ooh, that's a good little I tried it, and then I was like, for like a quarter of the show, that was my positioning.
• 26:02
  Dayna Roselli: It was great because you're like, you can still see if people are standing in front of you.
• 26:06
  Dayna Roselli: Right.
• 26:06
  Dayna Roselli: If they're sitting, same thing, but you're just like a good height to be at.
• 26:09
  Sean McAllister: I don't know if you're allowed to, and I don't know if it's officially standing, you're not officially sitting.
• 26:16
  Dayna Roselli: But if you just need a quick, you know, a little rest for a little bit.
• 26:19
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah.
• 26:19
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, it was good.
• 26:20
  Dayna Roselli: Oh, look at that.
• 26:21
  Dayna Roselli: I know.
• 26:21
  Sean McAllister: Concert tip.
• 26:23
  Dayna Roselli: I don't know.
• 26:24
  Dayna Roselli: I don't know if it's allowed.
• 26:25
  Dayna Roselli: I don't know if it's allowed.
• 26:26
  Dayna Roselli: Don't don't write me, don't cancel me.
• 26:31
  Dayna Roselli: Um, but we're gonna cancel the show.
• 26:32
  Dayna Roselli: We're done uh for the day, but we'll be back next week with more Vegas revealed.
• 26:36
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, we'll we'll be renewed for next week.
• 26:39
  Sean McAllister: See you then.