WESTGATE ROCKS WITH BRONX IN ALREADY STACKED LINEUP

By John Katsilometes Las Vegas Review-Journal
July 16, 2021 - 6:34 pm

About all the Westgate Cabaret has been missing was a family from the Bronx churning out rock ‘n’ roll.

The little room at Westgate Las Vegas has that now, too, as Bronx Wanderers are setting up a residency at the hotel this fall. The core triumvirate of father Vinny Adinolfi, and sons Vinny “Vin A.” Adinolfi III and Nick Adinolfi debuts Sept. 20 in an open-ended engagement.

The guys are going old-school with this schedule, running at 8 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays; and 5:30 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays (tickets start at $49.99, not including fees, and are onsale Wednesday).

Playing tunes ranging from Dion and the Belmonts to Bruno Mars, Bronx Wanderers is the cabaret room’s fifth residency show. The act joins “The Magic of Jen Kramer,” “Soul of Motown,” George Wallace and Jen Romas’ “Sexxy” adult revue.

Kramer and “Soul” are onstage currently. Wallace is expected to restart mid-September, around the time Barry Manilow returns to International Theater on Sept. 16. “Sexxy” has just locked in an Aug. 6 return.

Dating back some 25 years, when it was known as Shimmer Cabaret, the showroom has been home to an array of headliners and production shows. Bronx producers Alan and Kathi Glist brought “Menopause the Musical” to the room in 2005. Cameo has played Westgate Cabaret. So have The Scintas, Suzanne Somers, the Purple Reign Prince tribute show, and comedian Gilbert Gottfried.

“We’re honored to have a found a new home with so much history, so much support from the top executives and the incredible staff at Westgate,” Vin A. said Friday via. “We feel the excitement in the hotel and showroom and can’t wait to bring our energy into the mix.”

Befitting the act’s mobile moniker, the Bronx Wanderers have bounced around Vegas a bit since arriving in 2016 for a brief run at Grandview Lounge at South Point. Bronx has also performed at Windows Showroom at Bally’s (now The Magic Attic), Linq Hotel (working around headliner Mat Franco’s schedule), and Harrah’s Showroom just before COVID.

The band had anticipated returning to Cleopatra’s Barge at Caesars Palace. Instead, it was cut loose in the sweep of shutdowns by Caesars Entertainment in May.

One piece of its Caesars partnership remains, however, two shows at Caesars in Atlantic City on Aug. 8-9. And, on Aug. 27-28, Bronx plays two previously booked shows at South Point Showroom, before focusing on its upcoming production at Westgate.

Vinny Adinolfi says the show will be taken to “a whole new level,” adding, “This isn’t just your parents’ rock ‘n’ roll. Audiences will leave the show singing, and feeling like part of the famiglia.”

NEEDING EACHOTHER

by Sandy Zimmerman

April 28, 2020

While the world is waiting for researchers to find a vaccine for the COVID-19 pandemic everyone’s lives are paused, away from their usual activities, family and friends. This is an emotional time of uncertainty but there is hope in togetherness!

The song “Needing Each Other” was a magna-production very seldom seen, with 44 singers, 29 messages and backed by a 20 piece orchestra! Imagine all of work assembling and editing every segment of video, audio, especially because each performer recorded their part of the song and message remotely.

Las Vegas is the entertainment capital of the world and the song “Needing Each Other”, written and produced by Keith Thompson (Musical Director of the Las Vegas Company of “Jersey Boys,” Creator/Director of The Cocktail Cabaret and Founder/Host of The Composers Showcase at The Smith Center) and co-produced by Alan and Kathi Glist of Glist Entertainment, Inc. (producers of “Menopause The Musical”® and The Bronx Wanderers at Harrah’s Las Vegas and THOMAS JOHN: CELEBRITY PSYCHIC MEDIUM at Caesars Palace);

The featured singers: Vin A., Vinny Adinolfi, Jay Alger, Jassen Allen, Susan Anton, Tony Arias, Brent Barrett, Dennis Blair, Bernie Blanks, Karalyn Clark, Travis Cloer, Douglas Crawford, Jimmy Dennings, Nicole Pryor Dernersesian, Vita Corimbi Drew, Daniel Emmet, Bruce Ewing, Kaylie Foster, Elisa Furr, Gret Menzies Gonzalez,Cherity Harchis, Todd Hart, Bucky Heard, Dr. Richard Hodges, Clint Holmes, Kelly Clinton Holmes, Liz Hyde, Chadwick Johnson, Michelle Johnson, Colte Julian, Randal Keith, Amanda King, Liza Likins, Dana Martin, Krissy Johnson Millstein, Christine Hudman Pardy, Effie Passero, Kevan Patriquin, Ron Remke, David “Dai” Richards, Niki Scalera, Dan Schumann, Giada Valenti, Janien Valentine, Kelly Vohnn, Maren Wade, Jonathan Williams, Valerie Witherspoon, Jaquelyn Holland-Wright and Eric Jordan Young who are standing in solidarity with each other.

Messages of hope on the video were provided by: Susan Anton, Australian Bee Gees, Rick Barry, Dennis Bono, Lorraine Hunt Bono, Artie Butler, Carrot Top, Clint and Kelly Clinton Holmes, Frederick da Silva, Joyce DeWitt, Roy Firestone, Mick Fleetwood, Ronnie Foster, Mat Franco, Spencer Haywood, Thomas John, John Katsilometes, Frank Marino, Deana Martin, Myron Martin, Bill Medley, Stevie Nicks, Paige O’Hara, Tony Orlando, Chaz Palminteri, Marianne Phoenix, Irwin Raymer and Thunder From Down Under. 

I’m happy we can watch the Stars of Las Vegas perform from-their-homes on Facebook, Youtube, etc. If you wish to donate to thecomposersshowcase.com. Your donations will assist those Las Vegas Entertainers and Musicians who are in need!  

 You can see “Needing Each Other” on Sandy Zimmerman’s Las Vegas TV television program airing from Monday, May 4 to Sunday, May 10, on KGNG, on COX, most cable programming, and Satellite, airing 12 times a week, Mon., 8 am & 10 pm; Tue., 6 am & 8 pm; Wed., 4 am & 6 pm; Thurs., 2 am & 4:30 pm; Fri., 12 am & 2 pm; Sat., 12 pm; Sun., 10 am;

With 25 years in the Las Vegas entertainment field (TV Talk Show Host/ Red Carpets/ Producer/ Syndicated Journalist), I wanted to brighten your day by sharing this spectacular production and wish everyone good health, keep safe, and look forward to a better tomorrow! Facebook@szlvtv sandyzimm2003@yahoo.com  702-515-0846

"Always So Good!" The Bronx Wanderers LIVE! at the Grunin Center

By Spotlight Central

originally published: 06/04/2019

The Bronx Wanderers are in the house this Sunday, May 19, 2019 afternoon at Toms River, NJ’s Grunin Center for the Arts. On this — the first of two sold-out shows on a single day — the group is poised to entertain the Jersey crowd with an appealing selection of tunes ranging from the 1950s all the way to the present day.

The Bronx Wanderers is comprised of a father, Vinny Sr., on lead vocals; his son, Vin A., on keyboards and guitar; and his other son, drummer Nicky “Stix.” Because Nicky just became a father himself last week, Vinny Sr.’s nephew, Alex, is filling in with the band tonight on drums.

Rounding out The Wanderers are three of Vin A. and Nicholas’ high school friends — David Braun on guitar, Joe Bari on sax, and Fernando Tort on bass.

According to Vinny Sr., even though he grew up in the Bronx — where, over the years, he became friends with such famous local residents as Chazz Palminteri, Danny Aiello, and Tony Orlando — once he was older, he decided to cross the river and raise his family in Demarest, located in nearby Bergen County, New Jersey.

Says Vinny Sr. about having such a personal connection to New Jersey, “Hey… New Jersey is my home!”

As a young man, Vinny Sr. had dreams of making it big in show business as a professional musician. After talking to several music industry experts in New York City, however, he decided to put his dreams on hold and create a career as a record producer, label executive, and music publisher.

After 35 successful years working with the likes of Jim Croce, Alabama, Reba McEntire, and The Spinners, Vinny Sr. put together a rock and roll band featuring his teenage sons. Since then, the group has gone on to perform in venues across the country. As of the last three years, however, they’ve earned themselves a steady gig performing in a Las Vegas, Nevada, casino.

According to Vinny Sr., he maintains a personal connection to every song he and the boys perform in their shows. As such, it’s no surprise they open this afternoon’s Grunin Center show with “The Wanderer” and “I Wonder Why,” both hits by Dion — the individual who introduced Vinny Sr. to the NYC music producers who originally made him a music executive.

Vinnie Sr. and the group perform Dion’s tunes with all of the energy one might expect for a band which — over the course of their hundreds of shows every year — keeps the flame alive for the music of the ’50s, ’60s, and beyond.

Next, the audience is treated to a very special surprise when Vinny Sr. introduces Joe Long — bass player for The Four Seasons from 1965 to 1975 — who happens to be in the audience.

One of many highlights of the afternoon follows when The Wanderers expertly perform a tribute to The Four Seasons which includes a medley of the group’s hits, “Save it for Me,” “Rag Doll,” “Walk Like a Man,” “Dawn,” and “Who Loves You,” as images from the early ’60s flash on the screen behind them.

The good vibes of the music fill the auditorium as the audience cheers and applauds and several women happily begin to dance in the aisles.

“It’s great to be home in New Jersey! Wow, how is everyone?” asks Vinny Sr. “It’s been three years we’ve been away,” before explaining, “We went to Las Vegas where we play six days a week at the Mat Franco Theater at the Linq.”

Here, the band launches into yet another highlight of the show — The Bronx Wanderers’ treatment of Billy Joel’s “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant.”

On this rendition, Vin A. handles the lead vocal and keyboard parts. He’s supported by Joe Bari’s smooth and mellow saxophone playing, along with David Braun’s lead guitar talents.

Cousin Alex twirls his sticks as he solidly keeps the beat. The audience responds by standing and cheering for the group’s top-notch performance.

After inviting the audience to sing along, The Wanderers perform Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline.” Audience members’ hands sway back and forth as they join in singing the famous “Sweet Caroline/Good times never seemed so good” chorus. After Vinny Sr. exclaims, “You guys are doing great! You having a good time? Let’s get loud!” the crowd ramps things up and even more audience members get out of their seats to dance.

Vin A. takes the spotlight center stage when he is featured on lead vocal and guitar on Stray Cats’ “Rock This Town.” Heads bop and hands clap on this rockabilly hit which elicits cheers for his and the band’s electric performance. After Vinny Sr. tells the audience, “When we’re touring, I get to do songs I don’t do in Vegas,” he and the group launch into their version of Dion’s “Teenager in Love.”

Whereas some audience members spontaneously sing lead with Vinny Sr., others join in singing backup with the rest of the musicians in the band.

“You guys are great!” exclaims Vinny Sr.

Vinny Sr. asks all of the Vietnam veterans in the audience to stand up. After additionally recognizing the first responders, EMTs, doctors, nurses, and teachers in the house, he dedicates the group’s next song to all veterans.

As a video featuring a variety of images from the late 1960s plays on the screen behind them, The Wanderers perform a medley of The Animals’ “We Gotta Get Out of This Place” and Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Fortunate Son.”

Wailing guitars, along with the groove of the music, make audience members bop their heads as they sing along and clap double time to the band’s high energy arrangement.

The Bronx Wanderers follow up with an audience-pleasing medley of surf tunes including The Surfaris’ “Wipe Out,” and The Ventures’ “Theme from Hawaii Five–0” and “Walk Don’t Run.” On this instrumental medley, Vinny Sr. turns the spotlight over to the youngsters and plays the part of “proud papa” as his “boys” — notably saxophonist Joe Bari — rock the house to the fascinated crowd.

Following Vinny Sr.’s rendition of Jay and The Americans’ “Cara Mia,” the group gives one of its most impressive performances of the afternoon — a stunning live version of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.”

Featuring Vin A. on lead vocal and piano, the rendition is so perfectly brought to life, it immediately brings the dazzled audience to its feet.

fter Vinny Sr. announces, “Once a night, the ‘boys’ get to do something without me,” the younger members of the band launch into a raucous version of the Mark Ronson/Bruno Mars hit, “Uptown Funk.”

Featuring Vin A. all decked out in his red jacket — accompanied on bass and vocals by Fernando Tort — the group’s energetic performance thoroughly entertains the sold-out house.

Vin A. dances around while he sings and Fernando gets the crowd clapping along before the audience joins in singing and dancing in the aisles and at their seats to the group’s upbeat and funky performance.

Vinny Sr. follows up with his tribute to Elvis Presley, “If I Can Dream.” As images of Elvis appear on the screen, Vinny Sr. sings a duet with Elvis’ pre-recorded voice.

The number ends with Vinny Sr. announcing, “Welcome to my dream come true,” before thanking everyone in the audience for coming, exclaiming, “There’s nothing better than playing at home!”

After adding, “For 15 years, I’ve been criss-crossing the USA in a van with my sons and band to build a group that plays in Vegas now,” Vinny Sr. advises, “If you have a goal or dream, never give up hope — never stop believing.”

The group changes into sharp blue blazers before their next highlight performance. Here, heads bop and audience members sing and dance along to the feel-good music of a second Four Seasons’ medley featuring “Sherry,” “Don’t Worry About Me,” “Let’s Hang On,” and “Bye Bye Baby.”

Audience members cheer, and fans dance in the aisles to an electrifying medley of Queen’s “We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions.” Lastly, as scenes from the film, Back to the Future, play on the screen, The Bronx Wanderers rock out to Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode.”

After Vinny Sr. announces, “We had a ball!” the group concludes today’s show with a high-energy recreation of The Beatles’ “The End.”

While the group members wave goodbye as they exit the stage, the audience cheers for its hometown heroes — The Bronx Wanderers.

As members of the audience make their way out of the auditorium, we chat with several in attendance today who share their reactions to this afternoon’s show.

First, we chat with a group of four concertgoers from Manchester.

States Leslie, “It was awesome — just incredible!” before Rosemary agrees, commenting “I’ve seen them three times and I could see them again. When is their next show?”

Whereas Lydia remarks, “They were fantastic — irresistible — just wonderful!” Peter concurs before noting, “But the main thing is, they have talent!”

Next, we chat with two friends, Barbara and Joanne, who are here to see both Bronx Wanderers’ concerts today at the Grunin Center.

Recounts Barbara from Easton PA, “I never saw The Bronx Wanderers in Las Vegas, but I did see them on Long Island. Their music is from my era. Their energy is outrageous, and the fact that they’re a family makes them even more appealing to me.”

Joanne from Montvale — who is proudly wearing her Bronx Wanderers T-shirt — says, “I first saw them about eight or nine years ago, and I’ve been hooked ever since.” Adding, “We even went to Vegas to see them,” Joanne explains, “I love the way Vinny Sr. tells stories between the songs, and I love how he appreciates everyone. In fact, when we were in Vegas, he recognized my shirt and gave me a thumbs up!”

We also chat with Mary Ellen from Long Beach, NY, who exclaims, “The Bronx Wanderers are awesome — they play happy music!” Acknowledging, “I was a part of the group dancing in the aisles,” Mary Ellen explains, “There are about nine of us in the group. Vinny calls us ‘The Jersey Girls.’ We recently went to Vegas to see the band,” before noting, “And now we have friends from Las Vegas who are visiting us here, and they came with us to see The Bronx Wanderers today in Jersey.”

Lastly, we chat with Joe Long, the former member of The Four Seasons, who comments about today’s performance by The Bronx Wanderers declaring, “It’s always a treat, a tribute, and an honor to have our Jersey Boys’ songs played, but I have to say that last group of Four Seasons’ songs was my favorite!”

Adding, “The Bronx Wanderers are a phenomenal group,” Long concludes by joking, “They’re just a little boring — because they’re always so good!”

To learn more about The Bronx Wanderers, please go to bronxwanderers.com. For information on upcoming programming at the Grunin Center for the Arts — including The Basement Musicians: A Walk Down Memory Lane on June 29 and Rufus Wainwright on August 23 — please go to grunincenter.org.

Review: 'Menopause The Musical': the view of one man (among many women)

John Henry Martin

May 15th, 2019

When I was waiting in line to get into the theater for the only showing of “Menopause The Musical” at Lincoln Theater, a woman came up to me and said, “You’re a brave man to be here.”

I looked out over the sea of hair in various stages of grey or died a golden blond, and said, “I was just thinking the same thing.” Indeed, it was a little unsettling, to be one of four men among an estimated 300 menopausal women.

When I sat down, I saw another man behind me, sitting next to his wife, and said to him, “looks like we’re in the minority tonight.”

He responded, “I’ve lived through it!” His smile was large and warm. So was his wife’s.

Right after that, another woman came up to me and said, “Thank you for being here.” It was then that I realized something: to have a member of the male sex attend a show based on, perhaps, the most unglamorous stage in a woman’s life, meant a lot to these woman. I felt buoyant. Optimistic. I thought, maybe they don’t get that at home.

Then Kool & the Gang’s “Celebrate” came over the loudspeaker, a low roar filled the theater, and hands went up and waved in time with the music. There was something celebratory in the air. You could feel this joyous expectation, this feeling that we were going ditch inhibitions and celebrate what it means to be a woman.

“Menopause The Musical” is a 90-minute musical revue that revels in the challenges of aging as a woman in glorious, hilarious detail. “The Change” is universal and a worthy subject for exploration on the stage. Especially when that exploration involves laughter.

The setting is Bloomingdale’s in New York City present day. Four women, who are not named, perhaps signaling that they are “everywoman,” all meet in the lingerie department. A sale is announced on bras and they get in a fight over one. This quickly dissipates when one of them realizes this particular bra is much too small for them. Then they all become friends, setting the stage for an evening of singing and dancing about the foibles of losing one’s biological fertility.

There is Professional Woman, played by Anise Ritchie, who struts in stilettos and sings in a massive, gospel singer voice. Then there is Soap Star, who is vain, but sexy, and reminds me of Rue McClanahan’s Blanche Devereaux on The Golden Girls. Earth Mother, played by Megan Cavanagh, is a child of the ‘60s, sweet and innocent and into meditation and herbalism. And then there’s Iowa Housewife, played by Roberta B. Wall, a prim and proper matron who eventually learns from the others that when her husband Ronny is not in the mood for intimacy, there are other, more solitary, ways of satisfying one’s urges.

The conceit is that these women are in Bloomingdale’s doing what any women does in Bloomingdale’s: shop. Each department — cosmetics, evening wear, sports wear, the restaurant, and, of course, the ladies room — gives rise to a reason for a song.

All of the songs are covers of familiar music. For example, in Betty Everett’s “The Shoop Shoop Song,” there is the lyric “if you want to know if he loves you so, it’s in his kiss.” But our ladies modify it by singing “if you want to know where the fat glands go, it’s on my hips. That’s where it is.”

In “My Guy” by Mary Wells, the lyric is “nothing you can say can tear me away from my guy.” The menopausal version is “nothing I can do because it [the fat] sticks like glue, to my thighs.”

To the tune of The Tokens’ “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” rather than the “wimoweh” refrain in the song, they sing, referencing the menopausal mood swings, “she’s a witch, she’s a bitch, she’s a witch, she’s a bitch.” And hilariously, instead of “in the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight,” it’s “in the guest room or on the sofa, my husband sleeps at night.”

They lunch in the restaurant where Earth Mother can’t read the menu and needs Soap Star to hold it far enough away from her to see it. Then Soap Star and Professional Woman have to pause, and have, as it happens so often in the show, a “Hot Flash Interlude.” The stage goes dark and they sing, in mock annoyance, about their thermological fluctuations.

This is a show for our time. In the age of #metoo when younger women are speaking up about how they are treated by men, it’s fitting that we celebrate the women who have been dealing with that treatment all along. Finally, at this late stage in life, these women have the freedom to be oneself, to do things just for oneself.

What I began to think, as I contemplated all these women who were laughing hysterically, was that there must be no more beautiful time in life than the liberation from the biological process.

While the loss of a woman’s girlish looks may be depressing, “Menopause” embraces this fact and makes it fun. Laughter about a subject is disarming, and when you have about 300 other women, laughing right along with you, you realize the despair is only in the loneliness.

After the show, I met with the performers and asked them why they think the show is important. Megan Cavanagh, who played Earth Mother said, “I would say this is truly a celebration of women and that our best years are not really behind us. We are awesome, we are strong, we are vibrant, we are beautiful. We don’t have the beauty that we had when we were 25, but we are beautiful inside and out. It’s important to show it. To be your true self right now because time is slipping away.”

Anise Ritchie, Professional Woman, said, “It’s really important for women as well as men so that men when they come to the show with their wives or girlfriends they can understand what the women are going through, why they’re waking up at night with these hot sweats. It helps both men and women to understand the journey that all women go through.”

Kathy St. George, Soap Star, added, “I think it shows that we’re all in this together. We all want to lift each other up. It’s a celebration of something that in the past would be taboo. Let’s push that under the rug. We don’t want to talk about menopause, hot flashes and mood swings. But this show says that it’s nothing to be ashamed of. It’s a natural phase in a woman’s life. Let’s celebrate and have fund and lift each other up.”

What this show makes clear is that, while one’s body maybe changing, the mind and spirit are stronger than ever. A woman in her 60s and beyond may not have the perky bosom or defined cheekbones of her 20s, but she can still have a twinkle in her eye and a spring in her step. Shows like this will make that twinkle all the shinier, and that spring all the more spry.

This production of “Menopause The Musical” is on tour. Next stop is Folsom, California; then on to Colorado Springs, Colorado; Calgary, Alberta and Reno, Nevada, among other places. But, a production is currently ongoing at the Harrah’s Hotel in Las Vegas. Next time your dad has a convention in Las Vegas, tell him to take your mother and go see this show.

Old-school feels new with the Bronx Wanderers at the Linq

By Brock Radke (contact)

Monday, April 29, 2019 | 2 a.m.

So many great bands have made the Strip their home through the years, turning casino lounges and showrooms into the most buzzed-about parties in Las Vegas. The must-see band of the moment is the Bronx Wanderers, who paid their Vegas dues for the last two years at Bally’s intimate Windows Showroom and recently slid into the Mat Franco Theater at the Linq, a larger space that can feel a little cavernous without some serious energy.

Don’t worry. These guys have energy to spare. The Bronx Wanderers is a celebration of American rock and roll and the story of one musical family, told through their favorite songs (and yours) with plenty of laughs and memories along the way.

After a pre-show video provides a bit of backstory, the six-piece starts things off, of course, with “The Wanderer,” originally recorded by Dion, who hails from the same Italian-American Bronx neighborhood as Vinny Adinolfi, the longtime record producer now living his dream performing on the Strip. He sings, tells stories and plays guitar, anchoring the show, while his sons Vin A and Nicky scorch the stage with band mates David Braun on guitar, Fernando Tort on bass and Joe Bari on horns and keyboards.

This is the second generation of the Bronx Wanderers, which originated with some of Adinolfi’s older peers and has toured the country for years, but it’s one of the tightest outfits playing the Strip these days and the group’s mastery of some challenging rock classics — everything from Billy Joel’s “Scenes From an Italian Restaurant” to Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” — is beyond impressive. The set bounces between dad’s picks (Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Neil Diamond, Elvis) and some songs for the boys (the Stray Cats’ “Rock This Town”) and nobody misses a beat. It doesn’t matter what genre or era the songs are coming from, if it’s a hit, these guys can play it with power.

The dynamic between Vinny, Nicky on the drums and Vin A on piano, vocals and guitar is familiar and effortlessly entertaining; they take the music seriously but not so much themselves. A while back they added a two-song medley acknowledging U.S. veterans and service people (The Animals’ “We Gotta Get Out of This Place” and Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Fortunate Son”) and it resonates emotionally while straight-up rocking the house. You’ll only get a better version of “Fortunate Son” in Las Vegas when John Fogerty is in town at Encore Theater.

There are sing-alongs and stories about Wayne Newton and Paul Anka. There’s surf rock and “Johnny B. Goode” and Bruno Mars. There’s more music than you can handle and when it’s all over, you’ll feel like you’re part of the family.

The Bronx Wanders take the stage at 4 p.m. Sunday, 9:15 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and Friday, and 8 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday (dark Saturdays) at the Mat Franco Theater at the Linq. Find more information at thebronxwanderers.com.