Skrillex and Britney Spears could soon take part in one of the most prestigious and absurd clichés in show business: a Las Vegas residency.
Rolling Stone reports that Skrillex is planning a collaboration with circus contortionists Cirque du Soleil, who have previously set shows to the tunes of Elvis Presley and the Beatles. On April 26, the Canadian troupe will open LIGHT, a new EDM-focused club at the Mandalay Bay hotel. The venue has already inked residency deals with several top-tier DJs, including Skrillex.
“I want [the show] be distinct to the LIGHT club because the configuration is so customizable, it’s fucking crazy,” Skrillex told RS. “That’s the thing about the club, too: they can do anything, so it’s how you maximize the dynamic of a great show with all their fucking bells and whistles and all of their budgets and resources to do anything.” But don’t expect the usual Cirque du Soleil fare for Sonny Moore’s series. “It’s not about having acrobats for my set,” Skrillex said. “For me, personally, the objective is to have something based around your music and something you want to dance to, not something you want to stare at the whole time.”
The Leaving spinner continued, saying that the space’s adaptability will make each artist’s residency feel completely unique. An official press release confirms some of the other names LIGHT has already booked, specifically Alesso, Swedish House Mafia’s Sebastian Ingrosso, Baauer, and Zedd, who said, “I don’t think it’s going to be like a normal electronic music dance show… Those guys have experience with shows that are far away from a normal EDM show.”
Zedd — currently working with Lady Gaga on her upcoming ARTPOP LP — cited the Mother Monster’s Born This Way Ball as an inspiration for his LIGHT performances. “We’ve seen all sorts of production in dance music, but when I personally watched [Gaga’s] production for the first time, I was reminded of how much there is we did not think of yet, and one big part of it is maybe the human touch,” he said. LIGHT has yet to announce specific dates for any of the forthcoming residencies.
Somewhat less solid is Britney’s time on the Vegas strip. It’s been reported that the former X Factor star has been denied a stint in Sin City (Dave Grohl poked fun at the 31-year-old pop star earlier this week), but Billboard claims that the Circus singer and her management are still in “deep negotiations.”
“I’d be shocked if it didn’t happen,” Larry Rudolph, Spears’ manager, told Extra on February 5. “[We’re] hoping to have a deal done very soon.” According to Rudolph, it’s currently between two casinos, one of which belongs to the Caesars Entertainment group. As Billboard points out, Caesars’ Palace denied that the Femme Fatale was working out a deal to play the Colosseum. At the moment, the Colosseum has contracts with Celine Dion, Elton John, and Shania Twain through 2014, and one with Rod Stewart that expires this August. The venue claimed that they don’t have any available weekend dates “for months.” That just leaves their other interests: Bally’s, Harrah’s, Planet Hollywood, Rio, Flamingo, and Paris.
Honestly, a regular gig in Vegas seems perfect for Britney. She’s an artist past her prime — Femme Fatale made SPIN’s Top 50 Albums of 2011 list, but Britney won’t ever reach the same level of ubiquity she had in the early aughts — that can still help shoot a single to the top of the iTunes chart.
