‘09 forecast: ‘maybe’

When you talk to insiders about what 2009 holds in store for Las Vegas, most answers are given a significant caveat: “All else being equal.”

Therein lies a problem: No one knows how Vegas will be able to return to business as usual, given the troubled economy and the debt and plunging stock values of the companies that own the tourist corridor’s resorts.

So although in years past I could offer a preview of the coming year’s highlights with relative certainty, this time I must hedge with a cliche: These are the best-laid plans for Vegas in 2009.

For starters, look no further than this week, which begins what is traditionally a season of conventions lasting for the remainder of winter. The massive Consumer Electronics Show and the smaller but almost as widely covered Adult Entertainment Expo and AVN Awards (a.k.a. the porn Oscars) arrive Thursday through next Sunday. Both are expected to have fewer attendees and exhibitors than before because of the economy.

Not coincidentally, there will be a new, heavily promoted topless bar to greet these convention-goers and help them party like it’s 1999 again. Velvet Lion, which will hold its grand opening Friday, is attempting to capture the nightclub vibe of Vegas. Other strip clubs, such as Seamless, have done the same thing, but the veterans involved in Velvet Lion are going for a retro feel before expensive bottle service and celebrity hosting took over the resorts’ night life.

In terms of production shows, 2009 looks to be the year of the predictable and safe.

Impressionist Danny Gans, whose dated and innocuous show ran for years at the Mirage, is opening in February as headliner at Steve Wynn’s newly named Encore Theater, where “Spamalot” closed last year. And ventriloquist Terry Fator, who has been a regular headliner at the Las Vegas Hilton, among other properties, is opening a new show at the Mirage in March (in the theater where Gans performed until recently).

At Mandalay Bay, tonight marks the final performance of “Mamma Mia!”; it is being replaced by “The Lion King,” which has a grand opening set for May 2. Planet Hollywood is playing it safe too, putting in “Peepshow,” a new topless show with a burlesque theme hosted by C-list celebrities Mel B. of the Spice Girls and actress Kelly Monaco. Previews are scheduled to start March 30, with the opening on April 19.

One bright spot for the year could be the Hard Rock Hotel, which was once the hottest resort in Vegas for the young crowd, back before the Palms opened in 2001. By April, the Hard Rock hopes to open a larger and improved version of its Joint concert venue, and by September plans call for completion of the (often annoying) construction that will add 950 guest rooms as well as additional convention and casino floor space. It will be great to have the Hard Rock back in full swing.

But by far the most anticipated project for the year is CityCenter: a massive six-tower resort being built as a partnership between MGM-Mirage and Dubai World. On Monday morning, CityCenter will start accepting job applications at www.citycentercareers.com for the 12,000 positions it hopes to fill. In October, the first tower, the 57-story, 1,495-suite Vdara, designed by Rafael Vinoly, should open. Vdara will be connected to Bellagio but will stand out because it will not have any gambling and -- shocking for Vegas -- not allow smoking in the tower.

The other towers are slated to open in early December: Mandarin Oriental, a 47-story tower that will mix residences with hotel rooms; Veer Towers, designed by Helmut Jahn as two glass towers that lean in opposite directions; the Harmon Hotel, Spa & Residence, also a planned mix of hotel rooms and residences done as a collaboration between Vegas nightclub operator Light Group and Dubai’s Zabeel Investments; and Aria Resort & Casino, a 61-story, 4,000-room full-scale gambling resort aimed at the high end of the market and featuring a new Cirque du Soleil show based on Elvis.

CityCenter will also feature Crystals, which is being called a retail and entertainment district, and has already announced that two new restaurants by Wolfgang Puck will be included.

Aria’s opening, now set for Dec. 16, will also be the big grand opening for the entire CityCenter project. Of course, opening that late in the year, its real effect won’t be felt until 2010.

--

calendar@latimes.com