Lady Gaga: Enigma Debuts at the Park Theater on the Las Vegas Strip

Lady Gaga begins a new two-year residency at Monte Carlo Casino’s Park Theater this weekend with a performance that blended her Top 10 hits with anime, performance art, and old-fashioned Vegas glitz. The name of her new show is “Lady Gaga: Enigma“.

The 32-year old singer and actress who broke into the world pop scene in 2008 with hits like “Just Dance”, “Poker Face”, and “Bad Romance” agreed on a multi-million dollar deal to reprise those songs in a new show at MGM Resorts’ Monte Carlo over the next year.

When asked why she took agreed to perform for a year at the Park Theater, Lady Gaga pointed to the Vegas residencies of American musical icons like Frank Sinatra. Such a residency was perhaps inevitable, given Lady Gaga’s showmanship. Many top North American pop singers have performed in Las Vegas, from Elvis Presley to Celine Dion.

Bill Hornbuckle, President of MGM Resorts International, described his thrill at working with the performer. Hornbuckle said, “Working with Lady Gaga and her team has been a career highlight for me.”

“What she is planning for Las Vegas audiences is nothing short of spectacular. Welcoming her into our family will firmly position Park MGM as the city’s most exciting new destination.”

Katy Perry Attended the Debut

Celebrities and media members gathered at the Park Theater for the first performance. Katy Perry was in the audience to see Lady Gaga float over the audience on hydraulic cables. The show itself included “PetGa”, an animated character which first debuted in the promotion of Lady Gaga’s 2013 album ArtPop.

Lady Gaga had promoted her residency on YouTube and Instagram, where she posted clips of herself wearing motion-capture gear. It was a preview of a technology-infused performance.

It isn’t the only show Lady Gaga will perform over the next year. To show off her talent and range, “Enigma” will alternate with Lady Gaga’s Jazz & Piano Show over the next year at the Park Theater.

Why Did Lady Gaga Do a Las Vegas Show?

Many have wondered why Lady Gaga would take a residency only 10 years into her mass market career. Some have pointed to a dwindling number of hits and wondered whether the pop star was not already a fading star. If one looks at the trajectory of her career, the move makes sense for Lady Gaga.

Lady Gaga Career Highlights

Lady Gaga broke onto the scene with wild costumes and concerts laced with performance art. She was not the first to gain attention by crafting an outrageous image, but she was among the most outrageous performers at the time.

Once she was established, Lady Gaga began to branch out from pop music. She released a collaborative jazz album with Tony Bennett, where she gained a new audience among an older generation who learned to appreciate her singing talents.

She also won a Golden Globe for her acting performance in “Hotel”, an episode of the FX horror anthology, American Horror Story. That led to her lead performance in the remake of “A Star Is Born”, which grossed $382 million worldwide and itself receive 5 Golden Globe nominations. A duet from the movie, “Shallow”, reached No. 1 in several countries.

A Star Is Born allowed Lady Gaga to enter rarefied air, as she reprized a role once performed by Judy Garland and Barbara Streisand.

Lady Gaga at the Pinnacle of Success

In that light, Lady Gaga’s overall career is at a new apex. Adding a Vegas residency is just another way to check off another box on a major American music star’s checklist of accomplishment. It probably helps that she’ll receive $100 million for 74 performances over a 2-year period (with a possible extension).

People might think of a Las Vegas Strip show as the work of a “legend” or an older star, but it’s actually a sign that a pop act has reached the pinnacle of marketability. Lady Gaga has gone mainstream, like Sinatra and Elvis and others before her.

Billboard Magazine on Lady Gaga Enigma

Gil Kaufman of Billboard Magazine describe Lady Gaga Enigma as a “brand-new odyssey of [Gaga’s] pop hits built as an experience unlike any other.”

Lady Gaga described Enimga by saying, “[It’s] unlike anything I’ve done before. It will be a celebration of all that is unique and different within us. The challenges of bravery can be overcome with creativity and courage that is grown out of adversity, love and music.”