Madame Tussauds lets you rub elbows with celebrities
From music to TV and film personalities, sports figures, U.S. presidents, and astronauts, when it comes to the making of a star, Madame Tussauds wax attraction has broken the mold.
The 30,000-square-foot two-story venue at the Venetian, which debuted in July 1999 and was the world-renowned Madame Tussauds first establishment in the United States, provides a close encounter of the celebrity kind. It features more than 100 master-crafted uncannily realistic figures of some of the globe’s most popular luminaries in six themed environments, accompanied by complete multimedia, audio, and visuals.
At Madame Tussauds Las Vegas, there is an extra-added attraction. It’s a tribute to “Las Vegas Legends,” where visitors can view up close and personal the likenesses of headliners that have given the city its “entertainment capital of the world” moniker, including Frank Sinatra, Marilyn Monroe, Elvis, Wayne Newton, Tony Bennett, Engelbert Humperdinck, Tom Jones, Lance Burton, Siegfried & Roy and numerous others. Afterwards, guests join Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward as they welcome them to a Las Vegas-themed wedding chapel complete with photographs and memorabilia of famous celebrities that have tied the knot in Las Vegas.
Unlike the popular perception of a wax museum, Madame Tussauds is not a hands-off don’t-touch situation. People can interact with the portraits and get right up in their faces, talk to them, “goof off” with them, touch them, and have their pictures taken with them. They can even run their fingers through their hair.
As unbelievably realistic as these figures look, the only thing “alive” about them is their garb. Most of the celebrities have donated clothes they have actually worn, right out of their closets. In some cases, artifacts have been obtained in other ways. For Elvis, for example, the original clothes that he wore in the movie “Jailhouse Rock” were purchased from an auction.
Although a celebrity sitting for a portrait can take six or seven hours, beginning with the taking of tons of measurements and photos, and can be done here, all the portraits are made at Madame Tussauds in London. From sitting to completion, it takes about six months to complete a figure, at a cost of between $20,000-$35,000 for each one. The cost depends upon how much of the body is showing, how much hair the subject has, and whether or not Tussauds has to create a costume for the portrait.
All portraits have hair and makeup re-touched regularly. From re-braiding Judy Garland’s hair to polishing Elton John’s rings, it takes two maintenance teams daily to inspect and primp each figure before the attraction opens.
- by Bobbie Katz, Las Vegas Reporter for HelloMetro
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