Fanciful costumes, a rhinestone-studded grand piano, and glowing candelabras were only some of the over-the-top stage props that helped earn Liberace the moniker of "Mr. Showmanship" during a four-decade run in Nevada resort showrooms. The flamboyant pianist with the beaming smile might open a show by flying in on wires, or exit in a bejeweled Rolls Royce while wearing a floor-length fur cape and matching czar's hat.

The modern-day Las Vegas production show originated with the tried-but-true formula of women dancing in provocative costumes, magicians and jugglers dazzling audiences with seemingly impossible feats, plus singers belting out popular tunes. Nevada-based producers combined these elements with over-the-top staging and elaborate special effects to create the uniquely Las Vegas-styled production show. The genre is instantly recognizable yet open to change as evidenced by the Cirque du Soleil shows, which are contemporary versions of the traditional circus.

In October 2003, a white tiger attacked magician Roy Horn onstage at Las Vegas's Mirage Hotel-Casino, nearly killing him and subsequently ending the storied careers of Horn and long-time partner Siegfried Fischbacher. After nearly 6,000 shows at the resort, the duet billed as Siegfried & Roy had proved a point by erasing a long-held misconception about the potential Strip success for the art of grand illusion.

The Strip malaise of the 1980s—characterized by older crowds and aging artists—prompted hotel entertainment executives to ponder an uncertain future. True, there was the one-time specialty act in the Tropicana, Folies Bergere, the Stardust's Lido de Paris production shows, and Siegfried & Roy, who proved that magic and white tigers could combine for an audience-drawing show. And in 1982, "Beyond Belief" opened at the Frontier Hotel.