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I ran into a few entertainment peeps at a piano bar late Valentine\u2019s Day night. Scores, actually. The place was shoulder-to-shoulder. The overarching sentiment, \u201cToo bad we didn\u2019t have this crowd every night.\u201d<\/p>\n
Such support probably would have made for a happier outcome for Don\u2019t Tell Mama<\/a> at Neonopolis. The open-mic venue closed Saturday night \u2014 or rather, Sunday morning \u2014 at 4:53 a.m.<\/p>\n This is when Neonopolis shines.<\/p>\n Showman and host Kenny Davidsen<\/strong> held forth for nine hours without a break (you can drive to Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, in that amount of time). He lost track of how many songs and guest singers joined the fray. He guesses it was 80 to 90 songs, 50 to 60 singers. Amazing stats on the club\u2019s send-off.<\/p>\n Davidsen announced Jan. 31 the club would be closing. Co-owners Minh<\/strong> and Joanna Pham <\/strong>slugged it out for nearly seven years at Neonopolis.<\/p>\n Out-of-order elevators greeted Valentine\u2019s Day visitors to the fortress on Fremont Street and Las Vegas Boulevard.<\/p>\n The club\u2019s heyday was its pedestrian-friendly Fremont East location, from 2009 through its move in 2018, when its lease with Corner Bar Management timed out. Cheapshot is in the space now.<\/p>\n Davidsen\u2019s final solo was John Mayer\u2019s<\/strong> \u201cYou\u2019re Gonna Live Forever in Me,\u201d followed by a full-crowd effort on \u201cPiano Man.\u201d Sing me a song, brother. And I\u2019d bet we\u2019ll see Davidsen\u2019s party resurface elsewhere in town.<\/p>\n John Katsilometes\u2019 column runs daily in the A section. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com.<\/a> Follow @johnnykats<\/a> on X, @JohnnyKats1<\/a> on Instagram.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n<\/blockquote>\n