Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend: Pompadours, Chrome, and A Last Bow

If you missed Saturday’s spectacle at The Orleans Hotel & Casino – don’t reach for your vintage handkerchief just yet, Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend rolls into its final day today, Sunday, April 12, and the schedule is packed tighter than a poodle skirt waistband.

by Staci Layne Wilson

Now in its 28th year – this annual pilgrimage for rockabilly devotees, vintage car obsessives, and anyone who has ever secretly wanted to live inside a 1957 jukebox is also a bittersweet one: founder Tom Ingram is stepping back after nearly three decades at the wheel. The event will return next April under new management, but this weekend belongs to the man who built it.

I was there yesterday, and let’s just say Saturday set the bar impressively high. The car show (strictly pre-1964, no exceptions) was a gleaming parade of chrome and curves that made every modern vehicle in the parking lot feel deeply embarrassed. Inside, more than 120 vintage vendors offered enough retro treasure to max out a credit card without a single twinge of regret. And then there was Burlesque Bingo, which is exactly what it sounds like and precisely as delightful as you’re imagining.

Images: Staci Layne Wilson

Today’s Sunday lineup keeps the momentum going with the main event: the Miss Viva Las Vegas Burlesque Competition at 8:30 PM, the Couples Swimsuit Contest, and live performances by the legendary Dale Watson, plus The Hi Boys, Gizzelle, and Jason D. Williams on the Car Show Stage. Late-night revelers can catch another round of Burlesque Bingo at 11 PM.

Whether you’re a die-hard rockabilly devotee or simply curious about what happens when Las Vegas gets even more Las Vegas, today is your last chance to catch this particular chapter of a genuinely irreplaceable event.

Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend runs through tonight at The Orleans Hotel & Casino.