Adult shows in Las Vegas aren't all revues. Three of the best are full productions with a premise: Absinthe, a circus in a tent at Caesars Palace; Zombie Burlesque, a horror-comedy musical at Planet Hollywood; and The Empire Strips Back, a Star Wars burlesque parody at the Rio. The tease is one ingredient in each, not the whole menu. They're ordered from the center of the Strip outward.
Absinthe at Caesars Palace: acrobats close enough to touch
Absinthe opened on April 1, 2011, in a vintage spiegeltent on the Roman Plaza at Caesars Palace, and the early critics gave it six weeks. It now plays every day of the year. The host is the Gazillionaire, a filthy-rich and just plain filthy ringmaster, with his sidekick Wanda Widdles, and between their insults come acrobatic acts staged a few feet from the front row. The stage is only nine feet across, with the audience seated in a circle around it. Audience members do get pulled into the act. It's the one to book if the group only has room for one adult show.
Where: the Spiegeltent on the Roman Plaza, Caesars Palace. Run time: about 75 minutes. Ages: 18 and up. Best for: circus skill with R-rated comedy.
Zombie Burlesque at Planet Hollywood: 1958, and the undead run the club
Zombie Burlesque is set in 1958, after the President has struck a deal letting the living and the dead share the country, inside a zombie nightclub called Club Z. What follows is a comedy musical: singing, dancing, aerial routines and burlesque numbers, all of it built on homages to the horror movies of the 1940s through the 1960s. The cast improvises, so no two nights run quite the same. It's the campiest show here. Groups split between "something funny" and "something sexy" stop arguing.
Where: V3 Theater, Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood. Run time: about 75 minutes. Ages: not recommended under 16. Best for: groups who want to laugh as much as they ogle.
Check Zombie Burlesque tickets
The Empire Strips Back at the Rio: Star Wars, stripped
The Empire Strips Back: A Burlesque Parody began in 2011 as a three-night experiment in a 150-seat Sydney venue, created by Russall S. Beattie, and toured the world before settling into its own theater in the Rio's Masquerade Tower. It opened there on May 4, 2025, Star Wars Day, and the Rio has extended the run through May 4, 2029. Darth Vader, Princess Leia, Boba Fett and a squad of stormtroopers all get the burlesque treatment, and the costumes are built with real care. Fans catch every in-joke. Everyone else still gets a sharp, funny burlesque show.
Where: The Empire Strips Back Theater, Masquerade Tower at the Rio. Run time: about 95 minutes. Ages: 18 and up, with ID. Best for: Star Wars fans and anyone who likes a parody.
Check The Empire Strips Back tickets
Which adult show to book
One night and no other plan: Absinthe. A group that can't agree: Zombie Burlesque. A Star Wars fan in the party: The Empire Strips Back, and it has the longest show of the three. If you'd rather see a classic dance revue, our female revue guide covers those, and the team behind Absinthe also produces the Atomic Saloon Show at The Venetian.
