The Entertainer, Episode 3: Not Quite the Stars of the Show

Last week on The Entertainer, the hopefuls were broken into two groups and performed tasks at the Aladdin concierge. One team helped put on a wedding; the other took a bunch of girls out for a bachelorette party. Then there was Paul, who didn’t show up for the challenge, and was eliminated from the show.

However, something is seriously whacked, and I hope it isn’t me. Episode three apparently takes place between the first two episodes shown, as Paul is still around. The nine would-be entertainers get a call sheet and report to the stage for their next assignment. Jennifer is excited – she wants to find out what Wayne has in store for them.

Wayne asks them if they are enjoying the high roller pad, and tells them they are a day closer to winning the prize (an extended stay in his show, and a contract to headline at the Las Vegas Hilton for a year, and the title of The Entertainer.) He asks everybody to find a partner (one group will have three people) and to stand in front of an envelope, which contains their assignment. Nathan and Theresa pair up, as do Joe and Paul, and Sarah and Dave. Delisco, Jacquie, and Jennifer form the three-person group.

Wayne tells them that the support group makes life a lot easier for performers. They include waitresses, dealers, and taxicab drivers. Today he’s giving them all new jobs. Each envelope contains a job for them. Jennifer opens up her envelope and finds out their group will be gondoliers at the Venetian. Dave and Sarah are going to assist Lance Burton at the Monte Carlo. Joe and Paul will be working at the Tournament of Kings at the Excalibur. Nathan and Theresa will be bellhops at the Las Vegas Hilton. Wayne tells them that these are real jobs at real hotels, so they should all take it seriously and do their best. If they don’t, somebody might be going home. As always, Scotty and Francis will be checking in on them. Wayne tells us that the backstage people know the difference between a good show and a great show.

Joe and Paul are thrilled with their assignment. Paul is ready to do some medieval acting. They meet with Ivan, the stunt coordinator, and the two get serious. Ivan asks them about their experience, and Paul says he used to be a stuntman. Ivan gives them swords and tells them to be careful. He starts training them.

Jacquie, Delisco, and Jennifer meet up with Danilo, a gondolier at the Venetian, and introduces them to the others. The first rite of passage is to get into the water, then get back into the gondola safely. If they pass the test, they’ll have earned their costumes. Jennifer is the first to jump in the water. She thought it was stupid to be jumping into three feet of water, but found out that getting back on the boat was harder than she thought. Still, she earns her costume. Jacquie has no problems at all. Delisco also performs well, and is thrilled he gave the tourists a show. Their next task is to learn how to sing Italian songs. Danilo teaches, and they sing along. Francis, who has been watching the entire time, seems to approve.

Over at the Monte Carlo, Sarah and Dave meet Lance Burton, who introduces him to Tom and Jeannie, who are part of the show. Sarah will assist Lance in the sawing a woman in half trick. It’s usually Jeannie’s job, and she’ll be training her. Dave will be taking on Tom’s role, working with Michael, a comedy juggler who is part of the show (I’ve seen Lance Burton’s show twice, and a comedy juggler is indeed a regular part of the show). Lance tells them to get to work. Dave finds out his role is Michael’s incompetent stagehand assistant. Dave says his comedy background will help, but he’s going to work hard on his timing. Sarah has a harder time, since Lance never looks at her, just expects her to be in the right place to perform her role. She gets outfitted in a costume and thinks this challenge will be easy – a home run for her.

Nathan and Theresa get outfitted in bellhop uniforms, and Nathan is excited and ready to go. They open cab doors, greet guests, and haul their luggage. Theresa loves it, since her dreams are to help people in a hands on manner. Nathan also enjoys the different kind of experience.

Back at the Excalibur, Joe notes that he approaches everything like a beginner, but Paul acts like he knows it all already. Ivan (their trainer) isn’t happy with him either, and doesn’t believe they are ready to have a sword fight in front of a crowd. He tells them it will be too tough to learn in only a few hours, but they’ll still be in the show – as squires. When their knight is knocked off his horse in a joust, they need to go out and ask if he’s okay. If the knight says he is, the squire must carry him offstage. If not, they are not supposed to move him. Joe takes the lesson seriously, but Paul is annoyed at the slow pace. He thinks he knows everything.

At show time, Joe is nervous, but Paul isn’t worried about a thing. The Tournament of Kings starts, and it’s time for their first performance. They need to retrieve the flags from their respective knights. It seems simple, but Joe forgets to back up before taking the flag offstage. He feels bad about it, but Ivan says most of the crowd didn’t have a viewing angle to pick up on the error. Scotty, in the crowd, makes a note of what he sees. Their next task is to carry their fallen knights off the field of battle. Joe checks to makes sure he’s okay, slings the knight over his shoulder, and takes him off the field, not an easy task since the knight and armor are heavy. Paul is the next to retrieve his knight, and slings him all the way over his shoulder – and back to the ground. Halfway back, he drops him again. Paul says it was like a Jerry Lewis comedy act – just another facet of his talents. Joe, however, tells us it wasn’t their job to be the star of the show. They were supposed to get a job done, and he regrets having him for a partner in this challenge. Joe worries the judges will report that they didn’t take the job seriously.