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June Heats Up for Players

The weather is getting warmer and the action along the Mississippi Gulf Coast is heating up. The state's second brew pub opened, the world-renowned Cirque du Soleil had its premiere and several slot tournaments featuring hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash prizes are getting ready to take place.

Treasure Bay Casino in Biloxi opened Scalawag's Brewpub, a microbrewery and restaurant that also features free live entertainment nightly. The new venue, a $3.5 million project, occupies 15,000 square feet of space and offers nearly double the seating capacity of the original Scalawag's showbar.

The brewpub specializes in freshly-brewed beer and will have a display room for viewing the copper-clad serving tanks. The brewpub will feature three lagers, Golden Dagger Pilsner, Cutthroat Amber and Blackbeard's Lager; one ale, known as Scalawag's Special, and Mutineer Root Beer, a non-alcoholic choice. Scalawag's Special will be the brew master's ale of choice. The introductory special is a wheat beer, Hefe-Weizen.

Beer will be available all hours, and the restaurant will offer food service from 10:30 a.m. to 6 a.m. daily. Guests may order from a full menu until 11 p.m. weeknights and midnight Friday and Saturday, and then from a late-night menu until 6 a.m.

Gamers will be able to play video poker in the showbar while enjoying the freshly-brewed beer.

"Alegria," a Cirque du Soleil production, can now be seen at Beau Rivage, the Gulf Coast's newest resort. A circus without lions and bears, "Alegria" is a stunning, must-see show that is unlike anything ever presented here before.

The costumes are colorful and flamboyant; the choreography is art in itself; the music uses its own language, and the show is truly spectacular. You'll hold your breath, laugh out loud, be amazed and be immersed in all that is "Alegria."

Each of the acts brings its own uniqueness to the production. One vignette, "Fast Track," features a group of performers leaping across the set, like medieval warriors penetrating the depths of a mythical forest. Other performers contort themselves, displaying impressive and imaginative feats of flexibility and balance, while yet other performers do routines from the air, flying effortlessly across the stage.

With tickets at a very reasonable $40 for adults and $25 for children, this is a show you'll want to return to again and again. Tickets may be purchased by calling (888) 566-7469 or (228) 386-7777.

The President Casino is one of several Gulf Coast casinos holding a major slot tournament in June. The difference at the President's tournament is that one player will leave with $50,000. The Big Kahuna Slot Tournament is set for June 11-13, and features a total of more than $100,000 in cash prizes paid to 150 players. The first-place prize is $50,000, followed by $15,000 for second, $7,500 for third, $5,000 for fourth and $2,500 for fifth place. Players placing sixth-10th place will take home $1,000, 11th-15th places each receive $500, 16th-25th get $200 and 26th-100th place win $100. The prizes continue, with players ranking 101st-125th getting $75 and players placing 126th-150th place getting $50.

That's a lot of cash. Plus, session winners and losers will receive cash, and there will be additional cash drawings held throughout the event. The entry fee is $399, entitling players to a free gift, live entertainment, gala welcome reception, special Saturday brunch and an evening awards banquet. Entrants also are eligible for a special room rate at the Broadwater Resort. To register for the Big Kahuna Slot Tournament, call (800) THE PRES, ext. 3529 or ext. 3638.

Imperial Palace Casino is hosting a $50,000 Sunny Days Slot Tournament, June 25-27. Here, the first-place winner receives $15,000. The second-place finisher will receive $10,000, followed by $5,000 for third, $3,000 for fourth and cash prizes paid through 40th place. There are three ways to enter this tournament. A single entry, in which the entrant plays in each of the four sessions is $350. A partnership entry is available for $425, allowing an entrant and a partner to alternate session play. And, for $500 players can have a dual entry, which is considered two single entrants sharing one room. Each dual entrant plays four sessions.

The entry fee includes a cocktail reception, a complimentary three-night stay in the Imperial Palace hotel, brunch on Saturday and Sunday, a dinner buffet Saturday night and an awards banquet Sunday night. To register for the tournament, call the Imperial Palace at (228) 436-3000, ext. 3229.

June must be the month for slot tournaments, as Treasure Bay gets into the act with the Sensational Summer Slot Tournament, June 23-25. The cash prizes aren't extraordinarily large, but then again, neither is the entry fee.

The tournament pays $6,000 for first place; $3,000, second; $2,000, third place; $1,500, fourth; $1,000, fifth; and $700, sixth. In addition, the top player from each preliminary round wins $50. The registration fee is $59, and players can earn free entry by earning a minimum number of points on their player's club card June 2-21. All entrants will receive a specially designed gift, and get treated to tournament activities, including a pre-registration reception. To register, call Treasure Bay at (228) 385-6120 or (800) PIRATE-9.

• While in Biloxi, be sure to visit Boomtown Casino, where they hold daily slot tournaments offering cash prizes and have a great buffet filled with southern favorites and much more.
• "Carnivale," a fiery, tropical revue, can be seen at the New Palace Casino.
• The Isle of Capri Casino is giving away his and hers 1999 Isuzu Amigos. Earn registration tickets today; the drawing is July 22.
• Bill Cosby will perform two shows at Grand Casino Biloxi. The Cos, TV's favorite dad, takes the stage on June 18. Tickets are $39.95 and $34.95. Call (800) WIN-2WIN.
• Casino Magic Biloxi has a new magical revue, Hot Stuff. The free show features dance champions Kurt Larson and Regina Powers, and juggler/comedian Tyler Linkin.

This article is provided by the Frank Scoblete Network. Melissa A. Kaplan is the network's managing editor. If you would like to use this article on your website, please contact Casino City Press, the exclusive web syndication outlet for the Frank Scoblete Network. To contact Frank, please e-mail him at fscobe@optonline.net.

The Gulf Has Cool Shows in July