MGM Resorts International is offering its Las Vegas guests new options for where and how they want to play in its local properties.
Guests can, for the first time at regulated casinos in the United States, use a mobile device or laptop to log onto MGM’s new digital and interactive tournament system, easyPLAY, to join a slot, bingo or video poker tournament via a property’s Wi-Fi system.
The new platform is also available on MGM’s new InteractivePro Tables, located throughout Aria, Bellagio, MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay, The Mirage, Monte Carlo, Luxor, New York-New York and Excalibur.
“The introduction of easyPLAY mobile tournaments at our MGM Resorts properties gives our guests an exciting new opportunity to play their favorite games while enjoying the best Las Vegas has to offer,” said Tom Mikulich, senior vice president of business development for MGM Resorts International.
The system, developed by Las Vegas-based oneLIVE Inc., lets players 21 and older to play from their rooms, by the pool or anywhere within the resort.
Tournaments cost $1 to $5, paid by credit card after a player logs onto the property’s Wi-Fi network and then onto easyPLAY. Tournaments last from a few hours to several weeks; prize pools range into the thousands of dollars.
2016 Gaming Hall of Fame
nominations open
Nominations are being taken for inductees into the 2016 Gaming Hall of Fame, sponsored by the American Gaming Association.
Nominators can choose an individual from commercial gaming, tribal gaming, gaming supplier, industry influencer and industry pioneer.
Nominators can visit www.americangaming.org/about/events/gaming-hall-fame for more information and to make nominations. Entries must be received by Aug. 5.
The awards will run 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Sept. 28 during the Global Gaming Expo at The Venetian. Attendance is by invitation only.
More than 80 gaming leaders have been inducted since the program began in 1989, including casino magnates Sam Boyd and Steve Wynn, U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., and entertainer Paul Anka.
Last year’s winners included Victor Salerno, Larry Woolf and Lynn Valbuena.
Latin Chamber of Commerce Nevada adds charter school
Latin Chamber of Commerce Nevada Inc. recently opened a Nevada State High School branch at its 300 N. 13th St. offices.
“This charter school will have an impact on dropout rates and we are so glad to be bringing this to the community,” the chamber said in a statement. “This is a huge announcement because it brings business &education together.”
The Nevada State High School charter school, formed in the early 2000s, helps high school juniors and seniors gain college credits while fulfilling high school graduation requirements.
The school has helped more than 700 students attend and succeed at a higher learning institution.
Nevada Ballet Theatre partners
with local jeweler
Nevada Ballet Theater recently partnered with Las Vegas-based Jeff White Custom Jewelry to develop a custom designed series of pendants to commemorate the ballet company’s 45th season.
Cynthia Gregory, a Nevada Ballet Theater artistic coach and ballerina with a 25-year career, will design the series with father-and-son jewelers Jeff and Danny White.
Proceeds from the series, which will be available starting in October, will benefit the dance troupe. Designs will be available in sterling silver, rose or yellow gold or a custom option allowing for a choice of metal and semiprecious or precious gems.
“As lifelong fans of the arts and third-generation Las Vegas residents, we were honored to be able to help create something to commemorate the great legacy of the ballet,” Danny White said.
NBT’s 45th season begins in October with “The Sleeping Beauty” ballet at The Smith Center. Other shows this season will include a full-length “Swan Lake,” in February, which Gregory will stage.
“Being able to channel some of my past experience and creativity into a different art form has been a wonderful process,” Gregory said. “I truly feel we have created something that people will cherish for many years to come.”