City Cast Las Vegas
City Cast Las Vegas is a daily podcast and newsletter created by and for locals (and locals-at-heart) that’ll challenge the easy narratives about our city … and, okay, maybe confirm a few of them, too. Las Vegas is a city of reinvention, bursting at the seams as it welcomes newcomers into its various incarnations as a service-worker union town, a military town, a college town, and, most recently, a sports town. There’s a four-mile street testifying to our entrepreneurial genius, not far from pockets of staggering inequality. Great wealth runs through our city, but how much of that actually stays in Vegas? We’re independent in spirit, but also ruled by orange traffic cones. Our 2.5 million residents anchor an ever-changing city of 42 million visitors. Join us every morning for the messy, delightful, complicated conversations that Las Vegans are having: You’ll hear us ask hard questions about where we’ll get our water when Lake Mead runs out, and how we’ll keep housing affordable. We’ll argue over our favorite Chinatown bars, and share insider tips on the best tacos in town. City Cast Las Vegas will show you how loving a city means celebrating it and also holding it accountable, while having some fun along the way—because Las Vegans know how to have a good time.
Episodes
September 29, 2023 • 29 mins
On Wednesday night, members of Culinary 226, the city’s biggest union, voted to authorize a strike. Their demands range from better wages and safety precautions, to newer ones, like protections against new technologies that could endanger jobs. The ace up their sleeve might be the major events headed to the Strip, like F1 and the Superbowl. But will Culinary go that far? Today, host Dayvid Figler chats it up with contributors April...
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September 28, 2023 • 21 mins
It’s not hard to find comedy in Vegas — if you’re willing to pay for it. There’s always some big-name comic whose face is plastered on a casino marquee. But what about our local comedy scene? Where can locals go for laughs without paying for pricey tickets? Today, host Dayvid Figler talks with comedy journalist Julie Seabaugh, a former Vegas resident who’s back in town this week for Skankfest, our city’s biggest and newest comedy f...
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September 27, 2023 • 20 mins
The newest (and brightest) addition to our skyline, The Sphere at The Venetian Resort, is truly a Las Vegas spectacle to behold. For those who didn’t snag tickets to U2’s first residency show this weekend, you aren’t iced out of the experience. The nightly light show on the outside featuring huge images like a realistic eye, a jack-o-lantern, and even the moon are stunning enough to draw its own crowd and it’s free to look! But whe...
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September 26, 2023 • 21 mins
Have you ever walked past a sculpture, mural, or… object in Las Vegas and wondered… why the heck did my city pay for that? You’re not alone: Today, host Dayvid Figler sits down with newsletter editor Scott Dickensheets and contributor Vogue Robinson to gripe about the public art around town we love to hate — and why good public art matters.
We’re on social media! Follow us @CityCastVegas on Twitter and Instagram. You can also call...
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September 25, 2023 • 24 mins
Books have been written, news segments filmed, and political speeches made about the storm tunnels under Las Vegas and the shifting population that lives there. It makes for titillating urban folklore — a subterranean quasi-community shuffling through the darkness beneath the bright city. But what’s the reality? Nevada Current reporter Michael Lyle joins the podcast to give host Dayvid Figler and lead producer Sonja Cho Swanson the...
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September 22, 2023 • 33 mins
A lot of outrage has been swirling around the Las Vegas community this week. First, Elon Musk incited a hate campaign on X (formerly Twitter) towards the Review-Journal and their journalist after she reported on the murder of a retired police chief. Also, shortly following the removal of mature trees on Las Vegas Blvd to make way for F1 grandstands, Las Vegans and tourists are saddened to lose the shade and the iconic backdrop for ...
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September 21, 2023 • 21 mins
One of the best things about Las Vegas is that we cater to every price point: From taco trucks and budget motels to luxury suites and prix fixe menus, we’ve got it all. But how much money can you throw down on a meal in Vegas? Today, host Dayvid Figler chats with food influencer Phil Tzeng, AKA Las Vegas Fill, about the most expensive meals money can buy in Las Vegas. We’re talking Russian caviar flights, French butter towers, and ...
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September 20, 2023 • 24 mins
Computer systems have been down for almost two weeks at MGM Resorts properties nationwide. What the company called a cybersecurity issue was later revealed to be a ransomware attack by hackers who accessed their systems from a phone call. Guests have reported everything from online booking services to the lights in hotel rooms not working. In the midst of this meltdown, Caesars Entertainment revealed that they were also hacked less...
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September 19, 2023 • 20 mins
Oddly enough, there are a lot of specially designated highways in Nevada, and with this perfect road trip weather, we are taking a look at “a dose of pure Nevadan oddity” — U.S. Route 95 to Tonopah. It has been dubbed the Bizarro Desert Highway, and travel influencer Terri Galura-Chiong has driven the route to know exactly how bizarre it really is. Join Terri and host Dayvid Figler as they map out the weirdest day trip ever, from t...
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September 18, 2023 • 20 mins
Concert crowds in Las Vegas vary with each tourist passing through our city. We’d love to blame them for the bad behavior we see at shows (like throwing drinks onstage or trying to run through security), but at some point, the locals have to take some responsibility for our collective concert experience. So since a bunch of festivals are coming up like Life is Beautiful, iHeartRadio, and When We Were Young, host Dayvid Figler sits ...
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September 15, 2023 • 29 mins
In the wake of a massive cyber attack, the state’s largest employer is dealing with chaos at all of its international properties: For days, MGM guests were being checked in by clipboard, and elevators, room key cards, slots, and even lights wouldn’t work. Today on the roundup, host Dayvid Figler is joined by producer Layla Muhammad and contributor Michael Lyle to discuss the implications of this massive breach. Plus, we get an upda...
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September 14, 2023 • 20 mins
Transient is everyone’s favorite word in Las Vegas. It means that nothing and no one lasts long in this city. However, in the midst of imploding casinos and closing businesses, there are some restaurants that have withstood the test of time and have managed to continue serving the community for over 25 years (which is a long time in Vegas!). We are bringing back a conversation with former co-host Vogue Robinson and food contributor...
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September 13, 2023 • 23 mins
As our host Dayvid Figler likes to say, Las Vegas is a city that people love to hate. And no one loves to hate on the city more than locals. Today, Dayvid sits down with former co-host Vogue Robinson and newsletter editor Scott Dickensheets to lay out their top complaints about our city. They also share some gripes from our newsletter readers and wonder how Las Vegans can turn our gripes into change.
What are your biggest gripes a...
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September 12, 2023 • 20 mins
It’s been a big year for roads in Las Vegas, from “Dropicana” to F1 ensuring there is no shortage of orange cones on Las Vegas Blvd. Drivers have had to be more cautious than ever, which isn’t something we do well in our car-dependent city. Last year we were ranked #8 in the most dangerous states for pedestrians by Smart Growth Nevada. But is it our drivers’ fault or the roads? We are revisiting our conversation with plangineer Ray...
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September 11, 2023 • 20 mins
Life is Beautiful is a spectacular party — the three-day arts, music and culture festival takes over downtown, and in a couple of weeks, Life is Beautiful will celebrate its 10th year. So today, host Dayvid Figler sits down with Craig Asher Nyman, director of music, programming and development, who’s been with the festival since it began. We get his behind-the-scenes insight into how they curate the lineup, reflect on a decade of h...
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September 8, 2023 • 30 mins
The embattled Animal Foundation faces yet a new challenge this week, after a local rescue filed a lawsuit against the shelter. The group claims the foundation has been negligent in its duties, forcing rescues to pick up the slack. So today on the roundup, lead producer Sonja Cho Swanson sits down with newsletter editor Scott Dickensheets and contributor April Corbin Girnus to untangle the troubles at TAF. Meanwhile, a Nevada teache...
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September 7, 2023 • 21 mins
What happens to a city like Las Vegas when supermarket competition goes away? Grocery store giants Kroger (which owns Smith’s) wants to buy Albertson’s (which owns Safeway and Vons). Last month, NV Treasurer Zach Conine signed a letter with six other state treasurers criticizing the merger — so today, host Dayvid Figler, food writer Kim Foster, and contributor April Corbin Girnus, who‘s been covering this story, sit down to discuss...
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September 6, 2023 • 23 mins
We love our furry four-legged friends, but when it comes to public etiquette, have Vegas dog owners gone… too far? Recently, newsletter editor Scott Dickensheets asked readers what they thought about dogs in restaurants, and the response was overwhelming. Las Vegans, it turns out, have a lot of feelings about dogs in public spaces, and not everyone agrees — and this comes on the heels of a recent ranking that puts Nevada 5th for “m...
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September 5, 2023 • 19 mins
The staycation is a great Vegas move — being a local means never having to leave town to become a tourist. And what if you build that staycation around an event like the upcoming Life is Beautiful festival downtown? Host Dayvid Figler gets tips — about staycationing and the festival itself — from entrepreneur, LiB merchant, and seasoned in-town vacationer Jen Taler, founder of the Market in the Alley.
What are your favorite Vegas ...
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September 1, 2023 • 33 mins
Our city’s fractious relationship with wild animals is once again back in the news: This time, it’s the Lion Habitat Ranch in Henderson. An animal rights activist claims the organization made fraudulent (and disturbing) claims in a recent fundraising letter… but what does this whole debacle say about the way Vegas treats our retired animal acts? Co-hosts Dayvid Figler and Vogue Robinson are joined by contributor Andrew Kiraly to di...
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