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b'Welcome\\nto a special interview edition of The Strip. The first-ever Phantom Fan Week\\nis coming to Las Vegas in mid-September, so Steve decided it was time to check\\nback in with legendary Broadway producer and director Hal Prince. That event\\nmarks the first time Prince has returned to Vegas since the 2006 opening of \\u201cPhantom:\\nThe Las Vegas Spectacular,\\u201d the shortened, high-tech version of the opera-house\\nsquatter tale that is the most successful musical of all time. At that time,\\nSteve irked Prince by saying the \\u201cPhantom\\u201d story is \\u201ca bit of a downer,\\u201d a\\ndebate the two comically revisit in this hour. They also address Prince\\u2019s\\nrecent stroke, his close encounter with the Cirque du Soleil gang, the coming\\nPhantom sequel and Patti LuPone\\u2019s recent on-stage outbursts. Prince, who at 81\\nhas won a record 21 Tony awards, was instrumental in the creation of Phantom,\\nPajama Game, Damn Yankees, Fiddler on the Roof, A Little Night Music, Evita,\\nSweeney Todd, Cabaret and countless other classics. He plans to open his long-awaited\\nnext musical, Paradise Found with Mandy Patinkin, next year and, as you hear,\\nhe expects the Las Vegas version of Phantom to run \\u201cindefinitely.\\u201d

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We\\u2019ll\\nbe back with a regular episode next week, but as always you can email us at TheStripPodcast@aol.com, read Steve\\u2019s\\nredesigned blog VegasHappensHere.Com and leave us voicemail at 206-424-4737.