{{Short description|Cocktail waitress who also works as a singer and dancer}} {{Infobox occupation | name = Bevertainer | synonyms = | pronounce = | image = | imagesize = | alt = | caption = | official_names = | type = Cocktail waitress, singer, dancer | activity_sector = Casinos, Las Vegas | competencies = | formation = | employment_field = Food service | related_occupation = }}
'''Bevertainer''', {{lang|fr|portmanteau}} of 'beverage' and 'entertainer', is a term for a cocktail waitress who also works as a singer and dancer, usually in casino locations like Las Vegas.<ref>{{cite web|last=Padgett|first=Sonia|title=Bevertainer serves cocktails and dances|url=http://www.reviewjournal.com/entertainment/shows/bevertainer-serves-cocktails-and-dances|work=Las Vegas Review-Journal|accessdate=May 24, 2013|date=May 8, 2011}}</ref>
== Background == In 2003, the Rio hotel and casino introduced their bevertainers, who worked as cocktail servers and as entertainers.<ref>{{cite news |last=Benston |first=Liz |title=The Rio altering servers' positions |url=https://lasvegassun.com/news/2003/feb/20/the-rio-altering-servers-positions/ |access-date=October 23, 2021 |work=Las Vegas Sun |date=February 20, 2003}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Smith |first=Rod |title=Rio to replace cocktail servers |url=http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2003/Feb-20-Thu-2003/news/20725392.html |work=Las Vegas Review-Journal |date=February 20, 2003 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050117205351/http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2003/Feb-20-Thu-2003/news/20725392.html |archive-date=January 17, 2005}}</ref> When not serving customers, bevertainers would dance in 90-second performances on one of five stages located across the casino floor. The Rio had more than 80 bevertainers. Although the idea initially received skepticism, it would turn out to be successful.<ref>{{cite news |last=Padgett |first=Sonya |title=Bevertainer serves cocktails and dances |url=https://www.reviewjournal.com/entertainment/shows/bevertainer-serves-cocktails-and-dances/ |access-date=October 28, 2021 |work=Las Vegas Review-Journal |date=May 8, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vegas4locals.com/free-things-to-do-in-las-vegas/rio-bevertainment/|title=Bevertainer Performances at Rio Las Vegas|website=Vegas4locals.com}}</ref>
Actress Jamie Lee Curtis, who played a former showgirl turned bevertainer in the 2024 film ''The Last Showgirl'' directed by Gia Coppola,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Culture/showgirl-stars-pamela-anderson-jamie-lee-curtis-films/story?id=117005976|publisher=ABC News|title='The Last Showgirl' stars Pamela Anderson, Jamie Lee Curtis on the film's message of resilience|author=Bernabe, Angeline Jane|date=January 8, 2025}}</ref> once recounted: {{quote | On the first day in Vegas, Gia and I walked around the Rio hotel and casino. There was this beautiful young cocktail waitress, and I was asking her questions, trying to get a little background, and she said, 'I'm not a cocktail waitress; I'm a Bevertainer.' I said, 'What's a Bevertainer?' and she explained that is a beverage server who entertains because that's how they got around the unions.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/simonthompson/2025/01/09/the-last-showgirl-pamela-anderson-wants-opportunities-not-apologies/|work=Forbes|title='The Last Showgirl' Pamela Anderson Wants Opportunities Not Apologies|author=Thompson, Simon|date=January 9, 2025}}</ref> }}
== References == {{reflist}}
Category:Food service occupations Category:Gendered occupations
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