When Canadian-born award-winning entertainer and philanthropist Mark Shunock started Mondays Dark in November 2013, his goal was to provide Las Vegas with a different kind of variety show production.
Formerly a lauded performer in Rock of Ages at The Venetian Las Vegas, Shunock decided he wanted to give back to the city that so warmly welcomed him to the famed Las Vegas Strip. His plan was to bring together an eclectic mix of guests — Las Vegas Strip headliners, Hollywood stars, notable athletes and celebrity chefs — and exciting entertainment, music and comedy in support of local charities.
Since then, the twice-monthly fundraising event, which is billed as “Vegas’ Night to Give Back,” has partnered with more than 30 of the community’s charitable organizations. And, it has raised over $500,000 — all of which has gone directly to the event’s featured charities.
Mondays Dark already has assisted nonprofits such as Opportunity Village, Keep Memory Alive, Aid for AIDS of Nevada, Habitat for Humanity Las Vegas, the Nevada Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and Orion Cancer Foundation.
This month, Shunock is closing out the year in a big way with a Mondays Dark fourth anniversary shindig that benefits the 22 charities it featured in 2017. The celebration gets underway at The Joint inside the Hard Rock Las Vegas Hotel & Casino on Monday, Dec. 18, at 8 p.m. Available on the Mondays Dark website, MondaysDark.com, tickets for the show are $20 for reserved seating and $50 for VIP; all proceeds from the fourth anniversary show ticket sales will go to the charities.
Among the nearly two dozen organizations that will be represented at the 2017 end-of-year celebratory event are Safe Nest, St. Jude’s Children’s Ranch for Children, Veterans Village Las Vegas, Create A Change Now and Nevada Blind Children’s Foundation. And, during the event, the Las Vegas nonprofits to be featured in 2018 will be announced.
Offering a star-studded evening of entertainment, the anniversary show will bring live music to the stage that includes Frank Sinatra’s granddaughter AJ Lambert, Skye Dee Miles, Travis Cloer, Rockie Brown and Noybel Gorgoy, Las Vegas show performers and the Vegas Golden Knights’ Drumbots team.
In addition, guests attending this extra-special Mondays Dark event have the opportunity to bid on luxurious live and silent auction items, such as art, concert and show tickets, dining packages, jewelry, spa treatments and more.
