Playing two nights a week in the small-ish former Club Rio space at the Rio in Las Vegas may seem like a step down from his arena packing “Purple Rain” days but see the show and you’ll realize that this is the kind of venue that allows the artist formerly known as the Artist Formerly Known as Prince to settle comfortably into his musical brilliance, play the kind of music he wants (needs?) to play, and perhaps most importantly just have fun.

Back in the day Prince used to play those massive arenas and then show up, often unannounced, at small nightclubs and theaters to jam until the wee hours of the morning, eschewing his mega-hits for lesser known titles and funky, jazz-inspired musical workouts with his band and guests. This show at the Rio is much like those post-concert concerts with a start time that is, at best, fluid and a musical spirit that evokes a more relaxed, less structured event. The Rat Pack used to do it in Vegas; why not Prince?

The doors to the theater open at 8pm and a fierce DJ is on hand to keep things lively until the concert starts. Oh yeah… that starting time thing. Door staff will tell you that Prince “usually takes the stage between 11:30 and 1am.” That’s right: there is no formal starting time. It happens when it happens so your choice is to get their early to stake out prime stage-hugging territory and wait several hours or show up later and still stand around only with slightly less optimum viewing space.

On the night I visited, I staked my claim at around 10:45pm. 3121 is the name of the former Club Rio now, a round theater with a dance floor in the middle and booths and tables lining the edges. General admission tickets allow you to stand on the peripheries or get right up close to the stage on the floor, which by the way is the best non-seat in the house. VIP packages get you the booths and tables, some with bottle service but no worries – there are several bars along the back wall. As concert venues go, it’s a fine one since you’re pretty close no matter where you land; no binoculars needed here.

The curtain finally went up at around 12:30am, revealing a largely undressed stage (some fluorescent paint on the exposed electrical conduits and a circular staircase to a “lounge” for the horn section of the band were about it). Backed by a small combo (bass, drums, one or two keyboardists varying, and three horn players plus two dancers/back-up singers), Prince launched into the funky title track from his latest album, “3121” followed quickly by more cuts from that disc including “Lolita” and “Black Sweat.”

For the next two hours plus, he worked his way through a non-stop barrage of some of his best music, although for casual fans the monster-sized hits were mostly absent. True, he did do “Kiss” and for an encore “Purple Rain” and “Let’s Go Crazy,” but those were abbreviated and revamped versions. So no “Controversy,” “1999,” “Little Red Corvette,” “When Doves Cry,” “Raspberry Beret,” or “Diamonds and Pearls.” Instead, the Prince faithful got rarely performed gems like “Anotherloverholenyohead,” “If I Was Your Girlfriend,” “Joy in Repetition,” “7,” and “Pink Cashmere,” mixed in with a cover of Wild Cherry’s “Play That Funky Music” and several, extended instrumental jams featuring guest saxophonist Maceo Parker.

For some in the audience, this was an obvious disappointment – the club was definitely less crowded when the show ended at around 2:45am than when it started. If you are one of those casual fans, that shouldn’t preclude you from going to see the show. As I understand it, the concert is different almost every single night and what gets played depends heavily on Prince’s moods and whims so you might get two hours of non-stop hits or two hours of even more obscure tracks than the ones I heard.

But dedicated Prince fans and anyone with an appreciation for genius-level musicianship couldn’t have been pried away with a crowbar. Watching the man sing, dance, and play almost every instrument on stage with virtuoso level accomplishment is stunning and at times breathtaking.

I am one of those dedicated Prince fans and have seen him in concert many times, but something is different now. I’ve never seen him so relaxed, so jovial and comfortable. Whether he was joking with the audience or wading into it to pull people on stage to dance with him, his energy came off as distinctly more playful, approachable, and human than the cipher of days past.

Perhaps that spirit is best summed up from the lyrics of one of my all-time favorite Prince tracks (one he performed to my delight during the show) “Forever in My Life” from the 1987 “Sign O’ The Times” album: “There comes a time, in every man’s life/when he gets tired of foolin’ around… I never imagined that love would rain on me/and make me want to settle down.”

Whatever the reason for settling down in Vegas, we are thankful. I’ve always said that in 200 years people will look back at Prince’s music the way we look at Beethoven’s today, and while some will say that crosses over into the hyperbole I was having trouble finding earlier, go see this show and you’ll understand why it isn’t.

Prince performs every Friday and Saturday and presents other artists on Wednesday nights in the 3121 club. Recent guests have included Chaka Kahn, Esthero, Larry Graham with Maceo Parker, and more but for a schedule of who will be playing when you are in town, visit the official 3121.com website.