Sparkly Devil in 2011, competing for the title Reigning Queen of Burlesque in Las Vegas. (POC Photo)

Burlesque Seattle Press is greatly saddened by the news of the sudden passing of burlesque performer Sparkly Devil (San Francisco, California). Sparkly was scheduled to perform at Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekend’s Thursday night showcase “Movers, Shakers & Innovators” and was a five-time competitor for the title “Miss Exotic World, Reigning Queen of Burlesque”. She was an active member of San Francisco’s burlesque community and a founding member of the Hubba Hubba Revue.

Our thoughts and our hearts go out to Sparkly, her husband, and loved ones.

~ Paul and Jessica

Sydni Deveraux competes this week for the title Reigning Queen of Burlesque (Photo by La Photographie)

~ Written by/interview by Jessica Price

If you are familiar with Sydni Deveraux – aka Seattle’s very own “Golden Glamazon” – then you know that the woman eats, sleeps, breathes, and dreams burlesque. Her love for the art form and complete immersion in its past and present history is matched only by her sizzling moves and goddess-like stature (Sydni is 6 foot 1… in stocking feet). She produces, teaches, sings, and serves up burlesque advice and tips on her blog, Living in a Glitter Wonderland. But most of all Sydni is an extremely sensual mover that takes her sweet time, making each and every audience member feel as if they’re getting a steamy private show. When Sydni competes this week for the title “Miss Exotic World 2013, The Reigning Queen of Burlesque” at the 23rd Annual Tournament of Tease in Las Vegas, the phrase “she was born to do this” will take on a whole new meaning. We’re pretty sure it’s one of those special showgirl moments Sydni has been dreaming of since well, birth.

Last week we chatted with Waxie Moon and Paris Original (two of the four competitors in this year’s “Best of Boylesque” category); without further ado, we bring you a BSP interview with Sydni Deveraux as she prepares to shake her moneymaker in Vegas:

Jessica: Hi Sydni! In order to understand a performer and see where they are going, it’s often helpful to view their artistry and career in the context of where they’ve been. Can you tell a little about how you became interested in burlesque, and then of course how you got your start?

Sydni Deveraux: I am interested in burlesque because I like being naked, I love to move and I especially love a good piece of music to be naked and move to! I also really enjoy the costuming elements of it, though I wasn’t as enthralled with doing my own costuming until I began my apprenticeship with Catherine D’Lish.

I got my start in burlesque I guess from being a naked lady online first- I was a Suicide Girl and while I was active in that community I heard there was a burlesque show in my city! I have been a jazz singer since high school and a flutist since childhood- so I was already hooked with the music. I was super interested in seeing how the semi-naked ladies in those pin-ups I adored actually were purported to move to the music I loved….so it all really has been snowballing since teen-hood, if I really had to trace my origins! However, I didn’t just jump in- I asked to help out with the show (the now defunct Burning Hearts Burlesque) and was a kitten for quite a while before I was approached by the manager (Cleo Petra) to get on the stage as a performer. After a time with BHB, I became one of the founding members of Sinner Saint Burlesque and I was with that super troupe (at the time it was Evilyn Sin Claire, The Shanghai Pearl, Ravenna Black, Georgia Miles, Belle Cozette and Inga Ingénue) until I made the choice to go solo in what I think was 2008.

From there I performed in one offs, produced shows by myself and also with Hottie McNaughty (together we were Blood Rhinestone Productions), curated/creatively directed the 2010 Sin On Heels tour and now I am the producer of Burlesque Behind the Pink Door (since 2010- If I remember right).

So you know…I’ve been trucking along- I still feel like I have a long way to go- I’m closer to the starting line than the finish, if I have anything to do with it!

Jessica: Who have been some of your biggest influences in burlesque performance, and what specifically do you think you’ve learned from them?

Sydni: My biggest influences have been Catherine D’Lish, the Seattle community in general and of course the ladies I came up with in a troupe. For years I immersed myself though- I’ve watched several hundred hours of video, read every book and tried to bathe in the stories of all of the legends I meet. Beyond people though- music is my biggest influence. The music teaches me how to move and practice refines it.

As for what I’ve learned from Catherine- I’ve specifically learned about how my body can move, being a happy, sexy lady, the quality of movement, costuming techniques, and a billion other things that would take too long to write.

My comrades in Seattle have taught me about love and community….and how to be cheeky and clever. Seattle burlesque is a riot- like a whole bunch of smart, witty, silly beautiful queens stuck in a myriad of gorgeous bodies.

Sydni Deveraux (AKoch Photography)

Jessica: You’ve spent some time training with Catherine D’Lish. How did that come about, and what is that experience like?

Sydni: I’ve spent around 3 years training with Catherine- she is my burlesque mama and a part of my heart. Every day that we talk I am grateful for her presence in my life- she has affected me profoundly just by being herself, by challenging the beliefs I have held in my heart and mind, and inspiring me to make all of the changes to my life that I always wanted for myself. So far the experience has been magical! She travels so often that it’s been a spell since we’ve seen each other in person, but I am still learning, and I am still trying to learn all about my potential and what it contains.

My relationship with her began in 2009 (gosh I’m not good with dates) after I made a concerted effort to find a mentor. I had contacted some of the giants in the Seattle community with no luck- they were all busy with their lives and productions. I laid my plans for tutelage aside and plowed on, going to tons of shows and hoping that one day I would find a teacher- I just wanted to grow. At BurlyCon Catherine was offering private sessions and I was lucky to be gifted the last one by my mother who had seen Catherine live on stage and didn’t want me to miss an opportunity (my mom is the radest mom, it’s ridiculous, really!). I suppose the stars lined up that day- the session flew by in a snap but it was super fun! A bit later I found out that she had relocated to Vashon. Trixie and Monkey were in town and needed a ride out there to see her for tea and I drove them- and I suppose that truly that was the beginning of our working together- I began going to the island many times a week to help her in any way that she needed- costuming, shipping, errands, you know-the kind of thing you do when you’re working under someone you admire and respect deeply. Catherine is a rad lady- more awesome offstage than on, if you can even believe that- a truly magical individual. The burlesque world has been impacted deeply by her performance and her incredible costuming.

Jessica: As producer of Seattle’s longest running weekly revue “Burlesque Behind the Pink Door” (a pivotal Seattle venue, in the historic Pike Place Market) – what have you learned about running a professional show with high caliber talent?

Sydni: Ha! I suppose I’ve learned that EVERY venue has its quirks. I’ve learned that it’s just as important to have gracious performers that are amazing onstage as well as off, that you’ll always want to pay them more, that being frank and clear is always the way to go, that your stage manager is your super glue, when you make your rules you have to stick to them, never hire someone who you haven’t seen just because they come “highly recommended”, and that often it is hard to be a producer who’s active in the community when you produce a show that is a hard appraiser of talent. Sometimes when you’re a producer, you get to feel separate.

Jessica: You’ve been attending the annual Burlesque Hall of Fame events since 2006, correct? Can you explain a little of your history with BHoF?

Sydni: Yup- I’ve been attending since 2006, I performed in BHoF in 2006, and 2007(?) with troupes in the showcases and pool party, 2010 I competed in the Best Debut Category, 2011 I missed since I was getting hitched, 2012 I was an alternate to compete for Queen (which was hard because I really just wanted to perform that weekend!) and this year I am competing! This particular event is my burlesque Mecca- it’s where I fell so deeply in love with this art that I’ve been immersed in it since I started attending.

Jessica: In light of your passion for burlesque and your own deep connection to its global community, what does competing for the title “Reigning Queen of Burlesque” mean to you on a personal level?

Sydni: This is a real tough question- I suppose it means that I am completing a goal that I set for myself in 2006 when I saw Julie Atlas Muz pop that damn magic bubble and win….I thought “I want to get there, in front of all of these people, I want to create a magic moment for someone and myself, I want to know what it’s like to put in all of the work to get there”. Competing in this category is a HUGE honor in our burlesque world-it’s a show where so many people who have never seen you live actually get to see you do your thing. And Dixie Evans was right about making a competition to get people to pay attention- it might not be right…or fair…but people do pay attention. It’s a world showcase, the only one of its kind- with terribly high standards to perform in the weekend or compete, with applicants and attendees being those who are absolutely in love with performing. I’m also stoked to compete in a category that my mentor has won, not once but TWICE, and to be competing in a competition that has had all of the titans of our field show their heart and soul on that stage. My category is totally full of women that I respect, admire and am utterly entertained by. I’m excited to be included.

Also-we all want to be on that list, you know? We all want to be a part of our growing history in any way we can. You merge with the museum by getting on that stage- and that is a magical feeling. The weekend also creates magical moments for all of us in the audience- being a sorceress of some of the magic feels surreal and wonderful.

I also want to say that competing can bring out the best in you, you want find out what metal you’re made of, it can teach you how to recover from a perceived “failure”, and you learn how to put together something you’re excited about that you think will show well. It is the chance to really get into the nitty gritty of an act. It’s not all great, but it *is* interesting to compete. It’s an interesting thing to do. These months of prep you tell yourself that you want to win (I mean, after all, why would you enter if you don’t want to win) but more than anything at the end of the day, you just want to give a magical show.

And you know- we all want to see what that title might help us do in the community. I would love to see if it could help me spread my wings a little further, have more performing opportunities, teach a few more students, write some more blogs, hit a few more festivals….and to be included in such a wildly talented list of winners would just be bananas I tell you!

Jessica: What has the training and preparation for this particular competition been like?

Sydni: I’ve done a lot of heart preparation, a lot of thinking about what I want to show to the audience, what my intention is while I’m onstage, what impression I want to make. I spend a lot of time in my shoes- and finding the right ones for that stage and costume was a feat I tell you (pardon my pun), I rehearse for a bit every day, I’m taking care of my body with all of the things I typically do (yoga, intermittent lifting, jogging, eating incredible food), and I try to maintain excitement at all times to show people what I’ve been up to since the last time I competed. I’ve had a few people look at it and I’ve made some tweaks to the choreography and to my energy during certain bits. A week ago or so I completed all of my rhinestoning (my act is new-ish) so until a month ago it didn’t have one stone on it (gotta save up those dollar bills, yo!). I’ve also tried to get it on as many stages as I can, but that can be hard since all of the stages in Seattle are quite small. More than anything though, I really just try to have as much fun as I can rehearsing. I’m there to have fun, so I better practice it at home, oui?

Jessica: Can you give us any hints about the act you’ll be performing? (If not, can you perhaps explain your act selection process a little, or how you arrived at what you wanted to convey?)

Sydni: Well, it’s new in its completion but way over a year old in its initial conception. For a long time I just didn’t know how to make the damn thing all work together in an artistic, seamless way. After I finished it- it was the ONLY act that I wanted to submit. I have others that I love performing, but I either didn’t want to edit my act (like one of my signature acts- like Granada- which is too long), or I just wasn’t stoked about them as much as I was about this one, right now. I think perhaps in the back of my mind, as soon as I heard my music, I saw it on a world stage. I want to convey fun, sexy-lady musicality- I wanted to show people my roots, which is my love of jazz. My act is a love letter to the genre for sure.

Best of luck to you, Sydni!

Rise and shine…the results of the Burlesque Hall of Fame’s 23rd Annual Tournament of Tease (Saturday, June 1, 2013 in Las Vegas) are:

BEST DEBUT
Lada Redstar (Sarajevo – Former Yugoslavia)

*Stay tuned for our interview and profile later this week- in case you haven’t heard, Lada will be appearing at Lily Verlaine’s newly relaunched Nightcap at the Triple Door Saturday June 8.

BEST GROUP
Swing Time (Portland, Oregon)

BEST DUO
Sandria Dore & Russell Bruner (Portland, Oregon)

MOST DAZZLING DANCER:
Sweetpea (Minneapolis, Minnesota)

MOST CLASSIC:
LouLou D’vil (Helsinki, Finland)

MOST COMEDIC:
Mr. Gorgeous (New York, New York)

MOST INNOVATIVE:
Laurie Hagen (London, United Kingdom)

BEST BOYLESQUE
Ray Gunn (Chicago, Illinois)

MISS EXOTIC WORLD 2013, THE REIGNING QUEEN OF BURLESQUE
LouLou D’vil (Helsinki, Finland)

FIRST RUNNER-UP:
Sydni Deveraux (Seattle, Washington)

SECOND RUNNER-UP:
Lola Frost (Vancouver, British Columbia)

Congrats to ALL who performed in this year’s tournament!

****

Here are a few shots of “Miss Exotic World 2013: Reigning Queen of Burlesque” LouLou D’vil captured at the 2011/3rd Annual New Orleans Burlesque Festival by POC:

LouLou D’vil (Helsinki, Finland), performing at the 2011/3rd Annual New Orleans Burlesque Festival (POC Photo)

POC Photo

POC Photo

Lada Redstar, BHoF’s Best Debut winner, performs June 8 at Nightcap. (Photo by Justine Maillard)

Lada Redstar sits across the table at her friend Lily Verlaine’s studio, listening intently to the dinner conversation around her while imperceptibly multi-tasking. She’s quietly focused on twisting a cherry stem into a tiny knot with her tongue, and at the next pause in conversation triumphantly produces a neat little bow. She laughs in delight at the new tricks a lady can pick up when she puts her mind to it – especially when it’s a bit of a dare.

Exquisitely beautiful and juicy in all the right places, Lada’s skintight deep teal dress wouldn’t be out of place on Madmen’s Joan Harris; her hair is a vibrant red inspired by Rita Hayworth (Lada’s #1 ladylove). All vintage pinup flourishes aside, Lada Redstar – fresh from her Burlesque Hall of Fame win in the “Best Debut” category – is a thoroughly modern woman.

Hailing from Sarajevo, Lada’s title-winning debut at BHoF was her first ever American performance, although she’s been honing her skills for years. She took home the World Burlesque Crown at the 2012 World Burlesque Games in London, and has toured Europe and Australia extensively since her humble beginning performing at a rock show in 2005 (Eyelash + “special guest” was the first and last nameless billing Lada received).

Lada in a photo by Rapael Yoshitomi

It was at a festival in Italy that her path to BHoF began. Seattle cabaret emcee and musician Armitage Shanks was performing at the same festival, and the two became friends over the course of the week. Armitage gave her a cd of his band Circus Contraption, and upon hearing the track “Insectavora”, Lada was smitten. She knew she needed to create an act specifically for the song. Armitage, keeping in touch long distance, was delighted to help secure permission from the composer and the track’s singer to use the song. The fantastical “Insectavora (The Queen of the Bugs)” – the act that would win her titles at BHoF and the World Burlesque games – was born.

Lada in a photo by Lorenzo Paxia

Fast forward to 2012: Lada and Lily Verlaine were both on tour in Australia, booked to perform a ten day run of shows together. “If it hadn’t been for Lily, I wouldn’t be here now,” Lada explained. The pair of outspoken, adventurous women became fast friends and within one hour of the deadline for submissions Lily persuaded Lada to complete her BHoF application. The run of Melbourne shows hadn’t started yet, but Lily knew from her own experiences competing at BHoF that Lada was something extraordinary. “She just presents so gorgeously,” she said. “This year, as I wasn’t submitting…I had the opportunity to be graceful and supportive. The least I could do was say ‘girl, just hit SEND!’”

After the run of Australian shows, the two stayed in touch. As luck would have it, that fateful application led to a booking for Lada in Vegas. Lily flew in from New Zealand, Lada from Australia – and the two hunkered down to prepare for Lada’s turn in the 23rd Annual Tournament of Tease. The preparation leading up to the event was the most nerve-wracking of her life, Lada confided. “Then when I was backstage, I became calm. I enjoyed it so much.” As she took the stage and waited for her music cue, she could barely contain her excitement and accidentally cried out “I’M SO HAPPY TO BE HERE!!!!!” in the dark. Then came the music, and Insectavora took home “Best Debut”.

Lada’s unbridled excitement was infectious. “It brought a tone of spontaneity and genuineness to the competition,” Lily recalls of the moment. Such an uncorked outpouring of thought is very much in keeping with the woman that Lada is offstage. She’s extremely observant, intelligent, and articulate; possessing a zeal for life that radiates wherever she is. Lada’s also passionate about the untamed women of classic striptease, particularly Blaze Starr. “I love her so much,” Lada gushes. “I just love those performers that make you feel like they’re just having sex with you on stage…she was just crazy, and I love that. I was always into that imagery…that image of a woman.”

Growing up in Europe, Lada soaked up as much vintage striptease and 40s-60s pinup material as she could, pouring over dozens of books and all the video footage she could find. She idolized Rita Hayworth, as well as her Yugoslavian grandmother, who was not only a pinup model but fought in the Eastern European resistance against the Nazis. The unique power a woman possesses to be both strong and exquisitely captivating made a mark on Lada. Through burlesque she found a way to express that image of a woman and conquer a worldwide audience. “I’ve been really blessed and really lucky that people have come to me, and asked me to perform,” she says. “I believe you just do things with passion and good vibes, and smiling…and people will like that.”

Not a bad trajectory for a performer that was once billed as a nameless guest star back in 2005. ”That was ten years ago,” Lada laughs. “I was looking like a beautiful peach.”

*****

Catch Lada Redstar this Saturday, June 8 at 11pm at the return of Lily Verlaine’s Nightcap at the Triple Door. Will she do “Insectavora”? You’ll just have to see…

Get tickets and read about Nightcap’s performers by clicking HERE. Lily Verlaine, Paris Original, Waxie Moon, Sara Sparrow, Iva Handfull, and Jasper McCann will join forces for one decadent late night rendezvous.

Lada in a photo by Atelieri O. Haapala

Forgive our recent absence from the fourth dimension (which is of course, the internet)…Burlesque Seattle Press has been looking for new offices in which to set up our laptops and cameras.

While we cram as many burlesque books, interview transcripts, skin mags, and enviable pin-up collections into as many fancy boxes as we can, we bring you this week’s top show Picks of the Glitter (in chronological order). There’s quite a lot of fun to be had this week in all points Northwest:

Debauchery (June 20, Neighbours Nightclub, Seattle)

I haven’t yet made it out to a night of Debauchery (at least not this particular variety), but the rotating lineup of this monthly fund-raising series serving the queer community always catches my eye. Thursday’s show features one of my personal heroines Miss Kitty Baby, plus Inga Ingenue (Miss Viva Las Vegas 2011). Here’s the full lineup:

BennyTinger
Di King
Candy Apples
Cherry Tart
Dahlia Ste. Cyr
EmpeROAR Fabulous!!!
Gema Lusterious
Inga Ingenue
Miss Kitty Baby
Miss Violet DeVille
Tiger Bombshell
Hosted by: Ko$ha!

http://www.eventbrite.com/event/6796184571/efbevent

*****

TUSH! Burlesque does Vegas! (June 22, Capitol Theater, Olympia)

Our best girlfriends in Olympia bring it every time. Were you too broke to head to the Burlesque Hall of Fame weekender this year? Never fear, TUSH! is bringing a little bit of Vegas right to the heart of our sweet little capital city. Sinful desires? Healing hands? Deep pockets? Sounds like a wild ride that should be guided strictly by professionals, and nobody does it better than this gang of ladies. Best of all, fresh from competing for the title Reigning Queen of Burlesque, Austin’s Coco Lectric will join the troupe, as well as Paco Fish (from San Francisco, via Baltimore). Here’s the scoop on guests and tix:

COCO LECTRIC
A classically trained dancer, actor, and vocalist, Coco Lectic graces stages all over the world. She’s a founding member of The Jigglewatts Burlesque Revue (Austin, TX), founder of the Austin Burlesque Alliance, co-producer of the Texas Burlesque Festival, creator and producer of the World Go-Go Championship, the Headmistress of The Austin Academy of Burlesque, AND she holds the #5 spot in the world in 21st Century Burlesque’s “Burlesque Top 50.” Coco’s skill, grace, style and love of performing are evident in every act. A featured performer and headliner, Coco won “Queen of Burlesque 2010” at the New Orleans Burlesque Festival, was “2010 Texas Performer of the Year” from the Hotrods and Heels festival, won the “2009 Audience Choice Award” at the Texas Burlesque Festival, and was second runner up in the 2011 Viva Las Vegas Burlesque Competition.

PACO FISH
Paco Fish thrives on duality. He’s a dynamic performer of spoken and physical comedy, burlesque, boylesque, stilt walking, clown, mime, and a variety of other mediums. Whether playing a freshwater turtle in forbidden saltwater love, a tramp with a deal with the devil, or the whole history of modern France, Paco dismantles assumptions and defies convention with humor and passion. The founder of Baltimore’s Sticky Buns Burlesque, Paco currently holds the titles “King of Southern Exposure,” “King of Carolina Sweet Tease,” and “Most Humorous” from both the Great Burlesque Exposition and The Carolina Burlesque Festival.

$15.00 advance tickets available at Rainy Day Records, or online ($20 at box office night of show): http://www.olympiafilmsociety.org/

*****

Let’s Hear it For the Boys (June 22, Teatro ZinZanni, Seattle)

Teatro ZinZanni is thrilled to announce its first-ever, all male late night cabaret revue, Let’s Hear It For The Boys. This pre-Pride weekend, pre-funk variety show features Seattle’s best boylesque, drag, and circus talents under the legendary Teatro ZinZanni spiegeltent. Complete with a “Catwalk-Off,” a dance party intermission and post-show dancing to the beats of the one and only DJ Nark, Let’s Hear It For The Boys is the ultimate, one-night-only event to kick off PRIDE celebrations.

Let’s Hear It For The Boys features the jack-of-all-trades entertainer and host, Jasper McCann, international boylesque sensation Waxie Moon, the sexy comedic male review Buckaroos USA, former Can Can Castaway and crowd favorite Faggedy Randy, drag king performance artist Lou Henry Hoover, Diablo artist Alex Zerbe, and other local cabaret sensations.

Party-goers are encouraged to arrive as early as 10:30pm for a pre-show drink in Teatro ZinZanni’s gorgeous lobby and to nosh on light-bite dishes from the a la carte menu. Tableside food and drink service will continue throughout the event.

June 22 -11:15pm-1:30am, Doors at 10:30pm

Online Box Office: http://bit.ly/16ekrvH or dreams.zinzanni.org

*****

NERDIVERSARY: A Birthday Celebration (June 22, Gallery Above Theatre Off Jackson, Seattle)

It’s a burlesque show. It’s a dance party. It’s an uncensored peek into the strange thoughts and obsessions of
Jo Jo Stiletto and friends. Costumes encouraged. What’s a Nerdiversary? It’s a brand new holiday that allows one to freely celebrate their fan obsessions AND their birthday at the same time without shame or remorse. Jo Jo has asked some of her favorite people to bring special acts together that tickle her nerd fancies. Acts may or may not include the following: randy robots, BSG, a ruggedly handsome Fillion, ST:TNG, a different side of Gaga, Twin Peaks, Catan, Cat Memes, Canadian Sideboob (aka, Lost Girl), sexy math, obscure references to British sitcoms, and so so much more.

Tickets are in very high demand for this one…check HERE to see what’s available.

Featuring:
Iva Handfull
Al Lykya
Sailor St. Claire
Bolt Action
Scarlett O’Hairdye
Evilyn Sin Claire
Lady Drew Blood
Lexi Luthor
Jesus La Pinga
Miss Elaine Yes
Rebecca M Davis
Sophie Maltease
Lady Laycock
Trooper
Ernie Von Schmaltz
Violet Tendencies

*****

Bitch Slap! Burlesque: Cabaret Inspired by the Genius of John Waters (June 23 & 30, Star Theater, Portland)

Rocket and Vera Mysteria (the ladies who brought the David Lynch-inspired Black Lodge Burlesque to Portland and Seattle) now tackle the father of all things bizarre and unholy: John Waters. All I can say is Francine Fishpaw better be represented…and this idea is brilliant.

This show takes place over two consecutive Sundays at Portland’s Star Theater. (And just a little early warning…Black Lodge, now in its fourth year, will return in August for four shows in both cities).

For info on Bitch Slap! Burlesque: Cabaret Inspired by the Genius of John Waters, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/454754101277429/?fref=ts

Accio Burlesque hits the Annex next weekend.

~ Written by Jessica P.

As someone who never ‘got into’ the Harry Potter series (though I had plenty of my own obsessions growing up and picked up more than a few new ones in adulthood), it’s nonetheless been interesting to watch a national obsession take place from the outside looking in. When the films were released I recall walking downtown to work pre-dawn while fans wrapped in their finest cloaks and hats lined up around the block to get in line for the premiere. Their excitement was palpable. Although it wasn’t a love I could relate to, it was one I recognized.

Seraphina Fiero

Aces & Anchors Productions will reimagine J.K. Rowling’s novels and the films they inspired on June 28-29 at the Annex Theatre with Accio Burlesque. One of the show’s producers, Sailor St. Claire, took a moment to explain the context of the series in her own life, and why the novels inspired a burlesque show as well as the aforementioned national obsession:

Burlesque Seattle Press: Can you tell me why Harry Potter is ripe for burlesque-ing? How did you arrive at the show and what is your take on it?

Sailor St. Claire: One of the things that’s most appealing about the Harry Potter series is that it is about magic, and about being magical. I know that makes it seem like it would be better suited to another genre of performance that we think of as inherently more magical, something like circus arts or stage magic. But burlesque is magic. When I started working with magician Ace Carter in 2011, I came to realize that our two artforms operated on the same principles. We were both producing things and vanishing them, transforming them, crafting our acts around a series of clever, flashy reveals. He does it through sleight of hand, and I do it through costuming. There’s actually a long historical tradition of burlesque and magic sharing the same stages, but no one really does it anymore. So it was very attractive to me to create a burlesque show that was actually about magic, and JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series is one of the most accessible cultural touchstones for magic we have through which I could do that.

Paco Fish

Sailor St. Claire: I am also, of course, a fan of the Harry Potter series. I grew up with Harry Potter, and that’s exactly what we’re supposed to do with Harry and his friends: grow up with them. The series is a classic bildungsroman, a novel of becoming, that puts Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, Luna, Malfoy and the others through a process in which they become adults, active citizens of their world. I started reading the series a couple of years after it came out in the States when I was a sophomore in high school, not all that much older than Harry & Co. were at the start of Sorcerer’s Stone. Although it wasn’t magical, Hogwarts did bear a passing resemblance to the world I inhabited as a Catholic school student. And a lot of my fonder memories of high school involved dressing up in cloaks and our school uniforms and attending midnight showings of all of the movies. When Deathly Hallows was released, my husband and I preordered two copies on Amazon and spent 2 days at home, not talking to each other, just reading the book together. I attended both parts of the Deathly Hallows films with a couple of friends who had taught the Harry Potter novels at UW, and the minute the picture started for Deathly Hallows Part 2, we couldn’t help but cry because, in some ways, the end of the Harry Potter series marked a significant point in our own becoming. I had grown up so much with Harry Potter — and the movies let me make that journey a little longer than the books alone would have — and I could mark my life by when I read a book or saw a film, and the weight of knowing that was finally over seemed to signal the finality of a right of passage. The magic was over. Now I had to be an adult.

But with burlesque, Harry Potter doesn’t have to be over. By “poaching” this text, revisiting it, transforming it, and rewriting it through a different genre, it gets to be alive again. (See my Burlesque Seattle Press article from last summer for further thoughts on burlesque and textual poaching.) We get to go back to Hogwarts, we get to tell new stories, to live in the magic of “becoming” something again.

BSP: What appeals to you about these characters? (Knowing the way you think, there’s bound to be some complexity in there…)

Sailor St. Claire: Rowling’s characters are very real and richly detailed, and having spent so much of my life reading and watching these characters, they’re very easy to identify with. As a person who has always liked school, I love that the Harry Potter series is set in a school, and that each book is organized around the acquisition of knowledge. Hermione Granger is the character who identifies most with that process, and she’s continually rewarded for that, which I think rarely happens in real life — especially for young girls, where being smart isn’t something that’s typically valued. But these books tell us that knowledge is a magical thing, and that setting is particularly appealing to me. However, the series also understands that there are multiple ways to come to knowledge that aren’t simply defined by academic success — and that’s something we forget in real world education (although I know every educator is trying his or her hardest to work around and within that system). There’s this beautiful moment at the end of Sorcerer’s Stone where Dumbledore awards House points to Ron, Harry & Hermione for destroying the Sorcerer’s Stone and commends them on the skills they displayed to do so: Ron’s loyalty, Harry’s bravery, and Hermione’s cleverness. Their knowledges aren’t all equal, but they’re all recognized as worthwhile.

And we as readers are constantly being immersed in that same quest for knowledge as we grapple with learning the ins and outs of the new and fantastic world we’re being presented with, and that thirst for more magical knowing is deepened and enriched with each book. I just really love that process of learning and knowing that’s experienced by both the characters and the readers throughout the series.

BSP: For those of us (like me!) that never immersed themselves in the books/movies, will the show still have some material we can grasp? Or is it mostly a love letter to and for fans?

Sailor St. Claire: We have a lot of conversations about accessibility of material in nerdlesque. For me, I want all the nerdlesque acts to still be based on good striptease at their core, and I think all of these acts are. This cast is incredibly dedicated to each of the characters they are playing, so I think that even folks who are less intensely familiar with Harry Potter will be able to access who the characters are, their goals, their desires, etc. There are also a couple of “conceptual” pieces that fit into the Harry Potter universe but aren’t specifically tied to a character, and I think those types of pieces really translate to a non-fan audience. There’s also, of course, stage magic — and you definitely don’t have to know Harry Potter to access that. But the “easter eggs” for hardcore fans are still there in the details: specific stitching on a character’s corset that Scarlett O’Hairdye created for Norse Goddess, the inclusion of certain gestures crafted by the actors in the films that Al Lykya and Whisper De Corvo are preserving, and some exploration of the cast’s own fan experiences with Harry Potter, like Lady Laycock’s act, which draws from her own adventures in Pottermore. Furthermore, the show is framed as a retelling: it’s JK Rowling returning to the world she invented to do something new with it. Some of the stories pick up on where characters left off, some of them create moments that never happened but should have, some of them tell stories that we may have wanted to see but just wouldn’t be appropriate in a young adult series, and some of them are just our imagination. We’re not aiming to be slavish, but mischievous. We solemnly swear we are up to no good.

*****

Accio Burlesque features performances by Paco Fish (Baltimore, MD), Whisper De Corvo, Seraphina Fiero, Scarlett O’Hairdye, Bolt Action, Tootsie Spangles, Hattie HellKat, Lady Drew Blood, Sara Dipity, Queenie O’Hart, Maggie McMuffin, Lady Laycock, Al Lykya, The Norse Goddess, Ace Carter, and Sailor St. Claire.

June 28 & 29 (8 pm), @ Annex Theater, 1100 Pike Street, Seattle, WA

$25 General Admission, $40 VIP. Get tickets HERE.

Bolt Action

Scarlett O’Hairdye in Critical Hit Burlesque’s “Geeklesque Reruns”

~ Written by/interview by Paul O’Connell (POC Photo)

Bella Bijoux & Flirty Sanchez of Quick Change! (appearing here in Stripped Screw Burlesque’s “Undressed to Kill”) – POC Photo

Flirty Sanchez and Bella Bijoux are bringing an exciting production to the Annex Theater July 5-6. Their two woman burlesque show, Quick Change!, is an inventive new undertaking in the realm of most burlesque formats. The show will feature the pair in 9 acts, 3 solos each, and 3 duets. Video segments will run in between (serving as a sort of narration) featuring Flirty and Bella as senior citizens reminiscing about the trials and tribulations of life and their friendship. The flashbacks and memories will serve as the burlesque acts. “I love the challenge with burlesque because it’s kind of ridiculous to think that two people can do a full show with all the costume changes and make it varied enough that people are interested for 75 minutes and aren’t bored seeing the same two pairs of boobs over and over again.”

As always, I love to get the bottom of people’s burlesque history and take a peek at their creative process. And this is certainly true with Quick Change. On a sunny Sunday afternoon in Volunteer Park, I met with Flirty and Bella. First we dined on burritos from Rancho Bravo, which seems to be a popular spot for these two ladies (they were greeted like Norm in “Cheers”). After finishing our meal and showing them my twerking headstand, I tried to get the low down on their exciting new production and how it came about. First however, a little background on these two burlesquers.

Flirty and Bella are graduates of Miss Indigo Blue’s Academy of Burlesque 101 & 202 classes. Flirty first took the 101 class on a recommendation by an improv teacher who thought it would help with some obstacles she was having in that class. (By the way, I think a lot of obstacles could be overcome through burlesque. Imagine a doctor writing a script or boss giving burlesque leave. Surely it would be a better world). As for Bella’s experience: the first burlesque show she saw was a 2007 performance by The Atomic Bombshells at The Columbia City theater while she was still in grad school. She decided that when she graduated she would take the 101 as a means to get out of her head and into her body. Initially she thought it would be a one-time thing, which Bella now says “was a big fat lie”. Burlesque for both Bella and Flirty eventually became an intense passion.

Bella at a Burlesque 202 recital at West Hall (POC Photo)

It wasn’t until Heidi Von Haught asked both of them to be on the BurlyCon programming committee with Randi Rascal (Randi & Heidi btw are two other fabulous burlesque ladies and BFFs) that they really learned some of the burlesque ropes via their mentoring. “Whether they wanted to be or not,” Flirty says. “Just based on the fact that we spent so much time together and they had so much more experience.” The 2011 BurlyCon programming committee was also where Bella and Flirty met for the first time. It wasn’t long after that the pair became very good friends. Flirty remembers, “I think we had very similar backgrounds, upbringings, and values, so it was easy for us to become quick friends without any burlesque involved whatsoever; and then we also have very similar perspectives on burlesque and the kind of art we want to make.”

Flirty performing at the Pink Door (POC Photo)

“There was a lot to do in the BurlyCon programming – especially the really stressful, layered, complex planning that has to happen – and I just liked the way her brain worked,” Bella adds. “I could see how she responds to stress and complications and being thrown off.”

“It’s by making fart noises with my mouth.” Flirty replies.

They also liked and respected each others’ burlesque talent as they got to see each other perform. “I feel really comfortable doing the ‘sultry sass attack’ and there’s a lot about watching Flirty from the comedy aspect that I wanted to absorb.” Bella mentions. Flirty agrees. “When I watch her slink across the stage I think, ‘oh that’s what it looks like to be a woman’…that’s what sexy looks like.”

Bella as Maleficent in Stripped Screw Burlesque’s Disney after Dark (POC Photo)

Their first act together was for Heidi and Randi’s That’s Fucked Up 3! in February 2012, followed by Stripped Screw Burlesque’s Undressed to Kill (which was reprised in May) and finally in a moving piece for Boobs for Barack back in October 2012. While they were rehearsing and performing in these shows the idea for Quick Change! began to take shape. I asked them more about its origins:

POC: When did you decide that you wanted to do a two-woman show together?

Flirty: I don’t know how our conversations about it started. We joked about being in a two-person troupe because neither of us were particularly interested in being in an actual troupe, so we kind of joked about it that way and then we had this bath bomb called Phoenix Rising. And then decided that was going to be the name of our troupe. So it was just this joke and it became…and I don’t remember when we were talking about it but we were like, ‘no really, let’s do this’.

Bella: Yes. Let’s actually do this…

A recent rehearsal (POC Photo)

POC: Was a two woman show what you always wanted to do together as opposed to a show with you two as primary players with a supporting cast?

Flirty: I was in a two-woman improv troupe and we were performing regularly for 2 years and I loved that format, I loved it. So the idea of doing it in burlesque was exciting because I already knew how a two person troupe operated but I also loved the challenge with burlesque.

Bella: We loved the idea of challenging ourselves to create a full show, something you would want to see where you would see a little bit of everything. You’d see something funny, sexy, silly, ridiculous, sad, political, sparkly, not so sparkly. Like something that would be dynamic enough that you could expect to see in a well put together show and then say how, the hell did you make that happen?

Flirty at rehearsal (POC Photo)

POC: How did you come up with the idea for Quick Change?

Flirty: I was in another improv troupe back in the day and we were supposed to do a show where we were old people at a retirement home and we were going to have photographs and the photographs were going to represent memories. We never did that show but I was very attached to the idea. There was something poignant and relatable about it. And so I feel like that influenced my excitement to do it because that was an idea that was never realized and then I was excited to turn it into a burlesque concept.

Bella: We weren’t compelled by an idea of a Bella and Flirty variety show. That felt like it wouldn’t get us anywhere. I would be bored by that. I remember us having a conversation reflecting on the privilege that we have of creating a life worth living and creating an intentional life and our art is part of what we’re building and so… we’re kind of projecting at future us, but thinking about how you have these opportunities to make magic happen in your life and when we’re old and wrinkly and fabulous, like in our real lives we want that to be what we’ve accomplished. But it’s interesting our characters in this show are not portraying a burlesque life. We’re using burlesque to tell stories about the shit that happens in your life like any normal person.

POC: The acts will be separated by video with the two of you as senior citizens being interviewed about life. Can you tell a little about this aspect of the show?

Flirty: We really just wanted it to be the two of us because we loved the challenge of that, so we decided to not have an emcee and this [the video] was the best way to replace one.

Bella: It has a great opportunity instead of relying on a host to know how to really capture what it is you’re trying to set up for the next act. Our characters get to do that for us. Some of them [the videos] are as brief as thirty seconds and some of them may be more like two or three minute videos.

POC: How has the rehearsal process been going?

Flirty: I think we also have to put on our producer hats at those moments and be realistic about what we want in our show and what is going to be good for the show so there have been certain ideas that have been shot down, lightly.

Bella: Like, ‘that’s interesting but that may not work here’ or ‘I know you super-duper want to send that message but that’s not reading, I can’t tell at all what you’re doing’.

POC: Has anyone else seen the rehearsals or given feedback?

Bella: We’re working with Stell(R) Films [on the video portion], who have been really special.

Flirty: Yeah and they have been good about playing artistic director so they gave us great direction with stuff so we definitely had someone in a directorial position there. As far as our acts go, it’s just been the two of us. We have definitely discussed and agreed that getting outside feedback would be extremely beneficial and intended to do so. I think the reason we haven’t is because we’ve been so overwhelmed with taking care of other more immediately pressing issues…However we have brainstormed ideas [for this show] with other performers in the community and we have given all our acts a lot of thought. And we are 300% confident we are going to bring it on stage.

A recent rehearsal shot of Flirty and Bella (POC Photo)

POC: What does the future hold for both of you?

Bella: I want to travel more and go to more festivals and see what’s happening in other cities. I’m becoming very accustomed to loving our Seattle community and the way it can push and pull and think. You can be sad sexy, you can be a nerd, you can be silly, you can be thematic, you can be classic and we have all of that here. But looking at the bigger picture I want to know what it’s like in other cities.

Bella Bijoux (POC Photo)

Flirty: I feel like we both would love to take this show on the road. That would be a whole new level of challenge though, finding a venue outside of Seattle that can work with our tech needs and hire people in that community to help us with changing and stage managing. Taking it other places would be really cool. But outside of this show I think really what we’re lined up to do is just total world domination… no, I’m just kidding (laughs). I foresee us continuing to work together on stuff. I’d love to do more duets. This will be six duets total for us that we’ve done together with this show and I feel like I don’t think I will ever get tired of doing duets with Bella Bijoux.

(POC Photo)

POC: What are some of you final thoughts about your show?

Bella: The mechanics of actually trying to figure out how to put together a full length show with nine acts and how to divvy up the work and building a set list and thinking about how to actually do that many quick changes took a lot of crafting. I also like the integration of multimedia, integration of some of Flirty’s clowning and improv work that’s gone into it. You know burlesque being the art of the tease after we take our clothes off for the first time, the element of surprise is revealed. So there’s an added challenge to make the story itself compelling, the reveals, the story within each act…to bring it up a notch.

Flirty: We’re really excited to bring something different to the burlesque scene here. There’s a lot of variety already happening but the whole structure of this show is completely different than any other in recent years. I feel like this show is my wet dream because I constantly seek challenge and taking risks in the stuff that I do. I never want to become predictable, ever. That’s like my biggest fear as a performer and I feel like this show is the ultimate challenge.

Bella: This is the most vulnerable I’ve ever felt doing something because I’m not just presenting just one side of my performance. We’re showing you kind of everything. You’re seeing things you’re used to seeing Bella and Flirty do, and things you’re not used to seeing us do. There’s a tremendous privilege we have to be able to put this on the stage for our community to see. Some days I wake up in a state of panic and other days when I watch videos of our rehearsals or I look at our costume pieces or what we’re creating and I get really fucking excited.

****

Flirty and Bella’s two-woman show Quick Change! is July 5-6 at The Annex Theatre at 7:30 pm. Get tickets and info HERE.

Quick Change! (Photo by Witty Pixel)

Ruby Mimosa (By Debora Spencer Photography)

Want to add a little sway to your summer? Look no further than the all-level hula class brought to you by Ruby Mimosa (aka “The Island Flower”) over at the Academy of Burlesque. The four week class runs July 3 through 24 for just an hour and a half each Wednesday, and drop-ins are welcome.

Ruby Mimosa was born in Kaneohe, O’ahu and is the fifth generation of her family to be born and raised in Hawai’i. From the age of three Ruby studied dance, including hula and 13 years of ballet. Aside from these lifelong passions, Ruby also studied fashion merchandising at the University of Hawai’i. As it happens, seven years ago this week Ruby transferred from Betsey Johnson O’ahu to the boutique’s Seattle location- bringing with her just a few suitcases and plenty of Aloha Spirit (“the coordination of mind and heart within each person”, according to the Hawai’i Revised Statues).

And we’re fortunate that Ruby made the journey. Earlier this week she explained why she wanted to teach a hula series and what it means to her. “The rough, Wikipedia definition of Hula is ‘a dance form accompanied by chant (oli) or song (mele), developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Polynesians who originally settled there‘,” she explained. “It’s story telling, with your body. Just like in burlesque where we have some sort of narrative we are telling with our costume and movements; hula tells a story through one’s body, arms, and song.”

“Being born and raised in Hawaii, there’s a lot of history in hula within my family,” Ruby continued. “I had grown up dancing the Hula. Actually, as a child you had a required class in school called ‘Hawaiiana’. There was a kumu, or teacher, and a few times a week you’d have that class, learn about Hawaiian culture – the folklore, language, the specific characteristics to each island, Hawaiian games, and of course the dance – Hula.”

Ruby’s great great grandfather, Fritz Herman, started The Kodak Picture Hula Show in 1937 at the Waikiki Shell. The performance venue linked Hawaiian-style entertainment with photography by providing a hula show during the day, where traditionally the dance was only seen by tourists venturing out to evening luaus at resorts. Initially the Kodak Hula Show featured five dancers and four musicians, but the attraction quickly grew in popularity and expanded to a cast of 20 women, six men, and over a dozen musicians. The Kodak Hula Show ran for over 60 years.

Image from the Kodak Hula Show in 1997 (Star-Bulletin, 1997)

“I have a strong connection to the hula, and even though I may be Haole girl (a white person)- I have Hawaiian soul and pride,” Ruby said. “I had always enjoyed Hula’s expressive, challenging, graceful, and strong tones. The soft sway in the hips as you glide across the grass or sand and the sharp pop of the knees in the uwehe, to that sexy grind of the ami and your own embrace and love of one’s body and shape. This dance comes from the heart, and you can see it from the feet and hands up to the face. You connect with your audience and draw them into your dance. I think that’s why I was immediately captivated and have grown so fond of burlesque. There are so many similarities… at least to me. I look forward to sharing this dance and art-form!”

Here are the details:

Hula Series with Ruby Mimosa
4 Wednesdays, 7-8:30pm
July 3 – 24th

Want a little tropical stay-cation? Look no further than here, Hula Hands & Hips! Miss Ruby Mimosa will help you achieve that soft dewy glow of the Pacific Islands right here in Seattle. Trained in the art of Hula, Ruby teaches the fundamentals and basic movements of this stunning storytelling dance form. Enjoy the classic and tropical tunes of Hawai’i while engaging your core strength and graceful beauty. Movement friendly clothes are preferred, and grass skirts are optional!

Class open to all levels, oriented towards beginning dancers who want a fun workout! $65 for the series, $17 drop-in. For more info, visit the event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/131397980385845/, or check out the Academy’s curriculum page.

****************

Our second pick of the week (where incidentally, you’ll also find Ruby representing The Burlesque Boutique at the merch counter) is way more fun and only a little bit safer than fireworks: Freedom Fantasia. Now in its third season, DeLouRue Presents is mounting this year’s show for three nights/four shows at the Triple Door. Freedom Fantasia reclaims patriotism by taking a closer look at American history with honesty and high camp – exactly what we love from the production trio of BenDeLaCreme, Lou Henry Hoover, and Kitten LaRue. There will be buffalo, pasties, and drag – and what would the 4th of July be without a little tap dancing and historical rap?

Here are the details:

Freedom Fantasia
July 3rd, 5th (9pm), and 6th (8pm and 10:30pm),
The Triple Door 216 Union Street, Downtown Seattle
Tickets: $27-$33 www.tripledoor.net

DeLouRue Presents, a production company from Kitten LaRue (The Atomic Bombshells), BenDeLaCreme (TUCK!), and Lou Henry Hoover (The Cherdonna and Lou Show) invite you to experience their third annual Fourth Of July spectacular…featuring a venerable cast of Seattle luminaries, including WINNER of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 5: internationally-beloved drag and theatrical sensation, JINKX MONSOON!

STARRING:
BenDeLaCreme
Kitten LaRue
Lou Henry Hoover
Jinkx Monsoon
Major Scales
Cherdonna Shinatra
J Von Stratton
Jim Kent
Markeith Wiley

Freedom Fantasia 2013!

Maui’s black light troupe The Ultraviolets

This week’s most unique show also happens to be the most logistically challenging: The Can Can presents The Ultraviolets Black Light Burlesque at The Can Can Thursday July 11. The troupe of female clowns hail from Maui and have worked long and hard to launch their first West Coast tour. They’ve purchased a van just for the occasion and are ready to bring their brand of sensual movement and illusion under black light to the burlesque stage, particularly in a city where cabaret, burlesque, and dance so freely intermingle.

Founding member Rachel DeBoer has a BA in Theater Performance from the University of South Florida, but has lived on the Hawaiian island of Maui for the last twelve years. There she started a successful face and body painting business called Fabulous Faces as well as a black light theater company Next Level Theater Productions that specializes in black light mythological Hawaiian storytelling. “I always loved black light theater for its ability to make the invisible visible…to show magic literally, through floating objects…thought bubbles…energy…whatever one could dream up,” Rachel explained. “Our style of burlesque is more comedic, a parody of our relationships, awkward situations, what it’s like to be a woman. We are based heavily in storyline, puppetry, magic illusion, visual surprises…”

“When I returned from [a solo soul-searching trip to] Peru I wanted to create something I’d never done before,” Rachel continued. “The Ultraviolets emerged in December of 2011. We did show after show all through 2012 combining our unique surrealistic theater with dj parties at our local theater, The Iao Theater, until we ended up on the cover of the Maui Time Weekly, our island’s biggest paper. Recently we banded together with the Kit Kat Club, another more dance and song [oriented] cabaret troupe on Maui, and the Cherry Blossom Cabaret from O’ahu to create the Hawaii Superstars of Burlesque. We three troupes have performed twice at the Iao Theater as a unit, interweaving and juxtaposing our show styles together.”

Rachel explained what the burlesque scene is like in Hawai’i: “Burlesque in Hawai’i, or rather Maui, is pretty much us and the other two troupes I mentioned. In Maui burlesque is not allowed in places with liquor. In fact there are very strict rules about burlesque, which are rather antiquated in my mind. Pretty much everything we do is actually not technically allowed in a bar as it’s too suggestive for the Maui Liquor Commission. There have been times that we have been asked to censor ourselves in order to perform at certain venues, which I’ve refused. The only venue we really perform at without risk of being fined (or rather the venue being fined) is The Iao Theater, which serves no alcohol, so freedom of expression is still allowed there. Imagine my relief and joy knowing that going on tour would allow us to fully express ourselves at a variety of venues without punishment or judgment…that in Seattle burlesque is celebrated rather than outlawed.”

The Ultraviolets Black Light Burlesque will also feature appearances by Seattle’s own Boom Boom L’Roux and Randi Rascal.

The Ultraviolets Black Light Burlesque
Thursday July 11, 2013
The Can Can, at Historic Pike Place Market Seattle
94 Pike St.
Advance tix at http://www.thecancan.com
$12 GEN/ $15 VIP
Doors open 9:30pm
Show at 10pm

This Thursday July 11 at Can Can

This poster is seriously spooky and therefore needs no caption.

Temperatures are rising, and with it Stripped Screw Burlesque’s propensity for lunacy and wild fits of lascivious behavior. Their savage new production, Midnight in the Garden of Glitter and Heels, was actually the original working title for the Screws’ successful Undressed to Kill show. When the material took the troupe in a different direction Midnight in the Garden of Glitter and Heels was scrapped as a title. Founding member Violet Tendencies – never one to shy away from her darker impulses – couldn’t quite set aside the more insidious themes the sidelined title and concept brought to mind.

Violet Tendencies (POC Photo)

“We all love the Southern Gothic images it evokes. Most of the troupe have an affinity for dark and spooky acts which don’t fit into our other narrative shows so we are thrilled to put together a show featuring some older, darker acts, as well as brand new material and a healthy dose of humor,” Violet explained. “Evilyn Sin Claire does dark, creepy and shiveringly sexy like no one else – so she was an obvious [choice for a] guest. We’ve all also worked with Jesus la Pinga in other shows and utterly adore him! His impeccable sense of timing and humor make a perfect foil to the dark acts and I can’t wait to see him in action in our graveyard.”

Midnight in the Garden of Glitter and Heels takes place Saturday, July 20 at the Columbia City Theater. Get tickets HERE.

Lady Drew Blood

Seraphina Fiero (Meneldor Photography)

Stella D’Letto (Photo by They Are Only Pixels)

Evilyn Sin Claire (Nark Photography)

Jesus la Pinga (Photo by Starla Lancombe)

Behind the Blue Door takes place July 26-28 at Re-bar.

~ Written by Paul O’Connell (POC Photo)

This Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Re-bar is the return of Behind The Blue Door: A Dr. Who-Inspired Cabaret. After last year’s debut in Seattle and a successful five city tour, Midnight Menagerie Productions has revamped its show to celebrate 50 years of Dr. Who. Unlike last year’s production (which mainly focused on the reboot episodes) this show will focus on the entire run of the series. The show’s producer, Vixen Valentine, recently reflected on Dr. Who burlesque:

“I think that Behind The Blue Door is the most important show that I have produced because it helped me to become a better producer, in pushing myself to take the show as far as I could dream to take it and work hard at creating something I’m very proud of. Not to mention being able to work with amazingly talented performers in Seattle who were as enthusiastic about the show as I was, and I met bigger Dr. Who fans than myself who appreciated seeing routines inspired by the same things they love about the show. Of all the shows I’ve produced, this one tapped into a community outside of the normal burlesque crowds and drew people in so we could collectively enjoy something together that created a vibrant atmosphere to be a part of.”

“I’ll admit, I’m a recent Dr. Who fan; I stumbled onto the tv show because it just so happened to be playing on my roommate’s tv one day,” Vixen explained, when asked what it meant to her to bring the show to the burlesque stage. “I sat down and watched ‘Gridlock’ (from season 3 reboot) and I liked it so much I went back and started watching it from the beginning of the reboot. I didn’t know at the time that it was going to play such a large part in my burlesque life and this show might never have happened if I wasn’t approached by a sci/fantasy convention to curate a show, and instantly I knew what I was going to do. Since I started working on the first production of Behind The Blue Door (last year), I immersed myself in the Who-niverse as much as I could in order to do the show justice which included following along with news, reading facts, watching older episodes, familiarizing myself with the Dr. Who groups in Seattle and finding that community.”

Also significant about this year’s Behind the Blue Door is that it marks the last show Vixen Valentine will produce before she heads off to Europe for the next two and a half years to complete her MFA. I asked Vixen what lead to this fantastic opportunity:

“I have been performing since I was a child. I have worked in several theaters in Seattle. I have my Bachelor of Arts in Drama from the University of Washington and my other study abroad program took me to England to study theatre at the University of Hull in Scarborough, England. What inevitably drew me into burlesque is that it’s actor creator work, where I am responsible for creating my own work instead of traditional theatre where I did scene study, memorized lines, etc. I didn’t know what to call the type of theatre I was interested in so I just started googling acting schools from the computer lab in Perugia, Italy [where she was continuing her Italian studies in 2011] and the term physical theatre came up. So I did a little bit of research and I realized that the type of theatre I love is physical theatre, this notion of actor creator work that combines inter-disciplinary skills, like voice, movement, etc in order to tell a story. With my new term in hand I started looking up Master of Fine Arts programs in physical theatre and the Accademia Dell’Arte popped up. There are a myriad of reasons on why I choose this school as opposed to the other MFA programs I found. The first is that it focuses on European theatre that not only takes me to live in Tuscany but I will also study at FLIC circus school in Torino, Familie Floz in Berlin, Germany and Continuo Theatre in the Czech Republic. I will have the opportunity to work alongside other performers who incorporate commedia dell’arte, mask making, puppetry, movement, dance, circus arts, cabaret, etc into their work as I continue to strengthen my own voice as a performer. Secondly, the purpose of the program is to challenge the students to push themselves to obtain a high level of mastery in actor creator work which is a challenge I want. I don’t want to be stagnant in my performing abilities so finding a program that compliments the type of theatre I love that will teach me new skills and push me to be even better at what I love seemed to be a no-brainer to me.”

Vixen has already started contacting producers abroad in the hopes of performing and has bookmarked the different European burlesque festivals to attend. She also assures me she will return to her home town of Seattle. I, for one, will say I am jealous of Vixen’s European adventure. BSP wishes her the best of luck on her experience.

Behind the Blue Door takes place July 26-28 at Re-bar. Tickets available HERE.

Vixen Valentine performing as Idris.

Mod Carousel: Thursday July 25 at the Rendezvous Jewelbox Theater

This week’s top show pick is a no-brainer for sheer manpower alone. The spectacular three-headed monster that is boylesque troupe Mod Carousel (featuring the unparalleled talents of the Luminous Pariah, Paris Original, and Trojan Original) lands at the Rendezvous Jewelbox Theater on Thursday, July 25 at 7:30pm. The press release promises to deliver “a salty adventure full of muscles, mustaches, and striptease”- a heady cocktail if ever there was one. The masculine/maritime puns are plentiful- but the talent these lovely gentlemen possess is as serious as it gets.

Sydni Deveraux, who recently pocketed a shiny, sizeable, and well-deserved trophy for “1st Runner Up: Reigning Queen of Burlesque” in Las Vegas, will host this performance. (Incidentally, to see Sydni- and her constellation of tattoos- perform next locally you’ll have to attend the annual Seattle Tattoo Expo August 9).

Sydni Deveraux (Photo by AKoch Photography)

Go-Go Harder will join Mod Carousel as a very special guest. A little more about Go-Go:

Go-Go Harder’s special brand of Boylesk is theatrical and irreverent, campy and comedic, and most especially glittery and gritty.

The love child of Liberace and Tom of Finland, Harder has been showcased nationally in New York City, Key West, Minneapolis, and even in his home state in Fargo, North Dakota. Harder also shakes his Boylesk booty abroad including Warsaw, Poland for the 2010 Europride Celebration and in London where he headlined the 2011 All Male Boylesque Show for London Burlesque Week.

Go-Go Harder was also crowned “Best International Performer” at the World Burlesque Games in London, May 2012. Harder continues to perform, teach, and produce Boylesk in New York City, spreading his love of leather, glitter, and of course, g-strings, wherever he can.

Go-Go Harder (Photo by Hugo Harley)

SeaMen: A Maritime Boylesque Revue
Date: July 25th, 2013
Time: Doors 7pm, Show 7:30pm
Location: The Rendezvous Jewel Box Theater – 2322 2nd Ave – Seattle, WA
Tickets: $15 in advance, $20 at the door

For tickets and more information, click HERE.

And…speaking of Mod Carousel…and Sydni…and Caela…have you seen this???

Wanna meet the man, the myth, the legend?

This week a person near and dear to our hearts at BSP – partner in crime Paul O’Connell of POC Photo – is the focus of an artist-curated display of photography over at Tigerlily Salon. Featuring a selection of iconic images of Seattle’s vibrant burlesque community, the show will also include a little star power in the form of live models The Shanghai Pearl, The Luminous Pariah, Wiggy Stardust, Seraphina Fiero, Cherry Manhattan, and Miss Kitty Baby.

Violet Tendencies of Stripped Screw Burlesque dreamed up the idea for a showcase recognizing Paul’s work and dedication to the performers that he photographs, envisioning a collaborative event between photographer and muse(s).

“I’ve had a few photo shows before, but this the first time I’ve had a show like this where the subjects in the photos (who happen to be fabulous burlesque performers) perform for and interact with the crowd, so I’m excited to see that,” Paul explained. “I wanted to show a variety of photos in terms of the style of the photo, color treatment, lighting etc as well as the subject in the photo; how they’re posing, their expression, costume, etc. And of course these photos are some of my favorites.”

You can read about Paul’s background in a previous feature called “What’s His Problem?” here at BSP. If you’d like to attend the party, please inquire with Violet Tendencies at my.violet.tendencies@gmail.com for invite availability and info. “A Festive Showcase featuring the Burlesque Photography of Paul O’Connell” takes place Thursday, August 1 (6pm-10pm) at Tigerlily Salon (2241 15th Ave W, Seattle WA 98119, next to Victory Studios in the Interbay area).

Here’s a few images that may make appearances – only way, way larger? You’ll just have to see…

Seraphina Fiero (POC)

Cherry Manhattan (POC)

Hai Fleisch (POC)

Mercury Troy (POC)

*****

Also coming up this week- it’s the much-anticipated return of Black Lodge Burlesque: A Night of Cabaret Inspired by David Lynch. The brilliant production kicks off at Re-bar August 2-3, and heads to the producers’ home base in Portland August 8-9 at the Star Theater.

My log has something to say too.

Vera Mysteria on Black Lodge from Marcella Joshlin on Vimeo.

In case you missed the show last time around, here’s a sneak peek:

Laura “wrapped in plastic”- and Bob, played by Baby Le’Strange (POC Photo)

Hai Fleisch as Laura Palmer from Twin Peaks (POC Photo)

Portland’s Lady Stockholm as the Elephant Man

Burk Biggler as “The Arm” (POC Photo)

Baby Le’Strange in dual roles as Dorothy/Frank from Blue Velvet (POC Photo)

Dixie Evans 1926-2013

As word spreads quickly around the international burlesque community, most of you have heard that Dixie Evans has passed away at a Las Vegas assisted-care facility after suffering a stroke earlier this year. It is with great sadness that we report the news – it’s already been a very sad week at BSP as I have recently lost a personal friend (back home in Texas), and naturally have been doing a lot of reflection on the incredible importance of cherishing the moments we have with those we love, while we have those moments to enjoy.

I had the extreme pleasure and privilege of spending some time with Dixie while interviewing her in Seattle back in early 2011 when she appeared at The Swedish Housewife’s Gypsy Centennial. Despite her somewhat frail condition at that time, I found her to be an extremely sunny personality. ‘Sunny’ and ‘light-filled’ being the first two adjectives that come to mind. Our conversation ran way over the allotted time we were given, but she had so many stories and so much to say it just didn’t feel like an interview; it felt like a guided tour through Dixie’s reminiscences of her long and unconventional life. I was sitting on a sofa across from Dixie for the first part of our talk, but as we began flipping through her photo book I curled up with my legs tucked under me at Dixie’s feet. And that was how the rest of our conversation went. Me, listening intently at the feet of this lovely, elderly glamour girl, and Dixie moving back and forth from subject to subject, memory to memory, in a flood of words so brisk that it was almost hard to keep up.

As a result, the transcript from our interview was an incredibly long and unwieldy thing; but ripe with many pearls of Dixie wisdom and Dixie observations. She was funny, she was pensive, and at times she was a little melancholy about the passing of time and life on your own out in the desert. It was a moving afternoon. I remember when we said goodbye, she was stepping into an elevator with Laura Herbert at her side. As the doors began to close, Dixie turned back to face me and suddenly she grinned mischievously and gave me a secret wink. It was a bona fide showgirl gesture and it made my heart skip a beat.

I hope to once again revisit that long and winding transcript and share a little with you all in the coming weeks. Thank you to Dixie for that memorable afternoon, and for a memorable life.

A little gift from Dixie.

The Libertinis (Photo by Jay Nuske)

~ Written by Paul O’Connell (POC Photo)

I always love seeing new performers and troupes in the burlesque world. Although The Libertinis formed in January of 2012 and have had two shows in March and September of that year, their third show Rumpus, which will take place Saturday August 17 at Re-Bar, is what founding member Tootsie Spangles says is “ …like our coming out at our debutante ball. The past year we’ve just quietly been making productions and kind of figuring out how we work together as a group, and what kind of art we want to make. So it’s a chance for us to showcase some of our work”.

The Libertinis are Tootsie Spangles, Hattie Hellkat, Kiki Cosmosis, Miz Melancholy and the lone male member Woody Shticks. The women of The Libertinis all met at Miss Indigo Blue’s Academy of Burlesque 101 Fall Session in 2011. Tootsie met Woody a year earlier when they were both on a children’s theater tour. “Truly, burlesque is children’s theater with a few more tassels and a little less clothes,” Woody adds.

Hattie Hellkat (Photo by POC)

I had the privilege of seeing that Fall 101 recital with the future Libertinis, as well as their second show last September. Their acts were bizarre, funny, original, outrageous, and sexy: Hattie Hellkat’s sexy daredevil routine complete with gold tricycle, Kiki Cosmosis’ beautiful magic mushroom with exploding spores, and Woody Shtick’s impersonation of a sloth are a few acts that come to mind. I definitely was interested in finding out what drives the troupe and what kind of burlesque they want to create. I met up with two of The Libertinis, Tootsie Spangles and Woody Shticks (or should I say they met up with me at my home) for a little background.

Tootsie received her BFA from Roosevelt University’s Theatre Conservatory in Chicago and has taken numerous clowning classes (her clown alter ego is Oopsie Sprinkles). Woody was part of a professional ballet company growing up and took acting classes in New York City. He recently graduated from Cornish College of The Arts with a BFA in acting with an emphasis on dance.

I asked Tootsie how The Libertinis formed:

Tootsie: After we took the 101 class we all decided that we wanted to continue (in burlesque). It first started off as a group that we would just be there to help critique each other and encourage each other to go out into the community and start submissions and continue to perform burlesque. And then we decided that we wanted to create our own work and become producers.

Woody: In the first show -The Libertinis’ Dreams and Nightmares- which went live in the spring of 2012, the lady Libertinis organized a really brilliant event and brought me in very late in the game to act as host and glue and kind of catch all the loose ends in terms of making sure that their performance was phenomenal. That kind of solidified my involvement to the company as primarily producer. I perform less I would say than the other Lady Libertinis, as a burlesque performer. I’m an actor so I perform quite a bit as another self. I think back to the Lady Libertinis welcoming me and taking a chance, and it all being the best thing for all of us.

Tootsie: Yeah we needed a host, someone that’s very funny, that can keep the show moving along and then also someone to clean up our choreography- and then he became a very integral part of the Libertinis.

Woody Shticks (Photo by POC)

Paul: So what did you think about the whole burlesque thing as a separate art?

Woody: I found it really exciting; I loved the opportunity especially as a dancer. I found the correlation to be really strong and I think that Seattle is such an interesting place for burlesque because of the variety that exists in this city and the forward thinking that comes with burlesque performers in the city. Rather that the strictly dance based or classical burlesque. So I think my initial thoughts of burlesque were very much tied to a dance-based expression and a dance-based exploration. But then working with Tootsie and working with the other Libertinis and with the community at large, I figured out very quickly that there was an endless opportunity for me as a burlesque performer to incorporate genres that I’ve always wanted to try my hand at. You know as an actor you don’t often get the opportunity to self produce in the way that you do in burlesque. I found the opportunity, the open ended-ness of burlesque, and that kind of ‘sky’s the limit’ mentality to be really exciting…to give me excuses to try some things that I was scared of or excited by.

Tootsie: Burlesque is just another physical theater. That’s how I think our way into it. It’s another form of physical storytelling.

Miz Melancholy (Photo by Danielle Moug)

Paul: Do you have a particular style as far as a burlesque troupe is concerned? “This is kind of what we want to do” or “this is what we hope to do”?

Tootsie: We consider ourselves like the love child of a burlesque troupe and a theater company. We fancy ourselves an inter-disciplinary performance ensemble. Burlesque is a huge part of our story telling. We all have theater backgrounds and it was real important to us to have theater as a part of it and creating original narrative works. Stripped Screw [Burlesque], they do a lot of really incredible story telling. It’s very dark, it’s very sexy. Like if Stripped Screw were like black sparkly fringe, I feel like The Libertinis would be like orange dingle ball trim (laughter). We have a lot of elements of clowning in our work as well.

Woody: I think it’s as Tootsie said, a really great balance between the limitless of cabaret but the power of narrative in a theatrical sense so we’re able to blend those things together and find a different way to tell a story than I think any of us have before. And we are not afraid of utilizing text, of utilizing live music, of poetry and dance and cake baking and whatever else we can get our hands on. We have a very active communication in that our company is moving forward even when we’re not performing. So that we are increasing our presence and we’re finding opportunities like this really exciting collaboration with Annex Theater and with other theaters around the country as we continue to spread out feelers.

Hattie, Kiki, and Tootsie (left to right)

Tootsie: Yeah we’ve been kind of hibernating and plotting and planning. Actually at BurlyCon last year, Sinner Saint had an incredible panel about troupe management, which was awesome and a lot of the things that they were teaching in that panel we have enacted in our troupe. We have a manual about how we make decisions and who makes the decisions, and how we communicate with each other and how we work with guest artists. Whether they know it or not they helped us a lot figuring out a lot of logistical things.

Paul: Rumpus is a showcase of The Libertinis’ work plus a few works from guest performers in other disciplines that you as a troupe would like to feature in upcoming seasons. It’s also a fundraiser for next year’s ambitious plans…

Tootsie: When we first came on the scene and started out talking about who we wanted The Libertinis to be and what kind of art we wanted to make… The big troupes that are here do incredible work- like we’re huge fans of the Atomic Bombshells and Sinner Saint and Stripped Screw – and we saw what they were doing and we said ‘okay how can we do something that is different from what they’re doing?’ So we wanted to incorporate other disciplines of art and focus on a narrative as well.

Woody: In the true spirit of a debutante ball, it’s a chance to mingle, a chance to get drunk together and a chance to talk about the kind of community we want to continue to create around The Libertinis and Seattle burlesque and it’s important to us to find crossover audiences we can share. So by bringing in all of these multi-disciplinary artists we can say, ‘Hey how can we share the theater community? How can we share the visual art community? How can we share this cabaret community? How can we blend these audiences to give all of us a larger audience base, but also more love. There’s always room for more love.

*****

And to really convince you to go to this show, Tootsie tells me that there will be cupcakes. Click HERE for tickets and info about the Rumpus show.

Kiki Cosmosis (Photo by Jay Nuske)

Tootsie Spangles (Photo by Amanda Jane)

And…there will be cupcakes.

Mulder & Scully (The Shanghai Pearl and Jake Groshong) Photo by Jules Doyle

~ Written by Jessica Price

Three weeks from the launch of her brand new show The Burl-X-Files, the effusive dynamo that is Jo Jo Stiletto was cool as a cucumber when we met on a warm summer day to talk all things Mulder and Scully. At that point in the process the acts were steadily pulling together, along with the buildup of anticipation for Jo Jo’s next major event after the successful Whedonesque and Geeklesque Unites productions. But the actualization of The Burl-X-Files has been a long time coming. Nearly two years ago Jo Jo’s nimble brain began to fixate on the idea of a show inspired by the long-running, paranormally-obsessed television series The X-Files. While wrapping up a presentation at Nerd Nite in Seattle, Jo Jo made an offhand remark about a possible next show paired with a slide from the series; to put it mildly, the crowd went nuts.

The X-Files first aired September 10, 1993, but like the “dream of the nineties” (as Jo Jo lovingly refers to it) the series had fizzled out and lost most of its fanbase well before its final episode on May 19, 2002. The blame was placed on everything from audience viewing preferences post-September 11 to more plausible issues with cast changes and increasingly poor writing. (There were questionable X-Files films in 1998 and 2008, one of which this writer will personally defend, but I digress). For a very special stretch of the 90s when American pop culture was swirling with a heady mix of conspiracy theories, internet chat rooms, rumored alien abductions, cyber punks, and government suspicion, the show was a thrilling weekly indulgence. Even The X-Files’ opening sequence contained paranoid, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it messages: Trust No One. They’re Watching. The Truth Is Out There.

Meanwhile in the Northwest, a pre- “Stiletto” version of our future producer Jo Jo first caught the series while attending the University of Oregon. Connecting with the spirit of the show (and in particular, with 90s heartthrob Agent Fox Mulder and strong, brainy female lead Agent Dana Scully), Jo Jo began organizing viewing parties in her dorm. With cropped red hair and a thrift store version of Scully’s FBI-appropriate business suit, Jo Jo found both a new circle of friends and a welcome distraction in geeking out on The X-Files. For a time Jo Jo entertained ideas of becoming a forensic scientist until journalism and theater eventually won out over the prerequisite chemistry and science she knew went with forensics territory. “Gotta know your strengths, and that was not one of them,” Jo Jo recalls. “I think I didn’t want to be a forensic scientist; I wanted to play one on television.”

Jo Jo Stiletto and “David Duchovny” in the 90s (Photo courtesy of Jo Jo Stiletto)

After college, Jo Jo moved to Seattle and distanced herself from the faltering show, (not unlike David Duchovny did at the time, taking a large part of the show’s audience along with him). Exploring her newfound adulthood while embarking on a career in advertising, she became involved with Seattle’s fringe theater scene and eventually fell in with the tough broads of Rat City Rollergirls. She also came across Seattle burlesque troupe the Gun St Girls, and within six months had signed up for Miss Indigo Blue’s Burlesque 101.

But as any true obsessive can attest, though the action figures, dioramas, and other badges of fandom may be temporarily stuffed into the darkest corner of the closet, they never truly leave their “host” (to use the parlance of The X-Files). By the time Jo Jo started producing shows, the burlesque that she naturally gravitated to was born of fandom and a “new” hybrid of pop culture-referencing striptease called nerdlesque.

Following her hugely successful Whedoneque Burlesque (inspired by the works of Joss Whedon), it was time to finally come clean about her love for The X-Files. Paying homage to a twenty year old show without being obscure would be tricky as well as deeply personal; Jo Jo realized the way to develop the show was to call in the professionals (i.e. trusted associate producers and close friends dubbed ‘The Syndicate’). The idea began to take shape that The Burl-X-Files should feel evocative of both “monster of the week” and myth arch episodes with visitations from some familiar characters, but a brand new story would weave the acts together. Though spoilers are carefully guarded to keep things interesting, Jo Jo will say that the show is framed by Mulder and Scully investigating paranormal activity in a burlesque theater. “To some the show will feel like a bit of a genre spoof, trying to capture the tone and feeling of a conspiracy/horror/drama/sci fi shows from the 90s and beyond. To others it will be a walk down memory lane,” Jo Jo clarifies.

The Lone Gun Ladies: Scarlett O’Hairdye, Tootsie Spangles and Sailor St. Claire (Photo by Jules Doyle)

The Smoking Man, played by Bolt Action (Photo by Jules Doyle)

Casting the show was relatively easy once Jo Jo landed on the lead roles (a process which at one point involved paper cutouts arranged in different combinations). The Shanghai Pearl was quickly cast as Agent Dana Scully, and Jake Groshong as Agent Fox Mulder. Though there were specific act submissions, The Syndicate kept a few performers on board in a “blank slate” capacity until the story dictated what types of acts were needed. Rehearsals took the form of all-cast brainstorming sessions and a series of drop-in workshops for feedback. All of which adds up to a uniquely collaborative new narrative.

The Shanghai Pearl (Photo by Jules Doyle)

When asked how society looks back on The X-Files and what holds up from the 90s, Jo Jo unsurprisingly has given this a lot of thought. “Strong female characters,” she says is what the show’s lasting legacy is. “Scully, Buffy…Wonder Woman. Nobody now has that role.”

“Rewatching it has been really interesting,” she continues. “Its greatest strength and greatest weakness were these overarching stories…because they got so convoluted that you had no idea what was happening. You were watching for the moments of humor or the moments of connection between two characters that literally had no sexuality…their relationship was so angst-ridden, that that became the fun. You were waiting and watching for that one little touch…a chaste kiss…”

The real Mulder & Scully

It’s chemistry, Mulder. (Photo by Jules Doyle)

“There’s been some great articles I’ve read looking back on the idea of Agent Scully and why was it so important to have a character like her that wasn’t defined by her sexuality…[but] wouldn’t it be nice if we actually got to see her, maybe…as a full human lady, with all the different parts of female sexuality? I mean she had a fucking kid- but we never got to know how or why?? That’s the ultimate betrayal right…you watch the show for so long, and wait…they had a baby? Even the actors joke about it now,” she laughs.

“That’s what has been fun about taking this into a burlesque realm,” Jo Jo says. “Now we get to explore some of the things the show didn’t share with us. But also do it in a way that is respectful to the show. We want to fulfill some expected fan fantasies while also holding some things back because that’s The X-Files. It’s about what’s seen and what isn’t seen. It’s about revealing some truths and then not revealing. It’s perfect for burlesque, if you think about it. You don’t reveal everything, you must hold something back. Things aren’t explained. Things are mysterious. Things are magical. And to me, that is burlesque”.

*****

Visit Jo Jo Stiletto Events for more information, and purchase advance tickets HERE.

Jo Jo Stiletto Events in Association with the Theatre Off Jackson present:
The Burl-X-Files: The Truth Is Down There
Burlesque Inspired by the X-Files

August 23, 24, 29, 30, 31st
DOORS 7pm. SHOW promptly at 8pm

Starring
The Shanghai Pearl as Agent Dana Scully
Jake Groshong as Agent Fox Mulder

Featuring:
Rebecca M. Davis
Bolt Action
Queenie O’Hart
Sailor St. Claire
Scarlett O’Hairdye
Seraphina Fiero
Tootsie Spangles
Trooper
Jesus la Pinga
Lady Drew Blood
Eva Fairwood

Associate Producers/The Syndicate:
Rebecca M. Davis
Scarlett O’Hairdye
Bolt Action
Sailor St. Claire
EmpeRoar Fabulous (not performing)
Mercury Troy (not performing)

Lily Verlaine and Jasper McCann (POC Photo)

Many grand ideas have been born over a glass of wine. In the case of Burlesco DiVino: Wine in Rome, it was the nationwide Month of Riesling celebration that led to a brand new work from producers Lily Verlaine and Jasper McCann. The Triple Door commissioned the production in 2012 to coincide with the summer’s wine emphasis; in the capable hands of Verlaine/McCann, a theatrical burlesque show became a wine-soaked soiree moving through time in two acts. The first is a sort of dramatic pantomime set in ancient Rome, where a bountiful harvest culminates in an orgiastic party at the Temple of Bacchus as fire dancers and priestesses conjure up the God of Wine. The second act hinges on a plucky American reporter waking from a night of Roman debauchery in the Swinging Sixties. Driven by ambition, she plans to sneak into an exclusive party with the crème de la crème of Rome’s fashion set to snap a photo of reclusive Italian socialite Donatella Bianchi. “We basically wrote two shows. It’s like a double feature,” Lily explained after a recent all-day rehearsal.

“When our cast is asked in interviews ‘What’s your favorite Verlaine/McCann production to be in?’ hands down, everyone says Burlesco DiVino,” Lily said, which the producers attest to the mash-up of dance styles the show calls for. Combined with a story bridging different time periods, the ensemble-heavy show effectively plays to the strengths of the multifaceted cast. Burlesco also highlights several notable principals in solos as well as many rising stars. There’s TriBellas’ highly skilled belly dance, Inga Ingénue’s deliciously intricate solo as model Benedetta Barbieri (flanked by Untamed Felines), and – one of Lily and Jasper’s favorites- Paris Original’s Pas de trios. Intimate, delicate, and gender-reversed- the dance culminates with Paris’ toes exquisitely pointed as he turns in the hands of his female partners.

Laurel Bordeaux, Paris Original, Tory Tiara.(POC Photo)

Inga Ingénue and a couple of Untamed Felines (POC Photo)

In light of Lily and Jasper’s other major works (the hugely successful Land of the Sweets and Through the Looking Glass), Burlesco is both divergent and a natural progression. The pair’s accomplished writing, directing, and choreography are increasingly in the foreground whereas in the past, “Lily Verlaine, burlesque dancer” and “Jasper McCann, emcee” were the most common associations. These days the pair is more interested in fostering the talent of newer stars and rising ones whose potential is just being tapped, both on stage and in essential functions behind the curtain.

The TriBellas: Ivy D’Vine, Juwana Hodge, HonoLulu Honey (POC Photo)

The morning after comes in Act 2 (POC Photo)

“We’re filled with such gratitude that we can create an environment where a variety of gifts and talent can shine,” said Jasper. Lily agrees that the caliber of people they attract is a testament to how hard they’ve worked in development. In dance, grants may allow a show to be developed over five years; Lily and Jasper have grown their shows organically, often in public, turning out large scale productions in anywhere from six weeks to six months. “I am shocked every time I get a resume,” Lily said. “It’s a huge honor. I need to make more shows, so I know where to put these people!” she laughed. “And having these audiences that are so generous and patient as I find my way as a choreographer, and find the right talent to express these things…it’s a tremendous honor.”

Trojan Original, The Luminous Pariah, and Paris Original (POC Photo)

Burlesco, like all of the exquisite work we’ve come to expect from Lily and Jasper, is the intersection of theatrical burlesque and contemporary ballet underlined with clever eroticism. Two original songs are featured, written and arranged by Jasper and James Chapple. “Ricordare La Presente”, delivered mostly in Italian, embodies the show’s themes of living the present moment to the fullest, since the past is gone and the future may never come. A noble theme and certainly worth toasting.

Isn’t this the cutest wine label imaginable?

To that end, there’s a special wine release in the Triple Door’s Musicquarium Lounge on opening night. After seeing Burlesco DiVino last year in Walla Walla, The Mortal Vintner contacted Lily and asked if she’d like to be featured on a wine label. Her answer of course was an instant “YES”, and Lily Verlaine Viognier was born. The wine, made from highly aromatic white grapes, will be available in glass pours as well as in bottles for purchase after the show. Sampling a glass after rehearsal, Lily asked Jasper to describe it. “It has a lot of structure for a Viognier. Peach, tangerine, dill…excellent notes of white stone fruit. It’s very sharp, not too cloying…” he mused. Which sounds almost as luxurious and nuanced as a Lily Verlaine & Jasper McCann Presents production.

Burlesco DiVino: Wine In Rome (August 21-24, The Triple Door Seattle)
Read more about the show at www.burlescodivino.com, and get tickets over HERE.

Burlesco DiVino tickets on sale now

Need any further convincing to go see the final three performances of Jo Jo Stiletto’s hilariously spooky (and extremely sexy) Burl-X-Files?

We’ll give you THREE really, really good ones:

The unexplained abduction of Lady Drew Blood. (Photo by Jules Doyle)

The Cigarette Smoking Man, played by Bolt Action. (Photo by Jules Doyle)

Exploring otherworldly kink with Assistant Director Walter Skinner, played by Trooper. (Photo by Meneldor Photography)

We cannot emphasize this enough- go see this show. The Shanghai Pearl and Jake Groshong make the most delightful Mulder & Scully, all angst-ridden chemistry and all.

Read our recent interview with producer Jo Jo Stiletto HERE; visit Jo Jo Stiletto Events for more information on The Burl-X-Files. Limited advance tickets available HERE.

Jo Jo Stiletto Events in Association with the Theatre Off Jackson present:
The Burl-X-Files: The Truth Is Down There
Burlesque Inspired by the X-Files

CLOSING THIS WEEKEND: August 29, 30, 31st
DOORS 7pm. SHOW promptly at 8pm

Starring
The Shanghai Pearl as Agent Dana Scully
Jake Groshong as Agent Fox Mulder

Featuring:
Rebecca M. Davis
Bolt Action
Queenie O’Hart
Sailor St. Claire
Scarlett O’Hairdye
Seraphina Fiero
Tootsie Spangles
Trooper
Jesus la Pinga
Lady Drew Blood
Eva Fairwood

Sinner Saint Burlesque performed for the last time at Noc Noc on August 22. (POC Photo)

On August 22, after seven years of bawdy and beautiful weekly performances, Sinner Saint Burlesque took the stage at Noc Noc for the last time before the official closure of their long-running home base. For years, Noc Noc was the best place in town to grab a plate of tater tots, bring all your friends, and settle in for a raucous night of wild and wonderful burlesque. Noc Noc had a certain gritty charm that made the weekly shows feel intimate yet glamorous- if you were new to burlesque “this goes on every week?” would be your first thought; if you weren’t, Noc Noc was a place to watch a group of women and their extended burlesque family come and go, honing their skills, experimenting, and perfecting their art in a no holds barred weekly live performance. Not an easy feat, but they did it- uncensored and for seven years, launching many solo performers along the way.

Polly Wood took a few moments this week to talk about the closure, and the photos found here were taken by POC on Sinner Saint’s last night at Noc Noc.

Burlesque Seattle Press: What is the story of Noc Noc’s (relatively) sudden closure, in a nutshell?

Polly Wood: On July 11, The Noc Noc on 2nd Ave and the historic Columbia building in which it resides was sold and its occupants were given notice to close their doors by August 31 for redevelopment. We decided to close the show a week and a half earlier than the final close date, so that we could have as many Sinner Saint Burlesque members in attendance as possible.

BSP: What is Sinner Saint planning to do next?

Polly Wood: While our weekly show will be on hiatus, we will be continue to pursue touring options and look at producing larger showcases. Sinner Saint is also still available for private bookings, both as a troupe and as soloists.

BSP: How do the ladies feel about this turn of events for them, historically?

Polly Wood: Sinner Saint has been so grateful to have a supportive venue for the past 7 years. Scotty, Jesus, and everyone at the Noc Noc have helped to create an environment where the performers, staff, and patrons feel welcome. Having a consistent weekly venue has helped us create a strong fan base. We have so many awesome memories (and incriminating photos) of the years of fun and art we created at the Noc Noc, and we will miss it. At the same time, we are excited to see what new adventures we will embark on as our business model shifts!

BSP: What do you think the closure means contextually…in terms of good stages and burlesque-friendly venues seeming to be tougher to keep open these days?

Polly Wood: It’s symptomatic of arts in general, not just in Seattle, but nationwide. While artists are producing amazing material in many mediums and disciplines, the gentrification of neighborhoods that have been havens for artists is a problem everywhere.

BSP: What will the impact be of the venue closure for the ladies-both personally as consistently working performers, and for the scene at large?

Polly Wood: We will continue to work as soloists, and to produce as a troupe, but obviously, as the Burlesque scene grows, and the availability of venues shrink, we will have to all be creative and enterprising as we work on producing material that is relevant and challenging to the community!

*****

To keep up with Sinner Saint Burlesque or to reach them for bookings, click HERE.

Jesse Belle-Jones and Evilyn Sin Claire (POC Photo)

Diva le Déviant (POC Photo)

Evilyn Sin Claire (POC Photo)

Jesse Belle-Jones (POC Photo)

Doña Dei Cuori (POC Photo)

Lady TaTas (POC Photo)

Jesse Belle-Jones (POC Photo)

La Chica Boom will appear in Burlesque Royale, September 14 (Photo by Hanna Quevedo)

~ Written by Jessica Price

The Shanghai Pearl’s upcoming Burlesque Royale is in many ways the show she was born to create. Though she’s been producing since she was just an eager young lass brandishing her bona fides from the Academy of Burlesque (some may recall shows she had a hand in at the Jewelbox and Wallingford’s Seamonster), it wasn’t until the successful Burlesque for Barack fundraiser in 2012 that Shanghai began producing on a grand scale. Burlesque Royale will take place at Seattle’s elegant Triple Door, the perfect setting for Shanghai to realize another little fantasy: bringing San Francisco’s Grant Avenue Follies to Seattle for the first time.

Pat Chin from the 50s (Photo credit pending, used by producer permission)

From approximately 1937 to 1964, San Francisco’s Chinatown was home to a thriving and glamorous nightclub scene. Chinese singers, dancers, and burlesque performers regularly starred in lavish floor shows at clubs like Forbidden City, The Chinese Skyroom, Kubla Khan, and Club Shanghai. The “exotic” nature of the dancers was commonly capitalized on and bizarre publicity taglines were often attached to the Asian dancers, comparing them to familiar Caucasian entertainers. Billed as “the Chinese Ginger Rogers”, “the Chinese Frank Sinatra”, or “the Chinese Sally Rand”, these men and women were stars of their own accord, entertaining GIs in wartime as well as Hollywood royalty from Ronald Reagan, Jane Wyman, and Boris Karloff to Bing Crosby and Duke Ellington. Their histories were not as celebrated as the legendary Caucasian burlesque dancers we may recall first today, but the golden age of Chinese nightclubs was a microcosm of show business with a huge draw. These clubs and their many entertainers were the cornerstone of a huge part of San Francisco’s Asian-American history. Some of the chorus girls, dancers, and burlesquers from the nightclub scene at that time remained in contact over the years. Retired dancer Cynthia Yee came across a Palm Springs Follies show (some may recall that Joan Arline was once a member of PSF) and realized that she and her friends were more than capable of doing the same…or better. They formed a nonprofit dance troupe called the Grant Avenue Follies and began staging shows at community centers, veterans’ groups, and hospitals. The ladies quickly realized it wasn’t too late to roll up those fishnets once again and relive the fun of their dancing days.

The cover of Trina Robbins’ excellent history.

Meanwhile back in Seattle…

After “politely stalking” the ladies of the Grant Avenue Follies for years (“I think they thought I was just this funny, weird stripper” the Shanghai Pearl recalls), she struck up a collective friendship with them, asking numerous questions about their nightclub days. The ladies invited Shanghai to perform with them at a Chinese Historical Society Gala in San Francisco. “These are the women I’ve been looking for my entire life,” Shanghai recalls of bonding with the living Legends and simultaneously unearthing a whole new family of adventurous, sexy role models from the Asian community. Before this, “all of my lady role models were white…and Margaret Cho,” Shanghai recalls.

Six members of the Grant Avenue Follies (Cynthia Yee, Pat Chin, Ivy Tam, Lillian Poon, Emily Chin, and Avis See-Tho) will perform in a pair of group numbers at Burlesque Royale. Shanghai says the ladies are thrilled to come to Seattle and have made a working vacation of the trip (book-ending the Triple Door performances with two shows at local senior homes as well as a visit to a retired showgirl friend in Vancouver).

Shanghai with the ladies of Grant Avenue Follies in Las Vegas at The 2011 Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekend (Shanghai’s personal photo)

Shanghai with Legend Barbara Yung (Shanghai’s personal photo)

Shanghai mindfully curated Burlesque Royale, inspired in part by the undisguised sexuality and directness of the recent all male KINGS show in Seattle as well as by her own desire to feature high impact performers and a diverse cast. Putting on a truly great show spotlighting powerful women capable of commanding a room was foremost in her mind. And though she loves and has often employed comedic tactics of “surprise sex” in her acts, Shanghai has recently been preoccupied with why those layers of pretense are necessary. “It can be alienating- even in burlesque- for people to be faced with sex when it comes to women,” she muses. “There’s a layer of safety that comes with joking and irony- and I love that layer, but why is it that we need that layer?”

Fittingly, Burlesque Royale features a heavy-hitting lineup. Sydni Deveraux (“1st Runner Up, Reigning Queen of Burlesque”, Seattle), Donna Denise (The Most Powerful Chest in Burlesque, Dallas), and performance artist/activist/ecdysiast La Chica Boom (founder and producer of Kaleidoscope Cabaret, San Francisco) will perform, as well as Burgundy Brixx (winner of “Best Solo” at the Boston Burlesque Expo, Vancouver BC). Burgundy’s classic style and execution are something Shanghai admires. “Watching her is like watching an old reel come to life,” she says. Performer and lady MC Foxy Tann (The Boss of Burlesque, Minneapolis) will host because – among other charms – “she’s just kind of a badass,” says Shanghai. “I want this show to be a good representation of what this craft has been, and what it can be, and all the different evolutions of it,” Shanghai explains. “In burlesque we have so many opportunities.”

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Martha Enson and Cathy Sunderland of Moisture Festival and Aerialistas fame also guest star. Burlesque Royale takes place at 7:30 and 10:30 on Saturday, September 14. Get tickets HERE.

AND—- check out La Chica Boom’s amazing mission statements over HERE, get more info on Grant Avenue Follies HERE, and please…you won’t regret it…check out Trina Robbins’ vital paperback on the golden age of Chinese nightclubs, Forbidden City.

La Chica Boom (Photo Amanda Brooks)

Sydni Deveraux (POC Photo)

Burgundy Brixx (Photo credit pending, used by producer permission)

Donna Denise (Photo credit pending, used by producer permission)

Foxy Tann (Liquid Mojo Photography)

Design by Caitlin Finn Daost in collaboration with The Shanghai Pearl