Signs of Scott Ewalt; Interview, Part One

Burlesque signs have always rocked my world. As a child, every time I saw a burlesque sign on a lounge I got an illicit thrill, imagining women of impossible repute removing stockings with a knowing wink. I could picture the heavy lashes, the big hair, the chiffon robes. I was mesmerized.

As a teenager, I was excited by the signs on strip joints in Atlanta. I knew that the Domino Lounge was one of the last of the old school burlesque venues in town, but the contemporary signs got me riled up with promise—one day I’d be of age, and I’d know where to go by the signs. A favorite was the sign for Tattletale’s, of “Girls, Girls, Girls” fame—a delicate outline of a nude woman’s hip drawn from the back, her weight on one leg, her hand relaxed at her side, based on this line drawing by Picasso:

Later they had to take it down, since it incorporated Picasso’s drawing without permission. Bad strip joint! But good taste.

In the early 1980s I had started working in those clubs. One of them, The She Club, got shut down for trying to blow up Starcastle, the strip joint across the street. The government took possession of The She Club and publicly stated they would open and operate it, though they never did. I fantasized about them actually doing it so I could work there and tell my mother I was working for the government. For years afterward the big sign that had been posted at the entrance was leaned against a cement wall behind the club, and every time I drove by I coveted that sign.


Above: Scott at home with his Venus sign.

Scott Ewalt, like me, is fascinated by signs. He is fascinated by other things, which I’ll get to in other sections of this interview when I post them later, but I fixated on the collection of signs in his apartment the first time I saw them. I thanked him in the intro to my book—his passion for burlesque legends is contagious and has inspired me over and over. Also, he was the first DJ I worked with at the Slipper Room, spinning some of the best go-go music I’ve ever heard.

Currently he’s represented in the book Dead Flowers, edited by Participant Press and Vox Populi. It’s full of prepunk and postbunk artists that all segueway into each other. The main subject is Timothy Carey, a psychotronic filmmaker; the link between Scott and Timothy is that Lilly Christine taught Timothy his signature dance, which he debuted in a movie called “White Trash,” and Scott Ewalt has done extensive studies of Lilly Christine, including his latest, Which shows Lilly Christine walking in front of a building with burlesque signs on it. Scott also does reconstructions of Times Square Burlesque houses as digital artwork. His eye for the sign is as obsessive as mine, or as any cop perusing the signs on broadway. When I interviewed him about his collection, the signs were by far his favorites.

How did you get interested in Burlesque?
That's a many layered question. I was inspired by Bugs Bunny, the outro to Bullwinkle, I Love Lucy, seeing the Carol Doda sign at the Condor Club as a kid. Seeing the postwar burlesque houses in San Diego as a kid. A Date with Elvis by the Cramps. Meeting John Sex, Katie K, and International Chrysis. All these things combined helped me find this aesthetic.

How did you start collecting burlesque ephemera?
Paula Klaw from Movie Star News sold me a Tempest Storm Teaseorama poster and from that point on I was equally fascinated with burlesque as with the vintage S/M imagery I had been collecting. It would have been in 1986.


What are some of your favorite items in your collection?
Original Tura Satana lightbox, the Venus and Eros marquee neons, the first all-male burlesk sign ever put on the exterior of a building, my Zorita lifesize cutout, my Liz Renay silver hologram, my lifesize sign of Virginia Bell, the Babydoll Lounge sign, the Billy's Topless sign, my Patrick the All-American stripper 8 by 10, my Sally Rand fan dancer lamp from the 30s, and my Henry Dixey commemorative coin.

Tell me about some of the signs.


The Tura Satana Light box: A poster store called me and told me they were tearing down the theater next door to them, and when they pulled off all of the signage underneath there was this image of a woman, and when they told me it was Tura I almost lost my mind. It's from 1957. Buffalo New York. The guy from the store mailed it. He had sold me 24 Jon Voigt posters, the ones that wallpaper my kitchen. When I first met Tura she remembered having lost that sign. She kind of widened her eyes like: "Would you give it back?" and I kind of narrowed my eyes like "No"--I mean, she gets to be her, right?



The Venus and Eros Marquees: I lived in Times Square in the late 80s . I was walking home from work one days and they were taking down the Adonis sign and cutting it into one foot sections and dropping it into a dumpster. I tried to stop them and they said if I could take the sign right then I could have it, but my apartment wasn't even as big as the sign. So it piqued my interest and I realized that there was no effort being made to preserve these things. When Giuliani was closing all the burlesque houses I contacted Chelley Wilson, a grindhouse pioneer and the meanest woman in Times Square. She sold me the Venus and when she passed away her daughter sold me the Eros. They were just happy to have someone get them--it was a ridiculously low price. They were on 46th and 8th ave.


The first All-Male Burlesk sign--that was part of that lot. When I got it home it was about 4 inches thick and I realized it was more than one sign and I cracked it open and there was an older sign from when it was the one of the first gay theaters (three opened simultaneously in the 1960s) in the US.

Zorita cutout--I got it at the Chelsea flea market for 50 dollars. Rode it home on my bike--to cheers from people I passed by! They were cheering when I went by with Zorita flapping in the wind. Was it 1994? I never got to meet Zorita unfortunately. I had known about Zorita because I had found some 4 by 3 images of her in a box in the back of an adult book store in Loa Angeles, a store that was a front for a gambling and crack den, that actually had a rotating wall and it turned and behind the pornography were guys gambling and smoking crack.

Liz Renay hologram--Luke and Laura rescued it from her attic and it's a print plate for her 8 by 10s when I went through her collection; it was something I was allowed to pick for posterity. It was covered with rat turds but of course it's not anymore. I met Liz after having lunch with John Waters in 1994. He said to look her up she's in the phone book, tell her I sent you. I flew to Vegas, called her up, and I was there for five days and on the third day she said she had a cancellation for lunch and I could meet her. And I was hooked after that. Her memory was so sharp and she was so sweet. And funny. And sexy!


The Virginia Bell Sign: A man called me from Toledo and said he had a sign from the Roxy Burlesque and Vaudeville theater in Cleveland. Irma the Body, Tempest Storm, Blaze Starr--all those signs had been destroyed. The picture he sent me of the theater showed a tractor parked in front of it. His grandkids were getting old enough that they were starting to ask who the naked lady in the garage was. Actually his wife called me and asked if I could buy from him. I had bought some other ephemera from them.


The Babydoll Lounge Sign: I had some girlfriends that worked there. I went to visit them one day and I noticed that the shingle sign was gone. I went in and asked what happened to it and the owner looked at me like I was crazy and asked me how much I had in my pocket. I pulled out two twenties and said that was all I had, and he said to take it. One of my favorite things that attracted me to the Babydoll was the fact that it was across the street from the Mudd Club, and in a classic symbiotic relationship the musicians dated the strippers--Cookie Mueller was there. It's also the bar where the famous headline “headless body in topless bar” comes from, and it was Janis Joplin’s favorite hangout when it was a Hell's Angels bar. I love it for the crudeness of the painting. Hand-painting is definitely my ongoing fetish in all of them. They remind me of Stuart Davis paintings. He was an artist in the late 1920s who came from Paris to New York and did paintings of signage, and who is lightly regarded as the father of pop art.


The Billy’s Topless Sign: Billy’s was where the House of Domination all worked during the day, those performers from Jackie 60. One day I was there visiting them and the sign had blown off and I went into the back room and talked to him about purchasing the sign. He was much less green than the other people I had contacted, having worked with people like Gypsy Rose Lee, and he said he knew it was a valuable artifact. He said if Guiliani passed the text amendment that made the word "topless" illegal on the exterior sign of a business, he would sell me the sign for 300 dollars. Three months later I opened the paper and read that Guiliani had passed the text amendment, and I called the owner, and he said he'd been waiting for my call all day. He was able to keep the signs that read across in one line because he moved the exclamation point and made it Billy Stopless, but he couldn't do that on the shingle sign because it set in two lines.

I’ve been interviewing Scott about Boylesque as well as his involvement with the Burlesque Hall of Fame—lots more to come!

And, if you've got any photos of burlesque signs you'd like to share, please do! You can post links in the comments.

Breast Cancer Survivors Performing This Sunday

Pink Light Burlesque is a program to provide free classes for breast cancer patients and survivors, provided by The New York School of Burlesque.

December 4th is our first-ever showcase, featuring students and instructors of this program.

The show will be dedicated to our friend Diane Naegel, who was hoping to perform as part of the project but lost her battle with breast cancer due to complications on September 25. Our hearts go out to her and her friends and family, and to all others experiencing the same struggle.

The proceeds of the show will benefit You Can Thrive, Sloan Kettering, and the operation of Pink Light Burlesque.

Sunday, December 4, 8-10.30 pm.
The Wild Project 195 East 3rd Street
New York, NY 10009
Contact Jo Weldon at pinklight@schoolofburlesque.com
School of Burlesque Phone 212.561.1456
Wild Project Phone 212.228.1195

Buy General Admission Tickets
Tickets are $10, $15, and $20. Visibility is perfect from all seats; lower prices are furthest from the stage.
This is a small venue and seating is strictly limited, so do not wait to buy tickets.
Priority seating in the front two rows is available to donors and sponsors.
We have tiered the ticket prices to make this event affordable for as many people as possible.
If any tickets are remaining the night of the show, they will be available for cash purchase at the door for $25 preferred, $20 second tier, and $15 third tier.
Please contact us about donations or sponsorship opportunities. pinklight@schoolofburlesque.com.

Burlesque celebrates the human drive to amuse, provoke, charm, and seduce. The Pink Light Burlesque project invites survivors to take classes to experience the joyous and body-loving fun so many burlesque students embrace. For those who would like to perform, we hope to create a performing troupe of burlesque dancers made up of breast cancer patients and survivors (and a few of their allies). If they continue beyond the classes, these dancers may wish to perform professionally as well as to benefit charity and fund raising events.

We would like to thank Duane Park, home of some of the fiercest classic burlesque, live jazz music, and fabulous food and drink, for sponsoring our studio rentals for November and December.
Check them out!

We would also like to thank Night Owls, The Champagne Riot, and the friends and family of Diane Naegel for their substantial support.

We will be helping other burlesque schools to create similar programs in Seattle, Denver, Columbus, and more cities. Please contact us if are an instructor, survivor, or patron wishing to create a Pink Light Branch in your area.

Interview with Veronica Varlow

I've had this interview for awhile and have been trying to write the perfect intro for it, and I give up. She's just too awesome. I am so thrilled to have this woman as an instructor at The New York School of Burlesque, and that's that.


Above: Veronica Varlow and me with David Byrne at the Bowery Hotel. Why not?

How did you learn to do burlesque?
When I first saw burlesque, it was as if I was spying on an ancient and secret rite of women to claim the power in their own sensuality. I was awe-struck that first night I stumbled upon this world of burlesque in 2000 at the Slipper Room. That little corner of Orchard and Stanton became my version of church which I visited weekly to worship the power and beauty of the performers there.
At that point, I was learning. I was an eager pupil to learn the movement of confidence, to learn the slowness of sensuality, to learn the power of being unafraid.
I was a bystander for 3 years. A witness to the world I longed for. But, alas, the comforts of my cubicle were too good. I was skilled at the world of work, but I knew nothing about this mysterious world of boas, of fringe, of tassels.
In December of 2003, I was volunteering at a local animal shelter in Brooklyn, when a recently picked up dog, a rottwelier - sunk his teeth into my face. He ripped the right side of my nose and tip of my nose from my face and his top teeth landed less than an inch away from my left eye, digging into my skin.
I was in surgery for eight hours, staring at the ceiling, contemplating my life. In the end, that rottwelier was an angel in disguise. Lying in that hospital bed that day, I was at a crossroads. I realized that the only reason that I hadn't done burlesque is because I was afraid of what others would think of me. I realized that I had stayed in a comfortable life that I was bored with to appease others. I realized that the rottwelier could have killed me if he wanted to, that I could have possibly been lying there in the hospital with ten minutes left to live regretting all the things I hadn't done in my life.
That was the turning point.
I started watching old films of burlesque, going to shows, and developing my alter ego (who has since taken over entirely). I signed up for a Burlesque 101 class with the NY School of Burlesque when it was back at the Bowery Poetry Club and dragged a friend with me. World Famous Bob was a guest speaker that day and the things that the both of you said during class opened up my mind to what could be possible. You presented a whole new delicious road to me. A month later, I debuted in World Famous Bob's New Revue for the first time, and a week after that did my first full show with Ixion Burlesque, and I was hooked. The burlesque bug bit me. Hard.

What are some of your favorite acts to perform?
I just performed with Gotham Burlesque singing My Heart Belongs to Daddy with Albert Garzon on piano - and that was an epic night. I love weaving magic into the words I'm singing and also creating a spell with the slow stripping out of my clothes simultaneously.
I also love doing my Isis number because it mixes the sacred and the sensual for me. I perform a magic ritual with my dance and I honor the dancing women of lifetimes past. It's a special one for me.
I debuted a new fire poi burlesque number at Coney Island this Summer. For me, that is reclaiming the fire, after we lost our home and our things in an electrical fire in April. When I was on stage, I was dancing with the fire as a partner. That powerful element swirled around me on the Coney Island stage in the dark, two months to the day that our house burned to the ground, and I truly felt like the Phoenix in that moment.


How did you come to tour with Emilie Autumn, and what was that like?
Amazing and life changing! Emilie doesn't hold auditions. She just puts the call out. She's a very magical person and she's incredible at manifesting the world she wants to create. My good friend, Aprella, was performing with her for a year and had suggested me as a possibility for a new member in the show.
What's crazy is that Emilie had seen me and bookmarked my Danger Dame site years before. So we were destined to perform together and when the moon was full and the stars perfectly aligned themselves, I found myself on a plane to Germany for rehearsals. We are a tight knit family and I am grateful for all the beautiful adventures we have had together all over the world and I'm looking forward to future adventures. We are headed to Australia in November!

When did you start teaching within the burlesque community?
I believe that was 2007 and it was inspired over a cup of tea at Teany's with you when I finally got the courage to ask you if I could teach a class at the NY School of Burlesque. You said that you wanted to create new classes that were different than anything else out there and asked what I was thinking of. Then I said I had this crazy idea of teaching my gypsy magic combined with performance - to be able to use magic to boost confidence and cast a gorgeous spell on a willing audience. You fully supported the birth of that idea and gave me a shot at teaching and I fell in love with it. I love passing on my Grandma Helen's magic in my classes to other women. It has changed my life and I hope it can help others as well.

Did you ever expect to be teaching regularly?
No! Teaching kind of weaved its way into my life and it's a definite passion of mine. It started as something I wanted to try and I'm in love with it. I just think back of my first class with you in 2005 and how much you changed my life by sharing your experiences and knowledge. Teaching has the power to make the world a better place. It really does.


What are some of the classes you teach?
I am so proud to be teaching all of my burlesque classes, Spellbinding Burlesque and Advanced Spellbinding Burlesque at the NY School of Burlesque. I'm excited for this September 17th to be teaching Spellbinding Burlesque again at NYSB.
I also teach non-burlesque classes at my own Danger Dame School of Deadly Charms, which has classes like: Love Magic for Couples, Foundations of the Femme Fatale and the Seven Secrets of Seduction. It's about confidence, signature style, and rocking it out in our day to day experiences as women. It's the sexy version of life coaching.

What have been some of your favorite experiences as an instructor?
Seeing change occur. When I worked with Andrea on MTV's Made - and I got a chance to be a teacher for her every day for six weeks, I saw a big change happen. One of my favorite things that made me cry, was just seeing the way she held herself, it had changed by the end. Her shoulders were back and proud and she held her head high. That was not the girl I met, it was the girl she became. We saw each other in March when I was on tour, and two years later, she is rocking her confidence. She has grown leaps and bounds and is an inspiration to others.
In Spellbinding Burlesque, one of my favorite parts is teaching them to strut with magic intent and then seeing all these badass girls strutting with me as we dance towards the mirror together. I have learned that the magic part is more than something you can see, it's something you can feel. You can feel the power radiating off of them. It's not something you can fake, it's something you have to draw from deep within. When it works, it's earth shattering. It's literally spellbinding. One of my favorite experiences as an instructor is being a witness to that.


What do you most hope people take away from your classes?
I hope they can have a more positive and saucy outlook, knowing that we can create our experiences with the magic that we were born with.
I once heard this analogy that stuck with me.... I realized that when I was running around in my life doing all of these things I didn't enjoy and trying to please others, I was like a a person running up and down a beach with a flashlight trying to bring the boats in. Which doesn't work. Only when I stood tall in my true self, unashamed and wholly me, was when I could become the lighthouse and draw the right "boats" in. Everything in my life clicked when I was the true me. So I tell my students - Be the lighthouse. Shine who you are to the world and the world will come to you.


Final word of advice for aspiring performers?
See you in class!

Catch Veronica's next class at The New York School of Burlesque!

Interview with Kitty Hartl, the producer of Cabaret New Burlesque.

Kitty Hartl is one of the loveliest people you'd ever want to meet, but sometimes I get so darn mad at her. My roommate is Julie Atlas Muz, and Kitty is always stealing her away to perform overseas! So I decided to pry into the motivations of this woman who deprives me of staying up late nights with my roomie.

"Forget the Follies Bergere, this is the Cabaret New Burlesque. Nude girls galore, but no porcelain dolls. Ferociously funny, extremely rock n roll, spicy, accomplished singers, and heirs to a long and rich American tradition, the savvy performers of the Cabaret New Burlesque are among the best in the business who, through sauciness and excess (in language and body), know how to find elegance and poetry in the absurd. Mezmerized spectators won't soon forget the grace and charm of [these performers]."



On Tour Now! See tour dates.

What is your background in the entertainment industry?
I have worked as a music and performance curator in a cultural center in France over 10 years, organised and curated several music festivals & art events.

What is Cabaret New Burlesque?
It's a burlesque show with 6 amazing American performers created in France in 2004.

How did you get the idea for it?
While doing researches for singular, unique and surprising projects for festivals, I found there's an artistic connection among some artists, especially rock'n roll ones I aready invited before.

How did you find the performers?
Dirty Martini, Kitten on the Keys and Mimi le Meaux at Tease-o-rama in Los Angeles in 2003, I also discovered Roky at this edition but only decided to add him in 2007 due to his cowboy pogo act! I think Dirty recommended Julie as I was looking for a mermaid for an art event in 2007, but then discouered her multi talents and since then she's been a regular part of the cast. Evie was recommended to Mathieu Amalric for the movie Tournée when he was looking for someone extremely shy and without much stage experience, so she's part of the Cabaret since 2010.


http://youtu.be/VhB8fq9HCok

How are audiences responding to the show?
Great, of course differently than in the states, less expressive and no shouting, but with the time to get used to it they learn to scream. Also, Kitten on the Keys coaches them very well how to behave.

What kind of people do you think come to the show?
All of ages, from 10 to 90 years, male and females mixed, all classes, from popular to high bourgoisie .


Photos by Eve Saint-Ramon

How big are the venues where you have the show?
It varies from 150 to 1000, lately more over 500 people, we even did a show at a huge Rock festival in front of 9000 people outdoors.

Where is Cabaret New Burlesque scheduled to show in the next six months?
Mostly in France, but also in some other european countries, eg London, Slovenie, Spain, Italy, perhaps Greece....

What would you like to see happen next for the show?
To tour and develop the spirit and the mouvement in some countries in Asia, especially also in Japan and South America countries.

She is absolutely shameless about her intentions to take my GF even further away! But I forgive her--the postcards are amazing.

Cabaret New Burlesque Website

Four Nights of Glitter and Glamour in Gotham!

September 29-October 2
The New York Burlesque Festival


It was the first burlesque festival of its kind in the world, and people come from all over the world to be in it!
Thursday September 29th
THE TEASER PARTY
Hosted By: The World Famous *BOB*
The Bell House
149 7th Street (between 2nd & 3rd), Brooklyn
thebellhouseny.com
Doors 7:00pm | Show 8:00pm
$10 advance, $15 at the door
Friday September 30th
THE PREMIERE PARTY
Hosted By: Scotty the Blue Bunny
Brooklyn Bowl
61 Wythe Ave, Brooklyn
brooklynbowl.com
Doors 8:00 pm | Show 9:00pm
$10 at the door
Saturday October 1st
THE SATURDAY SPECTACULAR
Hosted By: Murray Hill
BB King's
237 West 42nd Street, Manhatten
www.bbkingblues.com
Doors 6:30 pm | Show 7:30 pm
$25 advanced, $30 at the door
$65 VIP advanced
SATURDAY NIGHT OFFICIAL NYBF AFTER PARTY
Featuring DJ Bill Coleman, GOGOs, & More!
11pm - 1am @ Lucille's Bar
(Next door to BB King's and free for all Saturday ticket holders)
Sunday October 2nd
THE GOLDEN PASTIE AWARDS
Hosted By: Miss Astrid
Highline Ballroom
431 16th Street, Manhattan
highlineballroom.com
Doors 7:00 pm | Show: 8:00 pm
$20 advanced, $25 at the door
$30 VIP advanced, $35 VIP at the door
Sunday Night Official NYBF "All Stripped Out" After Party presented by BurlesqueBeat.com
DJs 2BTs, cocktail specials, mini-burgers and more!
11pm - 2am @ POP Burger
60 9th Avenue btw. 14/15th Streets
Headmistress Jo Boobs Weldon will be debuting a never-before-seen spectacular number Oct 1.
For details on the festival visit
http://www.thenewyorkburlesquefestival.com
For details on the classes we're providing during the festival visit
http://www.schoolofburlesque.com/newyorkburlesquefestivalclasses2011.shtml

Unleashed with Garo Sparo Premieres Tonight!

Yahoo!

AM New York's photo of me performing my Sherry Britton Tribute number at the Mother's Day Show at the Highline Ballroom.

Above: Me in the suit Garo made for my "Show Business" number, performing in my Striptease How-to video.

In honor of the premiere of Garo's show, I'm rereleasing this interview, which was also published in Alarm Press magazine.

In a recent post, I described how many burlesque performers collaborate very closely with designers, and named corsetier Garo Sparo as one of our favorite collaborators. Happily, Garo consented to an interview and allowed me the honor of taking some photos in his studio while he fit me for the "Parade of Muses" in his Sparkle and Cinch Fashion Show coming up on February 6.



Can you give me a little history about Garo Sparo? How did you begin designing? What do you like most about it?
I grew up around design. My grandparents were experts in bead-work and lace making. We always had sewing machines in the house while I was growing up. I began learning clothing construction from a Native American costume designer in Long Island when I was 11, which led to designing my first dress at 14. My teenage years were spent making hats that were sold in local shops and night clubs and making clothes for myself and friends. I think what I enjoy most about designing is that it allows me to make a living doing something I love, and I constantly get to work with inspiring and talented people.


Photos on the wall in Garo's Studio.

You're in the East Village where so much of the current burlesque scene exists or originated. How is the East Village scene for you?
The East Village is an amazing place, I live and work here and I would not want to be anywhere else. I think it is the only place in Manhattan where I could really feel inspired. There is always a strong gathering of colorful and creative people here to work with.

How did you become involved with burlesque costuming?
It began with working with * BOB * in the nineties. I always loved doing costuming, especially that which is functional and involves layering and mechanics, which burlesque often does. It also made sense that I would do burlesque work because corsetry is one of my specialties.


Bambi in her shrimp costume at Exotic World, Helendale, CA.

Tell me about your relationships with two or three of your burlesque clients.
Bambi: I love working with Bambi because her costumes are always transformations of her own personality into some kind of creature; a character that represents who she is by being totally off the wall and quirky but still beautiful and elegant. Her personality is embedded in the outfit and the costume is used to portray it.
Bunny Love- The purpose of Bunny Love's costumes is, and the reason I love working with her, is that they are created to abstract her true motivation. I once heard * BOB * describer her as "a playboy bunny with rabies," which is absolutely true. We always design things that are very sweet and girly, super feminine and even prim and proper. It is always to counter the truly subversive and bizarre nature of her acts.
* BOB *: * BOB *'s personality is framed by her costumes. She is not necessarily transformed into another character, but they serve to honor and present her own beauty and character and represent her distinctive taste and aesthetic.

How involved in the process of designing the costume or act do you become?
I become very involved in the creation of the entire piece. I discuss with the performer what will happen in the act. I then break it down so that the costume completely works with the choreography, and allows everything that will take place to happen in the smoothest, most beautiful manner possible.

As a costumer and performer I often find that the costume dictates the choreography, or the other way around. Do you find yourself getting involved in the acts? Do you go to see them after you make the costumes?
I always dissect the whole act so that everything will happen in a gorgeous succession. I design the costume, but also work with the performer on the choreography so that everything works together as a whole. Usually the performers that work with me perform acts that are particularly "costume –centric," so the outfit and choreography go hand in hand. I am always busy but I do try to see my clients perform when I can.



What has been your most challenging experience with creating a burlesque costume? Your most satisfying? Your favorite costume?
I think the most challenging outfit to date was probably Bunny Love's pink cake. It has to go from being a 5'8 tall cake to falling onto ground into a pile of ruffles in a matter of seconds. This was definitely quite a challenge mechanically.
It's hard for me to choose favorites but one costume that was very satisfying was Bambi's shrimp costume. It was very complete and extremely layered. It included something like over 10 elements of accessories and layers, and to top it off she had a lemon wedge that squeezed glitter juice all over her body! All the coordinating elements that created a beautiful whole made it very satisfying to design and create.
Another one of my favorites was Bambi's blacklight snail costume. I love it so much because she actually could get inside of it. It was beautiful on its own or under blacklight. It was extremely visually pleasing and also very layered and complex.



A sketch in Garo's studio.

What's next for the fabulous Garo Sparo?
I am doing a fashion show in February 2008 that I am very excited about. I will be showcasing my recent work and many of my burlesque and drag clients will be present to show off things I have made for them. I am very happy in my career at this point and am working to keep doing what I'm doing but on a larger scale. I want to continue to do couture, and costuming for film, events, burlesque and all types of performance. I love doing all of these things and I want to keep growing and expanding.

More photos from Garo's studio
Garo's Website

Heat Wave Burlesque!

Rock Stars of Burlesque Performing in New York City
August 27, 2011 7-10 pm
Prepare yourself for record heat when sizzling West Coat Burlesque joins forces with the hottest Burlesque performers of the East Coast for a show that can’t be missed. It’s a rare and sultry opportunity to see a spectacular cast of New York’s biggest stars with some of Los Angeles’ most celebrated talent. It’s all about the clothes—and about taking them off!
Pinup Girl Clothing, the most popular retro and alternative clothing company in the US, joins forces with Jo Boob Weldon, Headmistress of The New York School of Burlesque, to present an irresistible show of sexy striptease, amazing acrobatics, and fabulous fashion at the gorgeous Highline Ballroom.
“Watch ‘em dress. Watch ‘em undress. It’s a hell of a show!” says Weldon. Featuring your host from the West Coast, the inimitable Lucky Day; Miss Viva Las Vegas, La Cholita, known for her relentless shimmies and Latin fire; Laura Byrnes, famous pinup star and clothing designer; The Diamond Betties, one of the most sought-after troupes on the circuit; Jo Boobs Weldon, award-winning stripteaser and author of The Burlesque Handbook; Trixie Little and the Evil Hate Monkey, acrobatic burlesque super heroes; Julie Atlas Muz, international art star; and Dirty Martini, worldwide headliner, voted number 1 Burlesque performer in the world. Plus, a fashion show from Pinup Girl Clothing, featuring their exclusive lines of clothing and accessories.
Sponsored by Pinup Girl Clothing, Lucky 13 Clothing, and The New York School of Burlesque.

At the Highline Ballroom
Located at 431 W 16th St
New York, NY 10011
between 9th and 10th Ave
(212) 414-5994
Email contact: Jo Weldon at headmistress@schoolofburlesque.com
Heat Wave Burlesque website

"Keep Playing Till She's Naked" --An Interview with Ronnie Magri

[This article was originally published March 5, 2009.]

I have been extremely lucky to work with some of the best musicians in burlesque. I've been performing, or at least dancing, to live music all my life, including one glorious night with Spinal Tap, but most of the time I was just dancing along to the music. In burlesque with live music, there's real collaboration. The dancers rehearse their numbers with the bands, and the musicians watch the dancers to see if they need to give them a drum hit when a glove drops to the floor, if the music needs to be sped up or slowed down, or if they need to repeat a form until the dancer is ready to finish her number.

In New York we have live music at the Slipper Room every Wednesday night with amazing musicians including Brian Fisherman, with whom I've been performing for over 10 years, Le Scandal has featured The New York City Blues Devils and the Le Scandal Orchestra, Big Apple Burlesque features a live band every week, Brian Newman produces a burlesque show with his trio at Duane Park, and there's more, including pianist and arranger Albert Garzon, who seeks out old burlesque music and creates shows based on burlesque legends like Lydia Thompson, Georgia Sothern, and Gypsy Rose Lee. We have a wealth of live music in our burlesque. While most cities that have a burlesque scene have a swing band or two that will collaborate with dancers in some burlesque shows, and more and more shows are working with their own bands, in this city we have long had a wealth of extremely talented and devoted musicians that are specifically interested in collaborating with burlesque shows and doing music intended specifically for burlesque dancers.



At the moment we're fortunate to have our own native son, Brooklyn-born Ronnie Magri, in his hometown. While living in New Orleans, he helped to create a scene there that fostered dancers who would become The Atomic Bombshells of Seattle, who recently performed in Shanghai.

I know Ronnie from another life, when he was in a rock band called The Throbs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kQc3QboVMs

I also showed my photographs in a group show about burlesque with his amazing and beautiful wife, painter Charlene Lanzel.

More recently I've had the privilege of using his music on my instructional DVDs produced by World Dance New York, and of discussing a long term project I have in mind to promote appreciation of the music historically used in burlesque striptease, and the musicians who choose to collaborate with burlesque dancers today. Several months ago I interviewed him for this blog, and we decided to save the interview for the release of the DVD. So here it is, at long last, an interview with one of the legends of the burlesque revival!

First, tell us a little about the Throbs.
I joined The Throbs in the late 80s and we got signed to Geffen records, I suppose we were the hot shot New York band of the time. We were supposed to be the New York Guns N Roses, which was the kiss of death. It was a great band though. We got Little Richard to play piano and had Alice Coopers producer Bob Ezrin--we worked till ‘91 and we got dropped because we weren’t grungey. I kicked around New York a bit and ended up moving to New Orleans in 95. [The Throbs also played a reunion show at Don Hill's in January of 2009.]

How did you end up in New Orleans?
While I was making The Throbs record with Little Richard he was talking about New Orleans a lot and I moved there thinking I was going to play r n b, but that wasn’t happening. I kept going back and got into 20s 30s 40s type jazz. The first year I went all I did was listen, I didn’t play, I took it all in. I would just go sit and listen to people and would go watch my favorite drummers, I didn’t play at all, was just a fan, an observer of the music. That’s how I got into more jazz, which I wasn’t into in New York.
The thing about New Orleans is that music is a necessity there. It’s just not that important to people in New York now, but there were so many clubs and bands in New Orleans to play with, a real community, people willing to help you out. Tennessee Williams had a quote that New Orleans was the only city that ever loved him back. In New Orleans people care and want to help you. It was easy to just sit in with people and then the next think you're getting a call to do gigs. It just rolled. It was about helping each other out. Here a drummer would do a gig dying sick because he was afraid he’d lose his gig. It was a different vibe to get into the jazz New Orleans scene.


Above: At the Shim Sham Club

What was the Shim Sham Club?
It was a club in the French Quarter, operating under the name Maxwell's, and for years it was just a beautiful theater that was just falling apart. They would have bad music there. A friend of mine named Morgan Higby [associate producer of Shortbus] lived in LA and New Orleans, and he called me up one day and said he'd bought Maxwell’s Cabaret. He'd done a movie [Matters of Consequence] that featured the Pussycat Dolls in 199. When he moved to NOLA he wanted to do a burlesque kind of club. He decided to rename the space the Shim Sham Club after a place Louis Prima's brother Leon had owned, along with the 500 club where dancers like Lilly Christine had performed. Opening night we did a burlesque show with Sam Butera who had never played New Orleans even though it was his ome town. We did a show thinking it would be a one night only thing and when you put all that work into a show for one night it’s over so fast and you have the costumes and music and acts. Morgan decided to try it monthly, then weekly, every Sunday, two shows a night, and that was it. It just took off from there. New Orleans has such a history of burlesque. That got a lot of the press the media behind us. For better or for worse NEw Orleans has been known as sort of like a museum, where nothing was really about the future, it’s all about the past, so we’re recreating this, and the press ate it up, helped us get a crowd of locals, tourists, young and old. We couldn’t rely on any one type of audience. We got that it wasn’t a hipster underground thing.
We had the club owner behind us. We could use the space for rehearsals. He paid for the girls' costumes, paid the girls, paid for the band, the music that had to be written, so we had backing. I don’t think we would have been able to do it that long if it hadn’t been for him.

Who were the dancers?
Kitten LaRue and The Atomic Bombshells came from the Shim Sham dancers, I'm proud to see what they've done. There were about a hundred dancers that went through our revues and I think half a dozen of them stuck with it. There were still some burlesque dancers that were still alive, Kitty West the Oyster Girl, Wild Cherry, and Linda Brigette. They would come to give lessons. Those women would come down during rehearsals and give the girls pointers. I was there for a couple of those sessions and it was not pretty. They would tell the girls straight out, you’re walking like a truck driver. That was one of Kitty’s favorite lines. A couple of the girls really wanted to learn and listened anyway.
The show was open for five years till Morgan left New Orleans and the people from the shows scattered all over the country. Dita performed with us several times.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bckQisTELNU

What was it like to make the cd?
There was so little burlesque music on cd. I had a seven piece band every Sunday night, and I had the best band in the city. The band was phenomenal. Of course at the beginning I didn’t think about doing a cd and people kept asking for one. The demand brought me to it. It was kind of tricky because I had all those burlesque records and they’re all novelty records. I wanted to make a record that could be serious jazz record but burlesquey, fun but real. Over the course of time I picked out songs. The good thing about it was being able to do these shows and songs over the years, to find out what worked. We had the guitar player from Dr John’s band, the piano player from Gatemouth Brown’s band, the trumpet player from Squirrel Nut Zippers, Ruth Brown's bass player! We took two days in the studio and laid down the tracks. John Polt did liner notes about the musicians in burlesque, and Rick Delaup provided a history of burlesque.
Historically the thing with the musicians, you got into burlesque on your way up or your way down. You got strung out and now you’re working at a burlesque club. I kinda wanted it to not be such a novelty, to be the thing itself. I put Blaze Starr on the cover, and a lot of the old timers in no recognized her and would pick it up in the club and I’d hear a story about how they saw her.



Were you at the first Tease-o-rama Convention in New Orleans [2001]?
It was good! We were the house band but not many of the dancers worked with us. The good thing about these big events is that people got to know each other. At that point that countrywide community wasn’t happening.

What has it been like working with women who did burlesque in the 1950s?
I’ve spoken to a number of the old burlesque dancers and the question I’ve asked a number of them, is there a time or event that you can tell me when burlesque died, and they all say the day they got rid of the bands. Kitty West told me this a number of times—burlesque died when they got rid of the bands.
She would try to show girls and they would say I can’t do it. I watched Kitty do the oyster girl to my cd with the shell, she knew the whole act and I’ve not seen anybody be that suggestive. On the cd I was able to record this music that had never been recorded, written by a New Orleans musician. I had the original sheet music dated November 1st 1954. The author of the music was still alive. I talked to him and said, "Herb, I'm redoing that song for Kitty." He said he was doing that burlesque shit in high school! He couldn’t believe I found the music. He said, "I couldn’t watch, I was too young, if I looked at her I’d start making mistakes." He’s 60-70 now, whispering while he’s talking to me so I know the wife is not too far away.
One of the things about my record was coolest was working with Kitty. While I was working with her she found the original music for her oyster girl act. I’ve seen her do her act and there’s no one who will ever come close to doing that act her way. It’s so raunchy. Everybody that she’s ever showed or wanted to teach hasn’t done it that raunchy.

[laughing]I'm a New Yorker, I'll do it raunchy.
You know the story? The story is that every hundred years her shell opens up and she’s got one chance to get it on with the pearl, and when she comes out of the shell she’s fucking the pearl, she’s gyrating all over it!

So that fuck has to be worth a hundred years!
[laughing] Right.

When did you come back to New York?
After Katrina, 2005. I played with the Blues Devils at Le Scandal and it was my first taste of the New York new burlesque scene, had to learn the wing-it thing, after having had more control in the Shim Sham shows where it was all rehearsed. In New York people change their numbers in the middle of the show! We had a couple of guest stars with no real rehearsal, and I would have to tell the band to keep playing—if I saw she didn’t have her clothes off. In New Orleans the musicians were these really straight guys that had never had a band leader yelling keep playing till she’s naked. They’d be reading the music, not looking at the girl. Every so often you’d have a new guy who had to read the music and I’d have to yell, "S,he’s not naked yet just keep going! Keep playing till she's naked!"


Above: Ronnie Backs Me Up at the New York Burlesque Festival

I want a live music burlesque version of Godzilla so bad, I’ve got to get hold of Blue Oyster Cult.
Every dancer should have her own special music!

What would you like to do next?
I don’t know where I’ll be living, here or New Orleans, but I have a continuing interest in burlesque as a fan. I’m into it, just seeing what people are doing. I’d love to do another cd. Katrina derailed me along with everybody else. I didn’t lose all my belongings, but I had to pick up the pieces and move. I was in Paraguay and didn’t board up anything. I would really love to see a burlesque show on Broadway, in the sense where if you want a purple curtain you get a purple curtain. And I’d like to see people who've worked hard make money from this.

What's your favorite thing about burlesque?
Burlesque is one of the few art forms where Americans can say we invented jazz, and we invented this form of burlesque. I want to see people take it for what it is, the art it is.

Ronnie's Website

Click above to hear Ronnie's CD


Posted by Jo Weldon, Headmistress of The New York School of Burlesque, for burlesquedaily.blogspot.com.

A Quickie with Gal Friday

I don't know what I would do without the aptly named Gal Friday, burlesque star, pinup model, and Miss Coney Island 2009. She's a great girl in a pinch (and to pinch). You can take her anywhere and she can handle anything. She's charming, beautiful, and hilarious. And she's a fabulous performer with some fine, fine moves. She's saved my sanity in the middle of the night many a time, and I'm extremely fortunate to have her teaching at NYSB! I wish this was a longee instead of a quickie...


Gal in the private NYSB space at the Slipper Room.

How did you learn to do burlesque?
I'm still learning to do Burlesque! That's the best part... I keep learning and evolving. I never want to grow up, I just want to keep growing up !

When did you start teaching within the burlesque community?
About 3 years ago, at NYSB.



What are some of your favorite acts to perform?
This changes frequently. But at the moment I'd say Conquistadores, a newer act. I've just revamped it a bit, it's come a long way since I debuted it months ago. I like seeing how acts mature, like having kids. But kids you stuff in a bag at the end of the night when you're done with 'em.

Did you ever expect to be teaching regularly?
I actually figured it would happen at some point, though I didn't know it would be in Burlesque! Back in ye olde University my professors were trying to nudge me in that direction. I didn't want to hear it! For me it perform perform perform. But, I now see what an honor it was that they saw that in me. Teaching is hard work. You want people to trust you and what you have to offer... and sometimes you have to set aside your own opinions/feelings & let them take what they want out of it. You also have to be willing to give up a part of yourself and what you've learned... that's scary. Knowing how to be a good, fair, yet entertaining teacher is an admirable skill.



What are some of the classes you teach?
Classic Moves, Chair, Glove/Stocking Peel. I'll step in for Peekaboo Pointe's Booty Class when she's off being famous somewhere! All are great fun! But I love any class where I throw in a small workout and make you sweat and curse my good name. You'll thank me later :)

What have been some of your favorite experiences as an instructor?
Teaching a Senator from Oklahoma to tassel twirl. She was 63 and a breast cancer survivor. She had a double mastectomy and be damned if we didn't figure out a way for her to twirl!! She wanted to learn and thrilled to find out she could. I always tell girls who bemoan about their breasts (too big, too small, etc) about Joyce. " If she can do it, you can too! Now take off your tops..."

What do you most hope people take away from your classes?
Confidence, solid practical advice, and maybe some sore muscles!

Final word of advice for aspiring performers?
Go to shows and support. You'll learn so much by watching your peers. Respect your fellow performers, a lot of them paved the way to make this a lot easier for you to do. Also, honor your art. Burlesque isn't just flitting around til your boobs are out... it's Strip Tease, it's telling a story! And whether you do classic, avant garde, etc... you want to entertain your audience. Remember, we all practice and rehearse our butts off to make it all seems so improvised and easy. We all have boobs, so the challenge is: what do I have to offer to make this entertaining for that crowd out there?


Gal n me after our mother-daughter act. It's ok to be disturbed... ;)

Stage Kitten Guidelines

Hey folks! A lot of my students are asking about stage kitten duties. I'm creating a handout, and one of our former students will be conducting a workshop. I'd appreciate your thoughts on what I've written. Most of the shows I produce are workshop showcases, so I've gotten input from regular producers and kittens who work for them.


Ray Ray Sunshine kittening after my Godzilla act at Michelle L'Amour's Speakeasy in Chicago.

FOR THE KITTENS

It’s crucial to understand first of all that each producer will have their own guidelines, some of which may be different than these. However, these will let you know some of the things stage kittens need to think about, with the questions they most frequently ask.

Q: What is a stage kitten?
A: A stage kitten is the person who picks up the costume pieces and props after a burlesque number. They get lots of stage time! When you're kittening, be sure to watch the performers undress to help you know what to pick up and get every piece. Remember, there are usually two gloves! If one is missing, wait until after the show to find it rather than rummaging around in the crack between the stage and the wall during the show.

Will I also have to set up the stage for the act?
It depends on the show, but it’s very common for stage kittens to also set out props such as fans, chairs, and tables with props.

What should I wear?
Ask the producer, but if they don’t specify, wear something fun and flirty and sexy. Not a party dress, but perhaps a go-go costume with fringe and some high heels. Wear makeup and hair as if you were performing. You can often be a character if you like, but be sure to check with the show producer about that. Depending on the show, you may need to be lowkey.

What else will they need?
A stage name. Do a search on this blog for stage name tips. Remember, names like Kitten, Kitty, Kat, etc., tend to be taken and it will be hard for you to get gigs if you're getting confused with someone with a similar name.

Will I get paid?
It depends on the show and on your level of experience. Some shows just don't have a budget, and you can kitten for them based on how you feel about that--it's always fun. Most of the time you will not get paid the first several times you do it. After that, you will probably get something along the lines of tips, $20-$50. It isn’t fair for people to ask you to do it for free if you’ve been doing it a lot and they are making money. If you become a very good and adept stage kitten and highly in demand, you may get more, especially if you really dress for it and use your stage time wisely. If everyone else is getting paid, you should probably get paid too. If you are selling things for the show during intermission or before or after the show, you may get a percentage of sales.

What will I get out of it?
It’s one of the best ways to find out what really goes on in a show. You’ll learn a lot about costuming as you pick up the costume pieces and about staging as you handle the props. You’ll learn backstage etiquette quickly. You’ll get to network and meet a lot of people and get to know a lot of venues. There may be other perks as well--free dinners, free shows, swag, and other treats!

Also read my interview with Fleur De Lys about her experiences as a stage kitten!

Where Did I Go?

I underestimated how many gigs I booked this past month and STILL have not finished transcribing my AMAZING interview with Miss Clams Casino. The good news, however, is I did manage to cram in my third interview! Last week I sat with the amazing Darlinda Just Darlinda, and hope to have both of those interviews posted in the next month.

Friend me on facebook for updates about htis blog.

XOXO

Lefty

Interview with Clams Casino to come!!!

Hey there, fancy pants!

A couple weeks back I had the honor of interviewing Ms. Clams Casino for this very blog and, foro the first time since then, had more than 5 minutes at home to upload the file to my computer! I hope to have it posted within the next couple of weeks!

For updates on when there will be new posts, you can become a follower of this blog, or friend me on facebook, where I will always link to this blog when a new interview is up.

XO,

Lefty Lucy

Interview with Bonnie Dunn, Pt. 2 of 2

Bonnie Dunn, known as “the Godmother of Burlesque,” has been performing her cabaret and burlesque acts for over a decade. She sat down with me at her apartment in Manhattan and told me about her many unique experiences performing burlesque in New York. You can read the first part of my interview with her here.



New York vs. The World
LL: What have you noticed about how burlesque has changed?

BD: I think that the spirit of burlesque, the art form itself, attracts a certain type of personality. I would say a person that’s a little bit more edgy, a little bit more of a rebel, that doesn’t necessarily fit in to, say, the Broadway mold, or the typical body that you need to be in a dance company, for example. People come to New York to pursue a career in the theater or music or whatever, and they are really lucky now to have burlesque. We used to joke about the ads in backstage; The ad would say, ‘You have to dance, you have to sing, you have to do flips, you have to have classical training,’ and then at the end of the ad it would say, ‘NO PAY.’ So I feel like burlesque and circus and vaudeville—all of that has opened up all these venues for live entertainment that they really didn’t have in the early ’90s. You did have these underground clubs where you could do performance art, but I really wasn’t in that scene. I was more in the cabaret/midtown/singing [scene], with the gown and the piano and all of that, but they weren’t for pay. And I know people who make a living out of burlesque. Not the greatest living, but they do make a living doing it. But I would say that it’s still the same in that it attracts that type of person that would be uninhibited.

If you look at [burlesque] within the United States, I’ve noticed that every city has a different flavor, a different perspective on it. New York has a lot of very individual acts because it, as I said, stems out of performance art. We were doing so many shows, carrying our bags all over the city. So it wasn’t until we went to Tease-O-Rama that we saw, full blast, some of these costumes. We were like, “Look at these people from L.A. that have money, that do shows once a month so they have time to really work on their costumes”—I mean, I really felt that when I went to Exotic World, I was looking at the costumes going, “Oh my god!” They really concentrate on that in certain other places. And I think New York concentrates on the quality of the performance. And also, well, they’re original in a lot of places, but I think New York is grittier. Vegas is glitzier, it’s more packaged. New York is really that performance art vibe which is nice, because you don’t want all pretty, feathers—it’s a beautiful aesthetic, but that’s only one part of it.



LL: So have you done Coney Island?

BD: I’ve done Coney Island almost since the beginning of when they started doing burlesque there, at least 10 years ago. Coney Island is probably my favorite. I think Coney Island is my favorite gig. Even compared to my own show, because I can be really creative. I have this big place in my heart for Coney Island, definitely. I like all the people that run it, and admire what they’re doing and what they’ve been doing all these years to revitalize it. Dick Zigun and Fredini—those people are really wonderful. I would say that Coney Island’s been a huge inspiration to me. The Blue Angel was great—I started there—but as far as the inspiration you were talking about, Coney Island is probably my biggest inspiration.

LL: What is it about Coney Island, for you, that makes it so special?

BD: The whole history of the freak show, of the circus, of carnival—that whole thing about kind of being on the edge. Just the showmanship, feeling like you’re really transported back to another time, and it takes skills! A lot of those circus acts take a lot of skill. And the originality of it. Just thinking of going in to a ghetto and taking a lost art form and dedicating his life to revitalizing that, I really admire that.

LL: What are other performers who you’re into now, or who you’ve seen develop over the years?

BD: I’ve seen a lot of people really develop. Tyler Fyre—I really saw him change and develop and become really great. He’s in Baltimore now, but he started in Coney Island. He’s one of the Coney Island people. I think he really learned a lot of his stuff from Keith. But there’s so many great people. Julie Atlas Muz—she was at the Red Vixen. That’s where we went from the Blue Angel. That was the interim period. I mean, she was always very good and very original, but to see her, to see Kate Valentine—she did the Va Va Voom Room. That was one of the first shows out there, too, a couple years after the Blue Angel. And Dirty Martini started with all those people. They were all pretty damn good. Tigger, Rose Wood—I think Rose Wood really developed. Rose, she’s the kind of person that will really rehearse her act very professionally. I can’t think of all the people that I’ve known that are in it.

LL: Are there any stories or costumes that you remember loving, or people or…

BD: Oh, there’s so many! I guess when you asked me how it’s changed, it’s much more accepted. People know what burlesque is. There’s so many more people that want to do it. And I remember Steve [Walter]—he was the owner of the Cutting Room, where I used to have [Le Scandal]—he was telling me to get some younger women doing burlesque, and I couldn’t find ’em! But now they’re just banging down the door.

When I [started] doing burlesque, there really was a stigma to it. We got a lot of slack about, “Oh, come on, it’s just stripping. You’re putting some artistic costume over it, but when you get right down to it, it’s still objectifying women.” That was an issue that was brought up by reporters very often: “What is the difference between stripping and burlesque?” And I would say that now, that question really isn’t asked as often. It’s seeped in to the mainstream culture, even in to advertizing. There’s not that stigma at all now, which I think is wonderful. You know, you shouldn’t be ashamed at a little bit of boobies.

I guess it is empowering because it’s a lot of women that run the shows, and it’s a celebration of all different kinds of body types and different ages. If you criticize that, then you’re not getting it. And if the act is good enough, you’re not going to be concentrating on, ‘Oh, that person’s a little heavy,’ or ‘That person’s younger,’ or older, or whatever, because you’re looking at the act. I mean, you’re looking at the body too. That’s very naive to say that you’re not looking at the body—that’s a big part of it, that’s your instrument. But, you don’t get it then—that would be a strip club if you’re looking for a particular body type. But we have to keep that perspective, otherwise it’s gunna become something else.

Le Scandal is every Saturday night at the West Bank Café on 42nd st and 9th Avenue.

Images from Le Scandal's myspace:
www.myspace.com/lescandalcabaret

Video of the Week

Revealing Images: Ursulina

The Candy Gram: Chastity Chaos

Miss Banbury Cross

Rosario Lopez Concert Photography has added a photo to the pool:

Miss Banbury Cross during her burlesque performance.

December 2011,
Taboo "Barcelona Burlesque Nights",
Sala Apolo,
Barcelona.

Loulou D'Vil

Sentido Photography has added a photo to the pool:

Taboo, Velada Burlesque : Sala Apolo Barcelona

www.sentidofotografia.com

the judder man

digitalfailure has added a photo to the pool:

BIG SEXY SHOW – FEB. 11 – 2 SHOWS

Make your Valentine’s Day plans early, as this show sells out every year!

I will be doing a WORLD premiere act and The Chicago Starlets will be doing 2 new group acts. Solos will be performed by Lady Ginger, Frenchie Kiss, Kami Oh, Vivian Velvet, Lily Bloom, Stella LaRocque, and our newest addition, May Oui! There will also be variety acts like beat box sensation, Yuri Lane, and comedy duo, Parker and Seville.  BIG SEXY SHOW also stars Hot Toddy, King of Burlesque 2009.  We are doing 2 shows on February 11th, 8:30pm and 11pm at the Music Box Theatre.  Tickets are $25 or 2 for $40 in advance.  There are VIP tickets for $100 that include preferred seating and a bottle of champagne.  Drinks will be available in the lobby of the Music Box Theatre, an addition we are all very excited about!  Don’t miss this amazing event! Get your [tickets] now!

21st Century Top 50 and Morning News

Thank you to all who voted for me in 21st Century Burlesque Magazine Top 50 of 2011!  I’m honored to be in your top 5!  Check it out [here]!

And, this week, I put on my makeup way earlier than any showgirl ever should and did the WGN morning news! I was joined by Ivy Fabulous and Lily Bloom and we worked out Ana with Tease & Tone.  Here are some clips:

Tease & Tone Part 1

Tease & Tone Part 2

You can still register for the Tease & Tone class on Thursdays at Studio L’amour, or purchase the DVD [here].

Slumber Party!

Happy New Year! I am very excited to get 2012 off to a sexy start.  Here’s what’s coming up in the next couple weeks:

1. Studio L’amour begins a new session Jan. 9th.  [Registration] is now available.  What better way to achieve your resolutions than to take a burlesque class?

2. Cocktail Club is back at the Everleigh Social Club on Jan. 9th with cocktail artist, Steve Carrow.  Space is very limited, so [reserve] your spot early.

3. It’s a Naked Girls Reading Slumber Party on Jan. 13!

I’ll be reading alongside Greta Layne and reading new comer, Honey Halfpint! We’ve got all your favorite teenage lit, and DJ Ajent Orange will be playing some great teen pop. We’re getting a little nostalgic on this one!  [Join us]!

mestcs @ 2006-01-14T20:38:00

mestcs @ 2004-09-25T15:08:00

mestcs @ 2004-05-21T11:03:00