Sarah was recently included in Bizarre Magazine’s British Burlesque Hall of Fame article as one of 10 acts considered the hottest in the country. So what are you waiting for, get a cup if tea and tune in!

Tassel Time returns with its Eighth episode and first ever male guest in the guise of ukulele wizard Mr Des O’Connor! Listen as The Decadent Gent asks the questions and Mr O’Connor dishes out the answers in yet another fantastic episode of Burly fun!

I just have to make this post happen, though. Thanks to all the performers, the producers, volunteers, and audience of the show, and congratulations to the winners!

Best Debut

Perle Noire
Image from Perle’s myspace

Best Duo

Jewel of Denial and Kat Bardot
Image from Jewel’s myspace
Best Boylesque
No photo or web link at the moment, but I’ll find one! Send one if you have one!
Sin Jyn
Best Troupe

Peak-a-boo Revue
Photo from the Revue’s myspace
2nd Runner Up for Miss Exotic World

Trixie Little
Photo by me
1st Runner Up for Miss Exotic World

Lux La Croix
Image from Lux’s myspace
Miss Exotic World 2008

Angie Pontani
Photo by Whitney Ward

And thanks to our judges, Catherine D’Lish, Lily Burana, Lisa Kereszi, Grant Philipo, and Viva La Fever! The performers were all outstanding and they had quite a task.

When I get home I’ll post more photos. In the meantime, search on flickr for “exotic world” and “burlesque hall of fame,” and you should see some fabulous shots!

What is your hometown?
Deeeeeeeeeetroit, Michigan!

How long have you been interested in burlesque/performing?
I’ve been performing burlesque for eight years now (holy crap!) but I’ve been “performing” in some sense of the word since I was a toddler. I studied acting in college and was in several comedy improv troupes before I started my striptease career in Detroit in 2000.

How many pairs of pasties do you own?
Christ, I have no idea. Far too many. I also have the one sock problem, but with pasties — I have far too many pairs of unmatched pasties floating around the house. What do you do with one pastie? My most recent show, I glued one to my hat.

What are your three favorite songs to perform to?
Like many performers I go through phases with songs and routines — my current favorite is a classic fan dance that I perform to Dr. Dre’s Let Me Ride. Another perennial favorite is the theme song to Police Squad. For the third, I’d have to say the song I’m performing at Miss Exotic World — but don’t want to spoil the surprise.

What three items could you not live without as a performer?
Glitter, of course! It flows in my veins.
Nude fishnets
Liquid latex

Who had the biggest influence on your career?
I draw my influences from many different arenas, from pinup glamor to dance technique to slapstick comedy. I always like to say my two biggest influences are Sally Rand and Daffy Duck. My choreographer from Detroit, Christopher Leadbitter of Causing a Scene Productions, made a tremendous impact on my growth as a performer about midway through my career, really inspiring me and helping me to take it to the next level in terms of dance technique. And currently I draw huge amounts of love, inspiration and general mayhem from the group I perform with in San
Francisco, the Hubba Hubba Revue.

Who is your favorite burly queen?
Oh, now, I can’t pick just one! I have many performers from the contemporary burlesque scene whom I absolutely adore, but I don’t want to start naming names lest I forget one! Let’s just say I’ll be sharing the stage with many of them in Vegas! I also have to say, the extremely close bond I’ve formed with living legend Toni Elling is extremely close to my heart. And I just love Satan’s Angel to death, as well as Holiday O’Hara and Lottie the Body.

What is your favorite item of clothing?
Does glitter count as a clothing item? Again, I don’t think I can pick just one! I do have a pair of sky-high 7-inch metal heeled Luichiny platforms that I think I should be buried in.

What’s the last movie you saw?
In the theaters? I don’t even remember. Last night I watched Raiders of the Lost Ark while sewing burlesque bling onto my costume.

What’s on your must-see-TV list?
I don’t watch much TV — I love the Daily Show and South Park, and will happily confess that Dancing with the Stars is a big guilty pleasure of mine!

What book is on your nightstand?
I’m a writer, so I’m constantly reading, but I have a short attention span so I’m often reading two or three books at the same time. Right now it’s Lamb by Christopher Moore (one of my current favorite authors) and I’ve been re-reading American Tabloid by James Ellroy (another favorite!)

If you could go anywhere for vacation, where would you go?
I’d love to do a month-long tour of Europe. And I’ve never been to Australia or South America and have always wanted to go.

If you could have any superpower, which one would you want? Why?
Um, the ability to snap my fingers and instantly be made up for a show! As I like to say, when you’re a showgirl, sometimes putting on makeup isn’t fun, it’s work! I’d love to be able to blink like Jeannie and shazam! All glittered up, hair done, and ready to go. And, you know, the ability to invoke world peace and end poverty and hunger, and all!

Satisfy your appetite for more Candy Grams: Vivienne VaVoom, Lux LaCroix, Charlotte La Belle Araignee, Bunny Love, Amber Topaz, Amelie Soleil, Red Hot Annie, HoneyLu, Kimberlee Rose, Vicky Butterfly, Dominique Immora, Yasmine Vine, Cherry Bomb, Millie Dollar, Joanie Gyoza, Bonbon Vivant, Lola Martinet, Frankie Boudoir, Vixen Violette, Ravenna Black, Veronica Lashe, Amber Ray, Beatrix von Bourbon, Angie Pontani, Tanya Cheex, Bloody Belle, Clams Casino, Trixie Little, Michelle L’Amour, Margaret Cho, Miss Dirty Martini, Princess Farhana, Miss Delirium Tremens, Paris Green, Jo Boobs, Jack Midnight, Heidi Von Haught, Diamond Minx, The Titillation Twins, Scratch, Creamy Stevens and Gina Louise.

What is your hometown?
Denver

How long have you been interested in burlesque/performing?
Ten years this summer!

How many pairs of pasties do you own?
Countless - I have a large Tupperware full of them.

What are your three favorite songs to perform to?
David Rose’s Banned in Boston (My MEW song!), Petula Clark’s version of Whatever Lola Wants in French, and Lucienne Boyer’s Parlez-moi D’amour (for my fan dance).

What three items could you not live without as a performer?
False eyelashes, good shoes, lots and lots of glitter and rhinestones.

Who had the biggest influence on your career?
Miss Dirty Martini. She embodies that old burlesque bump-n-grind aesthetic, which I love. When I’m teaching burlesque she’s my favorite example of someone who knows every song she performs to inside and out. Her body emphasizes every drum beat, and grinds to every horn wail, her clothes come off precisely in time with the music. I grin like a maniac every time I see her perform, I just love watching her so much and I learn something new every time I see her.

Who is your favorite burly queen?
Gypsy Rose Lee - her self-transformation from vaudeville tramp to a burlesque queen featured on the pages of Vogue, is very inspiring. And I love that she had a sewing machine with her at all times (I think it was mounted in the trunk of her car).

What is your favorite item of clothing?
Burlesque: the cincher from my red corset. I made it myself, and while it’s not perfect, it’s pretty darned good!
Other: My satin rust colored floor length dress. It makes me feel like a movie star when I wear it!

What’s the last movie you saw?
Ms. Pettigrew Lives for a Day Lovely costumes - I want to be Amy Adams’ character and I REALLY want a Ms. Pettigrew.

What’s on your must-see-TV list?
I’m hoping Pushing Daisies comes back in the fall. I really miss it!

What book is on your nightstand?
Gilded Lili: Lili St. Cyr and the Striptease Mystique and The Happy Stripper: Pleasures and Politics of the New Burlesque.

If you could go anywhere for vacation, where would you go?
I love Tulum, Mexico, but really any remote place with a good beach, warm ocean and clothing optional. While I love dressing up it’s nice to not have to glamour up and just go totally au naturale for a few days.

If you could have any superpower, which one would you want? Why?
Magic lasso, bullet deflecting wrist cuffs, an invisible plane … I’m completely obsessed with Wonder Woman.

Satisfy your appetite for more Candy Grams: Amber Topaz, Amelie Soleil, Red Hot Annie, HoneyLu, Kimberlee Rose, Vicky Butterfly, Dominique Immora, Yasmine Vine, Cherry Bomb, Millie Dollar, Joanie Gyoza, Bonbon Vivant, Lola Martinet, Frankie Boudoir, Vixen Violette, Ravenna Black, Veronica Lashe, Amber Ray, Beatrix von Bourbon, Angie Pontani, Tanya Cheex, Bloody Belle, Clams Casino, Trixie Little, Michelle L’Amour, Margaret Cho, Miss Dirty Martini, Princess Farhana, Miss Delirium Tremens, Paris Green, Jo Boobs, Jack Midnight, Heidi Von Haught, Diamond Minx, The Titillation Twins, Scratch, Creamy Stevens and Gina Louise.

Article by Lucida Sans

Most college Greek societies require creepy hazing rituals or at least four kegs for anyone to take their top off; Alpha Psi Ecdysia needs only to schedule a meeting. That’s because Alpha Psi Ecdysia is not a sorority, but the official burlesque troupe of SUNY New Paltz—one of only three burlesque troupes on an American college campus and the only one to operate out of a public university. A.P.E. was born this Spring, when new-girl-in-town Lucida Sans (that’s me—hi!) realized that her sexy and talented classmates–including a champion hula hooper, a fire dancer, a girl with a sexy lobster costume and nowhere to wear it, and some of the most badass coeds you’ll ever know–had no outlet for their fabulosity.

Alpha Psi Ecdysia had a few events and field trips during the early part of the semester, but it didn’t really exist until Jo Weldon came to teach an all day workshop on campus.

“Jo made a bunch of young women feel totally comfortable about jumping around topless in front of full length mirrors, and that’s pretty remarkable. I couldn’t stop saying, ‘JO IS LIKE, MY HERO. WHEN SHE SAID (insert Jo quote here), I WAS LIKE, I LOVE YOU.’ I’m still more excited about what I did Saturday than anything I’ve done in a while.”–
-Gemma Stone, SUNY New Paltz ‘09

“Thank you so much Jo for taking time out of you exciting, busy life to do this workshop for us! I want to personally thank you for letting me be comfortable and feel sexy in my own body without feeling dirty or guilty. I never really truly embrace my body because by society’s standards I am not the ideal picture of sexiness, I’m considered fat and out of shape. You let me embrace the inner ‘me’ and finally feel 100% comfortable in my own body. I felt sexy and desirable for the first time in my life. I by the way, was dying to tell you that when I was a little girl, I also wanted to be a stripper. I thought that it would have allowed me to be sexually validated. Like, men would always desire me if I was a stripper. But, being introduced to burlesque made me desire me. I honestly did not want to keep my shirt on after it came off. I was proud of my body and I was proud of the sexy me. I was in Catholic school my entire life and I would never have even considered doing anything like this, my stripper thoughts alone were scandalous, but I am really happy that I had the opportunity to participate in this. For the first time, I felt at home and in touch with who I truly am.” –

-Virago Sadine, SUNY New Paltz ‘11

The founding troupe and its corresponding debut show formulated organically after the workshop, and by the following month we were papering the town with flyers for our upcoming show. Though we’d experienced no prior opposition to our work, things got a little “The Night They Raided Minsky’s” once we began advertising. A well-meaning theatre professor began pulling individual performers aside to urge them to reconsider their involvement, explaining that she worried they would be viewed as “stripper-trash” and that she was uncomfortably seeing “[her] girls” in this manner. Other professors expressed concern about the performers’ safety and reputation, and were shocked to find that every “what if?” scenario they envisioned had already been considered by the troupe; most were relieved and impressed to find we had already planned precautions for such scenarios—others remained adamant in their opposition.

The biggest shock to the troupe’s system occurred less than 24-hours before the show, when I received a call from the venue telling me that local authorities had ‘gotten hold of’ our posters and were trying to scare them into canceling the show. In spite of the venue’s cabaret license, the police department was looking for loopholes within the local law with which to persecute the company and venue. I received threats that I would be arrested and the venue would lose its liquor license, should the show go on as planned. The venue stuck behind us and vowed not to cancel the show, but asked that we tame the show by wearing no less than full-back panties and bras at all times.

While stage manager extraordinaire Shari Griswold contacted the performers to tell them to be prepared for such changes, I went to Village Hall to petition the issue. After lengthy meetings with various authorities and tireless efforts from myself and others, it was good ol’ Gypsy that saved the day. As soon as the building inspector realized that we were talking “burlesque, like in the musical Gypsy” and not lord-only-knows-what-she-had-imagined, the issue was dropped entirely. The show went on the following night—pasties and all.

The troupe performed its debut show—Alpha Psi Ecdysia: Touched for the Very First Time—at a local piano bar on Friday, May 2nd. Amazingly, the only nervous person backstage was me. The performers remained professionally calm in spite of technical and house management difficulties that turned me into an utter wreck in the minutes before showtime. 120 people squeezed into the 70-seat venue, and 100 others were turned away. In spite of some technical difficulties, the show—which featured fifteen soloists, two group numbers, four go-go dancers, and live music by Anton Jackov and The Threesomesters—was pretty fucking fantastic.

At the show’s end, the place erupted with sexual joy, devolving into a fabulous dance party that lasted until the bar kicked us out. The audience response was incredible, and gained APE a bevy of beautiful new performers (far more than we could ever book in a single show!). Most fulfilling was receiving emails from students like Lizz Guzman, who wrote: “Each and every woman (and man) who took the stage embodied beauty, sexuality, femininity and a great sense of feline fun. I was so excited to see so many different types of bodies, types of acts…you all really captured the beauty of the female form. […] I think that every woman in the audience learned an important lesson about being sexy and being confident from all of you.”

Performing burlesque has been an overwhelmingly positive experience for the women and men of APE; everyone loves finding new ways to experience music, experimenting with performative sexuality, feeling beautiful and sexy, laughing at the sacred, bonding over bedazzling, and so much more; the same stuff every burlesque performer loves. Unique to APE is the excitement of seeing performers courageously claiming and expressing sexual identities they’ve only begun to explore, and sharing that exploration with the audience; or the thrill of seeing a girl who has never undressed for anyone—even a lover—removing her bra onstage to delighted screams; or a performer’s mother—trepidatious since day one—crying with pride by the end of her daughter’s act; or a performer changing her thesis topic to account for her newfound passion.

As founding members perfect their acts in out-of-troupe performances throughout New York State, new performers have joined the group and begun their exploration. APE has existed for less than four months, and already I can spend a morning teaching incoming freshmen about burlesque and the troupe, the afternoon rehearsing new acts with first-time performers, and the night seeing seasoned APEcdysiasts perform in Hudson, Albany, Brooklyn, and more. SUNY New Paltz is learning that burlesque is an exciting and vital performance form, academic pursuit and tool for personal growth. With six themed, full-length shows planned for the coming academic year, thirty six student participants, and continued support from the university, Alpha Psi Ecdysia plans to continue its productivity as long as there is interest.

Alpha Psi Ecdysia will reprise Touched for the Very First Time at Rififi (332 E. 11th) on Thursday, June 5th at 10pm. Learn more about the gang at http://www.myspace.com/AlphaPsiEcdysia

End of Lucida’s Article! Go to the show and see what all the excitement is about!

I am amazed by this story, the way I was amazed when I was on the Sex Workers’ Art Show Tour and I saw all the different groups that brought us to the campuses. When I was in college there weren’t groups like this. Of course I went to business school and I might have missed something that was going on around me, but I don’t think so. I think there really is a lot more openness to this kind of playfulness and exploration than there was when I was their age. I’m so happy to see it!

In just a few hours I’ll be leaving for the Burlesque Hall of Fame weekend in Las Vegas. Many of my students will be there. I was thinking about this last year–many of them are the age they’d be if I’d had kids in my twenties, and many of the legends performing and speaking at the show are of the age to have had me in their twenties. That makes me just about the definition of a middle-aged stripper. Who would ever have thought being a middle-aged stripper would make for such a great life?

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

On June 3, 1917, Marie Frances Van Schaack was born at Abbott Hospital in Minneapolis. Instead of Marie’s mother, her grandmother Alice took the newborn home from the hospital and raised her. Years later, her family told Marie that Alice took her home because her mother Idella was too sick to care for her and her father Edward simply disappeared. But in fact Edward hadn’t disappeared, he’d been drafted. … The United States entered World War I toward the end of the struggle and Edward spent less than a year in the army, serving most of his hitch at Camp Lewis in Washington State.

By the time Edward arrived at Camp Lewis, Idella was involved with another man, Louis “Jack” Cornett. While it is uncertain whether the two ever wed–and descendants of Cornett’s doubt it–they did have two children. But Idella’s relationship with their father did not last. By 1924 she had married Ian (John) Alfred Blackadder, a Scottish immigrant, and was pregnant with their first child. A year later, a month before she turned 30, Idella gave birth to her fifth and last child.

While her young mother started a new family and her father served in the military, Marie remained with Alice and her new husband Ben, believing they were her parents and Idella was her older sister. And for much of her childhood, she went by the name Marie Klarquist.

Much later, her family finally explained to Marie that Idella was really her mother, not her sister, and that Alice was her grandmother, not her mother. Marie rarely talked about the admission or its impact on her. As late as 1982 she wrote in her Canadian memoir Ma Vie de Stripteaseuse, “Even today, I don’t understand perfectly how much this revelation affected me. I did my best not to let it affect me.”

Lili’s not the only one celebrating a birthday today. According to The Writer’s Almanac, “it’s the birthday of Josephine Baker, a dancer and singer who became one of the most popular music-hall entertainers in France. Time magazine wrote: ‘Mlle. Baker wore feathers on her rump, bananas dangling from her belt, nothing else. Parisians were raving overnight.’ Baker said: ‘I wasn’t really naked. … I simply didn’t have any clothes on.’”

What is your hometown?
I was born in Harlem, raised in Brooklyn NYC but I currently find myself being held hostage in Los Angeles.

How long have you been interested in burlesque/performing?
I have been a burlesque performer for almost four years. I have been a dancer since I was two.

How many pairs of pasties do you own?
Actually not that many, I think about six. Although I can only seem to find one pair when I am trying to get ready for a show, and it’s never the pair I’m looking for.

What are your three favorite songs to perform to?
This could change at any moment, but for now it’s Gold Digger by Kanye West, List of Demands by Saul Williams and Drum Mode by Grey.

What three items could you not live without as a performer?
Inspiration, a suitcase and a fabulous wig.

Who had the biggest influence on your career?
Spike Lee and Gordon Parks are by biggest influences in my career as a documentary filmmaker and an artist. Debbie Allen, Bill T. Jones, Rosie Perez and Sammy Davis Jr. get all the credit for my dance and choreography ventures.

Who is your favorite burly queen?
I have two favorites - Julie Atlas Muz and Diamondback Annie. Their numbers walk the fine line of burlesque and performance art. Both of them are breathtaking and inspirational.

What is your favorite item of clothing?
This too can change at any moment - right now it’s my new Heatherette dress. It’s really fluffy with lots of petticoats!

What’s the last movie you saw?
I just watched Vince Gallo’s The Brown Bunny for the thousandth time.

What’s on your must-see-TV list?
As much as I hate to admit it I am slightly addicted to Gossip Girl and of course Project Runway.

What book is on your nightstand?
Black Rage by William H. Grier & Price M. Cobbs.

If you could go anywhere for vacation, where would you go?
I don’t really vacation. All my travels are somehow tied to work. I think I would get really nervous languishing on an island for a week because that would mean things were not getting accomplished. I’m sure there is something wrong and unhealthy about that but it works for me.

If you could have any superpower, which one would you want? Why?
I would have the power to clone myself therefore one of me could be in post production with my film, another could be photographing bands on the road, the other could be working on choreography gigs and the last one would be dancing. But, the sad thing is none of them would have time to return any phone calls.

Satisfy your appetite for more Candy Grams: Amber Topaz, Amelie Soleil, Red Hot Annie, HoneyLu, Kimberlee Rose, Vicky Butterfly, Dominique Immora, Yasmine Vine, Cherry Bomb, Millie Dollar, Joanie Gyoza, Bonbon Vivant, Lola Martinet, Frankie Boudoir, Vixen Violette, Ravenna Black, Veronica Lashe, Amber Ray, Beatrix von Bourbon, Angie Pontani, Tanya Cheex, Bloody Belle, Clams Casino, Trixie Little, Michelle L’Amour, Margaret Cho, Miss Dirty Martini, Princess Farhana, Miss Delirium Tremens, Paris Green, Jo Boobs, Jack Midnight, Heidi Von Haught, Diamond Minx, The Titillation Twins, Scratch, Creamy Stevens and Gina Louise.

Here’s an announcement from the Burlesque Hall of Fame
‘May 12, 2008, Las Vegas, NV - The Burlesque Hall of Fame and The Keep A Breast Foundation are pleased to announce the opening of Breast Defense: Glamour Girls For Early Detection, an exhibition of one-of-a-kind plaster molds cast from the busts of such legendary burlesque icons as Tempest Storm and Tura Satana (Miss Japan Beautiful, Russ Meyer’s Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!), as well as modern day neo-burlesque and pinup sensations Immodesty Blaize (Miss Exotic World 2007), Michelle L’amour (Miss Exotic World 2006, America’s Got Talent), Jami Deadly, Kittie Klaw, Sabina Kelley and Heidi van Horne and many, many others.
‘Customized by today’s most exciting contemporary artists–including Amy Sol, David LaChapelle, Derek Hess, Elizabeth McGrath, Gary Baseman, Iggy Pop, Jerry Misko, Kat von D, Kim Gordon (Sonic Youth), KRK Ryden, Mark Mothersbaugh, Mitch O’Connell, Tim Biskup and Hi-Fructose co-publishers Annie Owens and Attaboy–the casts will be on display at Downtown Las Vegas’ The Fallout Gallery from May 23-June 28, 2008.’

Here’s a picture of me with my casting, taken last year in downtown Las Vegas:

The inevitable caption: “Hey, my eyes are up here!”
I took this photo in the hotel room where the casts were set to finish drying:

It looks maybe a little spooky, yes, but it was a fabulous, heartfelt, wonderful day. We were asked to suggest some artists we’d like to paint our casts, and I was keen on Liz McGrath because, obviously, I LIKE her work; but also because she does dioramas, and I once saw this picture of breast implants that had been removed from someone after a few years and that looked like they had terrariums in them, and now I always imagine my implants as mini-ecosystems, and that made me think of Liz’s dioramas. So I was picturing the inside of my cast being decorated rather than the outside, which just goes to show you how the mind works sometimes.

Check out the awesome pictures on Keep a Breast myspace!

About Keep A Breast: The Keep A Breast Foundation,, is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization. Our mission is to help eradicate breast cancer by exposing young people to methods of prevention, early detection and support. Through art events, educational programs and fundraising efforts, we seek to increase breast cancer awareness among young people so they are better equipped to make choices and develop habits that will benefit their long-term health and well-being.

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

What is your hometown?
Pomona, Cal.

How long have you been interested in burlesque/performing?
I’ve been doing it for 18 years now.

How many pairs of pasties do you own?
About 25

What are your three favorite songs to perform to?
The Ghost of Stephen Foster, Nasty Man and The Black Widow.

What three items could you not live without as a performer?
Stilettos, tons of feathers and rhinestones!

Who had the biggest influence on your career?
Alice Cooper

Who is your favorite burly queen?
Katz

What is your favorite item of clothing?
Corsets

What’s the last movie you saw?
Mrs. Pettigrew

What’s on your must-see-TV list?
Dancing With the Stars

What book is on your nightstand?
Don’t laugh …… Fabulosity!

If you could go anywhere for vacation, where would you go?
Italy

If you could have any superpower, which one would you want? Why?
To be invisible…..I love sneaking up on people and spying!

Satisfy your appetite for more Candy Grams: Amber Topaz, Amelie Soleil, Red Hot Annie, HoneyLu, Kimberlee Rose, Vicky Butterfly, Dominique Immora, Yasmine Vine, Cherry Bomb, Millie Dollar, Joanie Gyoza, Bonbon Vivant, Lola Martinet, Frankie Boudoir, Vixen Violette, Ravenna Black, Veronica Lashe, Amber Ray, Beatrix von Bourbon, Angie Pontani, Tanya Cheex, Bloody Belle, Clams Casino, Trixie Little, Michelle L’Amour, Margaret Cho, Miss Dirty Martini, Princess Farhana, Miss Delirium Tremens, Paris Green, Jo Boobs, Jack Midnight, Heidi Von Haught, Diamond Minx, The Titillation Twins, Scratch, Creamy Stevens and Gina Louise.