Ministry Of Burlesque Magazine » Interviews

Tassel Time Episode Nine - Red Sarah

James — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 19:51:54 +0000

As promised Tassel Time returns with it’s ninth episode and a very special guest in the form of the lovely Red Sarah who will be telling me about her career and her art.

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 Episode Eight - Des O’Connor

James — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 20:10:57 +0000

It’s been a while but thank the Burlesque Goddess it is back!

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!

The Candy Gram: Sparkly Devil

Kelly DiNardo — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 01:00:00 +0000

In our ongoing Q&A series –”The Candy Gram”– we ask the same quirky questions of burlesque’s various performers. For the next two weeks, until the 2008 Miss Exotic World pageant, we’ll be featuring special editions of The Candy Gram with the burly queens competing in the festivities. If you want to be added to the mix, drop us a line at kellydinardo AT gmail DOT com. Today, say hello to Sparkly Devil.

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.

The Candy Gram: Vivienne VaVoom

Kelly DiNardo — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 01:00:00 +0000

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.

The Candy Gram: Lux LaCroix

Kelly DiNardo — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 01:00:00 +0000

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.

The Candy Gram: Charlotte La Belle Araignee

Kelly DiNardo — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 01:00:00 +0000

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!

The Candy Gram: Bunny Love

Kelly DiNardo — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 01:00:00 +0000

What is your hometown?
New Orleans

How long have you been interested in burlesque/performing?
I’ve been interested in performance that leads to taking my clothes off since I was a kid. I’ve been performing “real” burlesque for about 12 years.

How many pairs of pasties do you own?
I probably have 15 pairs of pasties, but I don’t always wear them, I’m a big fan of glittered nipples.

What are your three favorite songs to perform to?
Harlem Nocturne, Young Americans and Night Train.

What three items could you not live without as a performer?
Glitter, hairpieces and false eyelashes.

Who had the biggest influence on your career?
Marilyn Monroe and Lucille Ball.

Who is your favorite burly queen?
Julie Altas Muz

What is your favorite item of clothing?
My new ostrich feather pink stole, custom made for me by Miss Tickle.

What’s the last movie you saw?
Some Like It Hot on the big screen at Film Forum.

What’s on your must-see-TV list?
America’s Next Top Model and Gossip Girl, I’m embarrassed to admit.

What book is on your nightstand?
A New Earth Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose by Eckhart Tolle

If you could go anywhere for vacation, where would you go?
Thailand. I’ve never been there and I’ve always wanted to go.

If you could have any superpower, which one would you want? Why?
I would want the same powers as Jeanie from I Dream of Jeanie, because she could do anything with a blink and a nod!

The Candy Gram: Angie Pontani

Kelly DiNardo — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 01:00:00 +0000

What is your hometown?
I was born in Trenton, NJ, but I cut my teeth in Brooklyn, where I have been since I was a teenager.

How long have you been interested in burlesque/performing?
13 years. I started as a chorus girl in the Dutch Weismann Follies. One of the city’s first resurgence shows that was truly underground. It was held in the producers apartment, which he literally turned into a speakeasy! I wasn’t even old enough to enter a bar through the front door, yet I was shaking it three nights a week in this amazing, illegal show. By the end of my run with the show, which was about four years, I was a featured solo act. It was an amazing experience and I have been working in burlesque ever since.

How many pairs of pasties do you own?
Probably about 20 or so, though only a dozen are in serious rotation.

What are your three favorite songs to perform to?
36-22-36 by Bobby Bland, it’s my favorite act!
Take Me out to the Ball Game - a special King Curtis remake. I love baseball and I do a Mets baseball themed act to this song, I adore it!
La Vie En Rose. I do a very traditional sheer dress pointe dance to this and the song and Edith Piaf’s voice is just so lovely I get lost in it.

What three items could you not live without as a performer?
snaps
flash tape
red wine

Who had the biggest influence on your career?
Elvis, he wasn’t exactly a burlesque dancer in the traditional sense but his inclination to do everything in such an over the top way really moves me. Everything from his jump suits, dance moves, every day clothes, cars, personal style, music (especially the ’70s stuff), is just so over the top, there is such attention to every detail. Through those things you can just see how passionate he was about his music, life and performance. I love that and find it wildly inspiring, especially because he was such an innovator of style. Graceland itself is like a set, it couldn’t be more perfect in my eyes.

Who is your favorite burly queen?
Blaze Starr, love-love-love her. She was an amazing performer, lived an amazing life and is just so full of sass. She gave me permission to recreate her smoking couch act a few years ago in Las Vegas and I was honored. I was sweating rhinestones waiting for her response. She is an original wild girl, gorgeous and full of class and sass. That is a tough mixture that doesn’t happen a lot and I admire it.

What is your favorite item of clothing?
Recently I was in Australia where I discovered Wheels and Dollbaby, an amazing clothier. My life will never be the same! My current fave is a velvet black pencil skirt with covered buttons down the front accompanied by a sheer pink silk blouse. I can’t stop wearing it, I vacuumed in it yesterday.

What’s the last movie you saw?
I don’t get to the movies much, in fact I can’t even remember the last time I went. I think the last movie I saw must have been the last Rocky. My sister lent it to me on a rainy Sunday & I thought it was good! He gives his son this fabulous speech about how being tough and being a winner isn’t about actually winning every time. It’s really about having the tenacity to just keep getting back up and not stopping and that’s real courage and spirit and general awesomeness. That’s being scrappy & Rocky-like.

What’s on your must-see-TV list?
I’m not a big TV girl, but I do have the western channel. They run classic westerns constantly. I need to see an episode of Gun Smoke at least once a week, I love Miss Kitty on Gun Smoke.

What book is on your nightstand?
Gone With The Wind and The Biography of Buffalo Bill, talk about show biz, he was the king!

If you could go anywhere for vacation, where would you go?
New Mexico. I’m super lucky that I get to travel so much with work. I’ve been all over the world and country and have seen some fabulous places, but it’s funny because the only place I have actually ever wanted to go to was New Mexico and I’ve never been! Growing up I was obsessed with it. I even subscribed to New Mexico magazine. It seems like it would really be an amazing place, plus I love chilies and they grow the best!

If you could have any superpower, which one would you want? Why?
I think I would love to be able to disappear, become invisible. It would be fabulous to be able to read minds or throw fire balls, but you can really work the invisible thing. Not only would that power enable you to leave sticky situations on a whim, but you can multi-task by spying, moving things around, torturing your friends, etc… But, only for the good of all humanity though!

The Candy Gram: Amber Ray

Kelly DiNardo — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 01:00:00 +0000

What is your hometown?
Milwaukee, Wi

How long have you been interested in burlesque/performing?
In the naivete of my late teens I was one of those who thought strip clubs were places where women with fishnets, furs, big wigs and rhinestones, ruled. I started stripping when I was 18. I was always doing burlesque in strip clubs until I found my people, my community, my family in NYC.

How many pairs of pasties do you own?
At least 15

What are your three favorite songs to perform to?
Thinking of Baby - Elmer Bernstein
Talk Show Host - Radiohead
Green Onions - Count Basie

What three items could you not live without as a performer?
Red lipstick, black liquid eyeliner and, OF COURSE, a fabulously layered costume.

Who had the biggest influence on your career?
This all came so natural to me. I just knew what I wanted to make myself into. I guess MTV, Madonna, the whole 80s POP phenomenon really got me going.

Who is your favorite burly queen?
Well Dixie, for her wild performances and keeping the Art of Burlesque Alive in History and Blaze Starr for her generally fabulous package. I love performers for different reasons. Cathrine Dlish will always be one of my favorites. She Oozes and her moves and looks are absolutely intoxicating.

What is your favorite item of clothing?
My Peacock Costume-Corsets!!!

What’s the last movie you saw?
A Dirty Shame and The Life Aquatic - both in one night, Both absolutely FANTASTIC!

What’s on your must-see-TV list?
Desperate Housewives
Ugly Betty
Pushing Daisies

What book is on your nightstand?
The Boy Who Fell in Love with the Moon by Tom Spanbauer

If you could go anywhere for vacation, where would you go?
Gay Paree, OF COURSE! I have a whole life waiting for me there!!!

If you could have any superpower, which one would you want? Why?
Telekenesis, so I could move all kinds of people and things with my mind.

The Candy Gram: Ravenna Black

Kelly DiNardo — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 01:00:00 +0000

What is your hometown?
Seattle

How long have you been interested in burlesque/performing?
Technically, since I was three. When anyone asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I said “A ballerina or a princess!” Close enough!

How many pairs of pasties do you own?
I dunno; I make most of mine so they’re constantly being reinvented or replaced. Plus I have a bad shopping habit so I do tend to buy them sometimes, too.

What are your three favorite songs to perform to?
At the moment, my three favorites are:
- The Ghost of Smokey Joe, a variation of Cab Calloway’s Minnie The Moocher, as recorded by my favorite swing band, Lee Press-On and the Nails
- Keep on Churnin’ Til the Butter Comes by the legendary Wynonie “Mr. Blues” Harris
- Barnyard Bop by my friend and fellow Seattle-ite, rockabilly genius Marshall Scott Warner.

What three items could you not live without as a performer?
Fake eyelashes, Dermablend, and double-sided carpet tape.

Who had the biggest influence on your career?
Miss Indigo Blue, without a doubt.

Who is your favorite burly queen?
Dee Milo, ever since I met her working as the back-stage dresser at my very first Exotic World. Her performance of “The Red Dress That Survived The Flames” brought tears to my eyes, and her encouragement that night, and ever since, has meant the world to me. She’s helping me re-create the “Bridal” version of her signature act, which nearly got her arrested in the 50’s, and I only hope I can do it justice.

What is your favorite item of clothing?
High fuckin’ heels, baby! I am 4’ 11” so I need all the help I can get.

What’s the last movie you saw?
Fred Claus, with my kids.

What’s on your must-see-TV list?
Uh… Wife Swap? Haha!

What book is on your nightstand?
Consensual Sadomasochism: How to Talk About It and How To Do It Safely by William Henkin and Sybil Holiday (AKA burlesque legend Holiday O’Hara).

If you could go anywhere for vacation, where would you go?
I have always wanted to visit Bora Bora, but I hear Tacoma’s nice.

If you could have any superpower, which one would you want? Why?
I would want to be able to fly, because I’m afraid of falling and it would sure beat sitting in traffic!