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Hubba Hubba indeed!
Aug. 12th, 2008 12:42 amPreamble - I don't have a lot of exposure to burlesque - watching one show with Arianna LeFay in it and a long-ago viewing of Gypsy.
And I don't usually go out on Monday night - since my wife works in technical theater, it tends to be the one night at home we have together. But tonight she wanted a Quiet Night Alone.
So I went to the East Bay Hubba Hubba review at the Uptown Club, 1928 Telegraph (behind Sears) and was happily surprised by the burlesque performers. All entertained the crowd and worked their routines well, casuing much excitement and many catcalls from both the men and the women in the audience. The applause was uniformly enthusiastic from both sides.
I want to mention 3 performers whose routines were inventive and caught my eye.
Dangerous Curves: This quartet of ladies included 3 reubenesque performers (and one rather thin one) who moved and shook with much energy. As a large person myself, I sometimes have problems moving on stage, but these ladies showed no hesitation in dancing, rolling, and carrying on. Very impressive.
Margaret France: This lady did a routine to the song "No One's Gonna Stop Us Now" (from Mannequin 1). But she sang it to herself in a full length mirror! She did not ignore the audience, but paid just enough attention to the mirror to make her story apparent. This was quite unique, and harkens back to some of the Fosse choreography of the 1950s. That may have been the point. Anyway, I was suitably impressed with her performance.
Lola Vauntz: This young lady - performing burlesque for only the second time - blew my mind. Obviuosly trained in African dance, she danced to a tribal-based instrumental using African dance moves. nearly ignoring all traditional bump-and-grind type dancing. This was simply amazing. To merge two such different genres - one exploitative and the other empowering - into a new form is a wake-up call for us all. I truly hope that she gains a wider audience - yes, of young women who can learn to take the world and make of it what they will.
Kudos to you, Lola, for breaking the mold!!!
In all, a good evening, and thanks to MC Kingfish for taking the time to talk with me afterwards.
And I don't usually go out on Monday night - since my wife works in technical theater, it tends to be the one night at home we have together. But tonight she wanted a Quiet Night Alone.
So I went to the East Bay Hubba Hubba review at the Uptown Club, 1928 Telegraph (behind Sears) and was happily surprised by the burlesque performers. All entertained the crowd and worked their routines well, casuing much excitement and many catcalls from both the men and the women in the audience. The applause was uniformly enthusiastic from both sides.
I want to mention 3 performers whose routines were inventive and caught my eye.
Dangerous Curves: This quartet of ladies included 3 reubenesque performers (and one rather thin one) who moved and shook with much energy. As a large person myself, I sometimes have problems moving on stage, but these ladies showed no hesitation in dancing, rolling, and carrying on. Very impressive.
Margaret France: This lady did a routine to the song "No One's Gonna Stop Us Now" (from Mannequin 1). But she sang it to herself in a full length mirror! She did not ignore the audience, but paid just enough attention to the mirror to make her story apparent. This was quite unique, and harkens back to some of the Fosse choreography of the 1950s. That may have been the point. Anyway, I was suitably impressed with her performance.
Lola Vauntz: This young lady - performing burlesque for only the second time - blew my mind. Obviuosly trained in African dance, she danced to a tribal-based instrumental using African dance moves. nearly ignoring all traditional bump-and-grind type dancing. This was simply amazing. To merge two such different genres - one exploitative and the other empowering - into a new form is a wake-up call for us all. I truly hope that she gains a wider audience - yes, of young women who can learn to take the world and make of it what they will.
Kudos to you, Lola, for breaking the mold!!!
In all, a good evening, and thanks to MC Kingfish for taking the time to talk with me afterwards.
