_As I’ve mentioned before, my personal challenge this year, beyond trying to feel more comfortable in my own sensuality, has been to try to successfully marry the erotic and the inane. I’m very proud of this act because I think it is the closest I’ve come to achieving both past influences and a fusion of other talents.

At this point I had been doing research about comedians from the early 20th century. I was hoping to learn enough that I could maybe teach a 4 part workshop on them. Interesting for me to learn probably means its interesting enough for other people, right? It was then that I stumbled on THIS clip from Charlie Chaplin’s, “The Great Dictator.” I couldn’t believe it! This, in my mind, is the absolute GREATEST PIECE OF COMEDY EVER!!!  You have to watch it to believe.

Thanks to this gem, I realized that I haven’t seen any BQ comedy done with a ballon act and thought it would be a good challenge. So what could a balloon be if not a ballon? An egg? YES! Chicken time!!! Homage to my home sweet home with the Screaming Chicken Theatrical Society. While we are trying to create things we haven’t seen before, how about a rubber glove dress?? YES!! I asked Melody Mangler to help with the completion of this outfit. I’ve learnt to sew, but I’ve also learnt about time management. I commissioned her to sew the outer layer and managed to do the rest on my own. HURRAH NEW SKILLS! I wanted the gloves to read as a tribute to the DIY nature of Burlesque. I’ve since added several gross of swarovskis to almost satirize the extremes of modern Burlesque costuming.

The first part of the number was to be an homage to baggy pants comedians of yesteryear. I recently learnt from Portland based performer Rusty Trombone (I LOVE HIM I LOVE HIM I LOVE HIM) that the kind of dancing I have been struggling to find out more about is called Legomania. Now we all know!!! And the second was to be about combining the eroticism and hilarity.

This act was festering in my brain for a long time and it took a long time before it was ready to perform. The main reasons being I had a concept for a costume that took awhile for me to afford and create. I’m really happy with the results and can definitely appreciate the need to sometimes take the time to create something of quality. My reward was being able to perform 6 different times for our run at the Vancouver Fringe Festival. I also felt lucky that I had the opportunity to try it out so many times and see what worked and what didn’t in front of a live audience. I am really happy that the act feels seamless. There is no boring waits (I think) Just the right amount of dance and tease, and enough comedy to break the tension of the second song. I have had some great feedback from Madame Mae I about putting a smaller yellow balloon inside my big ballon so it looks like an egg yolk that I’m excited to try- Regardless I hope you enjoy!!!

Kraken: kra·ken/ˈkräkən/Noun: An enormous mythical sea monster said to appear off the coast of Norway.

I basically hate Halloween now. My former favorite holiday has become completely tedious to me. We could possibly chalk it up to to my many hilariously bad life decisions thanks to holiday cheer but it really comes down to costumes. It used to be my only excuse to come up with the craziest, most original costume I could think of but now I live Halloween. Stripper problems. Seriously ridiculous. The thought of having to make a costume not for an act is an impossibility for me. Last year I thought maybe with alot of planning I could actually try and make a rad outfit with all the vim and vigor of my pre-burlesque self.

I was also on a giant squid kick. Can’t tell how it started- photo blogs maybe? But no one fucks with a giant squid. No one. This appeals to me. SINK ALL THE MOTHER EFFING SHIPS SQUIDY YAAAAAAAA!! Whatever- I’m weird, we know that- but I figured a giant squid dress would basically be the greatest thing to ever happen. So I planned!! I found some great inspiration pics, had been given the greatest stuffed Octopus (that was obviously a hat in disguise), bought some fabric, asked for the awesome Joanie Gyoza’s help.... there was no way I couldn’t fail!!

I did. Halloween came and passed and I just didn’t have the time to get it together slash the guilt of asking the nicest person alive to do something for me when she does so much for everyone was too much!! I dreamed of said costume but it  was shelved for almost a year.

Fast forward to me having more time on my hands than usual.  I TAUGHT MYSELF TO SEW!! Ok thats a lie- Melody Mangler was probably the first person to guide me (hysterically I might add) through sewing a straight line. My sister WHATSHERNAME also helped me many, many, many a time in figuring out to thread my budget machine. So when I found myself with spare time this summer, I decided I was going to practice. The most positive lesson I learnt from that experience is that you can’t be attached to the outcome of your project/art/whatever it is that you are trying. Perfection is the enemy of art sometimes because its just so paralyzing!!  I just went into it without any expectations other than to try and A MIRACLE HAPPENED!!  I LEARNT TO SEW!! I MADE AN AWESOME OCTOPUS DRESS!!! 

After that the number just seemed to fall together. I was inspired by videos of other great performers and their rocking props/ riding their giant props. I consider myself very representative of the DIY performer. Flying that freak flag pretty high really. I don’t have the budget for anything that awesome at this point. However, if you want to be a giant squid- you need your prop to be small not big-awesome!f I harassed my love into driving me to pick up a child’s rocking horse I found on Craigslist. I borrowed a saw off of Via Rose. I returned the saw when I figured out I only needed a screwdriver. Bye Bye Rocking Horse head!!! You can see the finished prop in the vid below!

I am really proud of this number. I have been working really hard to get to a point where I can create acts that contain equal amounts of humor and striptease. I’m aiming for concepts that are epic enough that you can’t believe it happened in the first place. This number, is the closest I’ve come and I hope you enjoy it!

Oh my god I suck!!! So what do you do when you win a Blogging award? Stop blogging of course!! I was still posting regularly on ye olde Stripcheez Blog (which you should also be regularly reading!!) but I needed new vids!! Just wasn't happening!!! Slash it was a nutter schedule with the Chickens recently and I felt more tired than inspired! Its also been a year of experimentation for me. For my regular reader and fan types, it taint no surprise that I specialize in the HaHa. I can remember a Jockey number I did years back where the switch from hilarity was to Ride My Pony by Genuine and my attempts at the sexy dance and I felt sooooooooo UNCOMFORTABLE!!! I basically cut the sexy short because I wanted off the stage ASAP! Its been a great thing to be part of a larger troupe as we all work collaboratively really well so I've gotten the chance to be in some sexay group numbers!! Less pressure slash great way to learn from the pros (I'm looking at you Melody Mangler!!)! I even have evidence of our first straight up strip from the VIBF 2 years ago!! Check it HERE.  

However, I have since decided I want to be good at EVERYTHING!!!!! I think it can only help my performances overall and if I am teaching, I need to be. So this year I have been pumping out the straight numbers!! I can confidently say I think I am getting better!!  I can positively say that I actually have fun doing them and no longer want to flee the stage!! And I can happily say that I have some vids!!! Thanks JennyDoll for the loverly work!! Whoo!!! 

Soooooo last April I was lucky enough to be asked to work with Pandora and the Locksmiths! They are a new(ish) collective of talented dancers and talented musicians who love to create Burlesque glory to live jazz!! They asked me to do an oldy but a goody, Boogie Woogie and I had free reign to do another that I thought might work to live music. I had this song by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes stuck on repeat for a few weeks and I figured it would be easy enough to translate. Sometimes my numbers will come together out of availability. I will just say yes to everything that is in front of me!!! So yes Edward Sharpe. I also had just bought a wedding dress at Value Village for 20 bucks!! So yes to you available costume- yes to you. I had also just had my heart broken at the border when I wasn't able to go to the Chicago Burlesque Festival. If you missed that epic adventure of tragic learning check it HERE. I really wanted to dance out all my emo kid feelings so I came up with the concept of letting go of the ideas you are married to. Its a Buddhist idea that I try to remember when I am being the Queen of Cry, that suffering is caused by attachment to ideas- so if you let go of these attachments you can stop bothering everyone with your silent tears!! And the last combination of WTF was I thinking came from the part where I realized I hadn't done a stocking pull in about 3 years. Wow. Way to go teach... My issue with this Burlesque essential is that it doesn't necessarily look the same on me as it does on my waifier friends. Aha! A challenge!!! How can I figure out a way to do a stocking pull that would look good on my body shape!! Discovery #1 DON'T TAKE OFF YOUR GIANT DRESS!!! I thought it looked kinda pretty to see just a leg coming out of that giant puffball!!! I also discovered that you can do some alright blocking with body alignment and finding other things to hide behind aka your chair!! Basically don't be afraid to play around and see what magic you can make!!!

 I recently got to perform this number again with those awesome Pandoras and awesome Locksmiths at Kitty Nights! Check it below! 

Sometimes its easy!! If only that were the case every time- especially when I’m trying to be seductive! Ok so this one is probably the opposite of seductive but I had some amazing inspiration for this piece that involved musicality (yes thats a word!) and CLOWNS!! 
 
My introduction to the wacky world of Clowns happened in a pretty interesting way. My awesome friend and contemporary VaVa Vunderbust was unable to take a gig at a local performance art festival and offered it to me. I was super happy to accept even though I didn’t really know much about performance art or the festival itself. The festival was called LIVE Biennale and I really enjoyed my experience. I got to meet some super great people and watch some very epic performances! It was super inspiring and I will definitely be attending this year’s festivities when they arrive. However one performer stood out beyond compare for me. 

Her name was Savage Cream Puff and she was/is a CLOWN! This was my first introduction to the art of clowning and I was blown away! I was amazed at how she had the audience absolutely eating out of her hand!! Her actions seemed so subtle to me but they were so effective and not to mention HILARIOUS!! I learnt alot just from watching her performance and the lesson here was timing!! I discovered that its ok to drag it out if you are creating tension, suspense or expectation. And really, isn’t that what a great Burlesque number is all about!?  

I also think that using the strong musical cues helped my movements and character seem stronger. Burgundy Brixx has a great blog post about musicality that you can check out HERE. 

Again, I can’t embed the vid  but you can check it out HERE
Thanks again to Savage Cream Puff for all the inspirings!!! 

Soooo VARY EXCITING NEWSS!! Turns out I'm slightly cool? or something? Haha But this here bloggy woggy made a list of Top 40 Burlesque Blogs!! I am vary impressed with myself and thusly ate a celebration donut!! Ok.. I ate the donut before the vary exciting news but still!! EXCITING!!  

Check out the rest of the list HERE- Is a great resource for all your Burlesque inspiring needs!! xox -April

This is my newest new number and I’m super happy how she turned out!!! I’ve been really trying to challenge myself lately and try styles that are out of my element aka le sexay dance. I’ve found alot of inspiration and strength from the archetype of an “amazon” or “wild” woman. It’s basically alot of fun and something I’m finding easier to relate to than a more classic style. Pretty princess/Glamour puss is less fun for me so far. Maybe I just haven’t found the right song or idea yet- we’ll see. 
 
Buuuttt annnnyyywayyyyyyyyyyy- whats hilarious is that my original concept for this came after I watched the very unoriginal Burlesque movie. After watching the dancers do that hair flip for oh I don’t know, the fiftieth time, and I started thinking about how the hair flip is such a instrumental piece of choreography for that type of dancing. I started wondering if there was a way to play off that and make it more interesting. I did some research and found a type of “hair dancing” that has roots in belly dance and other forms of Arabic dance. I thought it was super inspiring and tried to create my own version of an erotic hair flip combined with my new favorite Jungle Lady character. The result was “Jungle Hair!!”  

You’ll have to check the video out at Stripcheez.com- I’ve linked it for you HERE
and posted the Arabic Hair Dance vid I found inspiring below :) The photo is by the ever amazing Greg McKinnon. 

Heeeey Kidlets! Soooo... I wuz thinking that I might let you in on some of the things that make my life waaaaay better. Burlesque is essentially DIY which can either be extremely inspiring but transversely can be completely frustrating if you don't have the know how to make your vision into a reality. When I was first starting out, I remember running into some issues when I'd have a swell idea for a switcharoo type number where the change is signaled with music. A switcharoo is an essential archetype for alot of Burlesque numbers and its pretty easy to figure out. You enter as one character or with one certain attitude but then run into a conflict or something that causes a change. A classic example is the nerd into sexy gal sort of thing. I do alot of numbers like this and sometimes the easiest way to demonstrate that an evolution has taken place is with a separate piece of music. This being said, you don't necessarily want to use all of 2 separate songs. Its not necessary to have an 8 minute number to get the idea across so this means MUSIC EDITING! If you don't have a friend who can help you with this, life can get annoying pretty quickly. Luckily for you (and me) there is a super swell program out there called Audacity. Its a FREE music editing program that is pretty straight forward in terms of use and is available for both PC and Apple computers (I've used both. They're the same!). Basically if you can figure out where the copy and paste are on this sucka, you've got it made. There are also lots of youtube tutorials out there if you need some extra help.