From 2014 to 2016

Photo by Madison Hurley Photography

I didn't do a recap last year. A lot of stuff happened in my world, and I just wasn't feeling it. The challenge with doing a recap for two years is that my gig book is hidden from my overgrown puppy. Let's take a look at what I've been able to sort out for 2014:

• I had fewer performances -- just 32 in 25 shows. This tallies up to 405 performances for the career. Not too shabby. This is an estimate, because of the hidden gig book.
• I taught at the Great Burlesque Expo in Cambridge again. I also taught in Hot Springs, and Mr. Snapper and I taught together in Dallas.
• Fewer festivals for me in 2014, which I'll get to what's happening with that later. I did the Great Burlesque Festival and the Hollywood Fringe Festival. I also performed in San Diego for Comic-Con weekend.
• Tour stops in Dallas, Hot Springs, San Diego, and Fresno.
• I created a few new acts, like my California Sunset number and the first version of my Poison Ivy. I performed in a group number with Chocolate Box Burlesque, and Mr. Snapper and I co-hosted their show together. We also created our Goonies duet.

I had knee issues in 2014, and I had a wicked case of anemia that knocked me out of a couple shows. My sweet Doodlebug passed in August 2014, and that took quite an emotional toll. When my dog Holly passed in 2006, I stopped playing guitar for the most part. (I pick it up every nine months or so.) It was a rough time in my house. I did adopt little Coca Carter, who is a hellbeast. I love this dog, but she is a bundle of enthusiasm with teeth.

Photo by SH Photo

My 2015 was curious. I had far fewer performances, which I'll get into why as I break down the year:

• Fewest performances in a year since I started this stuff in 2007. I estimate I performed sixteen times in twelve shows. This makes it 421 in eight years.
• I taught some sewing classes, including dress making and corset construction. I enjoy sewing and become better at sewing by teaching. I made some incredible garments this year as well.
• When I first started doing burlesque, networking was easier. I met people at craft nights and at shows. We'd spend some time together, brainstorm together, and I had bookings coming out of my ears. A lot of those people have retired, and a lot of new performers have popped up. Now it seems everyone wants an audition video of every act you may want to perform, even if you've worked with them in the past. While I agree that burlesque is business, I was missing the community aspect that was there when I signed up; I also missed the networking. I hosted a brunch for the community and started recruiting people to host craft nights. I started teaching community classes for a low price to help performers fill in gaps in their education. I may not have my community ideal yet, but it's not going to improve unless I work on it.
• No festivals in 2015. I did screen videos for Hollywood Burlesque Festival, which was educational.
• I performed in Vegas, Dallas on two visits, Houston, Little Rock, and Hot Springs. Our schedules were so full I only got to teach in Hot Springs. These trips are always packed with activity.
• I created some new acts. I have an act that's built with LEDs that needs a little reworking. I rebuilt Poison Ivy, making the act a bit more couture. I created a dressing and stripping number. (It feels silly to call it a "reverse strip," because that's just getting dressed.) I hosted a nudist comedy show twice. I also rebuilt my mermaid tail for Burlesqueland.

I had two major things working against me in 2015 (besides that video thing): car and work. My car was at 220,000 miles when I finally replaced it in November. I'd lived without a car payment since right after I started burlesque, and I wanted to make it until this spring with the old car. This meant I didn't submit my acts for shows that are driving distance if I couldn't justify renting a car. My car overheated on my way to an October gig in Ventura. The last straw was when it barely made it from the city to the San Fernando Valley on a weekend. I flew to Dallas the following weekend, and bought a car the day I returned. I have a small car payment, but I can now drive to gigs outside of Los Angeles.

The other major issue working against me was my job. At the end of 2014, I cut back my days at the office so I could work on commissions. This meant that the three days I spent at work per week had more financial value for me, and more production importance for the company. A co-worker quit at the end of 2014 and no replacement was hired, which meant taking off or leaving early for Friday gigs was very unlikely. I spent 2015 wishing for a new situation where I could miss Fridays for festivals or leave work in the early afternoon so I wouldn't feel rushed or stressed for the few Friday night gigs I got. A week ago I got an offer for the perfect work-from-home job for me, which means I can build my own schedule and work on the road. I can do Monday, Wednesday, and Friday night gigs without having to tart myself up at my desk if the time allowed. I feel less like Cinderella.

Photo by Modern Noir

So what's in store for 2016? Persistence. Being the best me. Strength. Lots of rehearsals. Maybe even some producing. Turning 40 and celebrating it. Building my community. Going to Texas a couple times and Arkansas a couple times and hopefully other places. Taming the hellbeast. Getting some stuff published, even if it's DIY. Learning. Living.

Fawning Over Jo at Camp in 2007

I do hope you're enjoying my little trip down memory lane as a pre-burlesque dancer. :)



More About Camp

(I've been working days and rehearsing late nights so I've barely been able to get out of bed to go to work in the morning, much less blog. I promise I'll be back up to snuff after this show opens on the 20th.)

In the afternoon of the second day, we had a lesson in stocking and glove removal from the lovely and talented Jo Boobs. I really wanted to study with Jo. She had become a bit of a celebrity in my household since I got her e-book and Andrew started reading her blog.

Jo is as amazing as I hoped she would be. She's a very skilled and patient teacher. She showed us how to slowly peel a glove or stocking and really tease the audience with it. I learned to slow down the difficult things (like crouching, removing tough shoes or sitting down on stage to get comfortable). I also learned that everything in garment removal must be deliberate. It looks better that way. Jo showed us how interesting tension looks in clothing removal, so I now spread my fingers as I peel gloves so it looks cool.

Prison Showers From Camp in 2007

I was a Girl Scout and we had showers at camp but I never took one.  I preferred being smelly to risking cold water and an abundance of spiders.  Here's a little more from my burlesque camp experience in 2007.  (I didn't post the naked photos of several of us in the shower at once out of respect for the other people in the photos.  Not all of them are used to being naked on the internet.)



Camp Showers

When I was a Girl Scout, we never used the showers at camp because they were just plain scary. When we'd walk past them, someone who had never been to camp before but knew someone who had would tell stories about the horrible poisonous spiders that infested the cold water only showers. I never verified any of this because it sounded too horrible. The showers may have been spider-free and had plenty of hot water.

At this camp, I had to shower. I spent my Thursday in airplanes and airports and I really needed to be clean. We were staying on someone's private property, so I had no idea what the showers would be like. For all I knew, they were sheets of plastic surrounding a suspended garden hose.

Alas, I was wrong. The showers were in an outdoor almost room on a hardwood deck. There was plenty of hot water because there was a small hot water heater nearby. There was a giant tub sink and two mirrors for grooming just outside of the shower. Plastic stair steps for sitting or leaning and shaving, metal soap holders and a detachable shower head made up these luxurious outdoor showers. What was really great was that there was so much shrubbery between this property and the next that there was no problem grooming on the deck and wandering back to one's accommodations in a state of partial (or complete) undress.

Dork Face From Camp in 2007

More of my camp experience.  I like to think that all of the education I did before my debut paid off, even if I sounded like a giddy school girl when I was studying.



Back to Day Two

The afternoon of the second day of camp was warm enough for me to take a shower. I still wasn't acclimated to Washington weather when I left. Mornings were too darn cold for anything less than long pants and a sweater, and our shower pavilion was outside.

After I was nice and clean, I put on my pasties and some frilly knickers. Other girls started putting on pasties, and then it was the perfect time for tassel twirling class. I'd learned a little about tassel twirling from Miss Indigo Blue's lesson on Princess Farhana's burlesque DVD. This was a thorough hatting on twirling. I learned how to make them go one direction, how to spin from inside to outside, from outside to inside, and even how to make one spin at a time. It was awesome!

To those of you potential twirlers out there, this will build up your shoulder muscles. The trick is to not look down while you're twirling or you'll get a double chin, kind of like I did while I was trying to angle the camera for a photo. You can see my black tassel going in the photo.

More From Camp in 2007

Here's the next blog entry from my boring ol' regular person blog from this day in 2007, detailing more of my camp experience.  It reads a lot like a diary entry.

Lessons from My Second Day of Camp

I still don't have a lot of pictures I can share. I apologize for that. I can post photos of myself with wild abandon, but since I was holding my own camera most of the time I don't have many photos of just myself. I'm hoping (as is Andrew) that some of the other girls will send me photos soon.

As I mentioned before, the first day was a time of settling in. We did a meet and greet with each other, heard some selections from burlesque biographies, sat around and ate cheeseburgers and s'mores. It was a nice calm evening for me after the flurry of activity leading up to the trip. Of course, my first night of sleep was not as restful as I had hoped. All of the doors weren't closed completely on the cabinets in the airstream, so every time someone rolled over then doors would rattle. Ugh. At least I was warm.

The second day of camp started with a nice stretch and balance with Jo Boobs. I'd really like to get into the habit of stretching every morning so I don't still have things cracking in my body at noon. We did some good stretches before breakfast, being careful to really warm up our necks and backs since they're easily injured. We also learned how to test our balance so we can do it every day in life and before every performance in the shoes we'll wear in the show. I liked doing this, especially since there are days when I feel totally off balance.

After breakfast, we had a class on posing, posture and walking with Miss Indigo Blue. We started out by learning to walk in high heels. The technique we use in pole class is different. In this technique, the knees are kept bent so the weight of the body is still on the heels. We worked on poses for a bit, using each pose to show off our "costumes" or assets. Then we worked on different kinds of burlesque walks.

What came next? Stay tuned.

Four Years Ago Today

Four years ago today I returned from burlesque camp in Seattle with Jo Boobs and Miss Indigo Blue.  I knew that if I wanted to get somewhere in the world of burlesque, I had to train with the best.  Here is my blog of that experience from August 27th, 2007.  (It's amazing to look at where I was and look at where I am now, at least for me!)

Back From Camp Burlesque!

I returned from my burlesque retreat in the Seattle area today. It was quite an intensely educational trip! I'll have to cover my experience in bits and pieces since there's so much to say!

These two photos are from my first day. I was picked up at the airport by Jessica, an awesome gal who works with Academy of Burlesque in Seattle. She greeted me with a sign that said "Red Snapper." Awesome! I also met Fleur De Lys from New York and Miss Rosie Bitts from Vancouver since we shared a ride. This is a photo of the Space Needle from our trip around the city before we drove out to the wild blue yonder.

Through the luck of the draw, I managed to secure a bed in the restored 1964 airstream trailer. Most of the other girls wound up in tents. I lucked out. This is a photo of me celebrating my awesome digs.

We spent a lot of time getting to know each other, setting up "camp" and discussing famous burlesque performers. It was very educational.

As a heads up, I won't be posting any photos for which I don't have permission from everyone in the photo since that's the agreement we all made. But I do promise photos!

The Importance of Mentors

(from my regular people blog June 2, 2009)

I've had the good fortune to study with a number of successful and talented burlesque performers. There's a lot to be said about having good teachers. There's also a lot to be said about having good mentors. My mentors have always been open to answering any questions I had about the business, generously telling me what I wanted to know.

When I was in Boston, I had the pleasure of having lunch with Jo Boobs. I love Jo. She's had more influence over my artistic choices than I'm sure she knows. Back in 2007, I bought her e-book (soon to be a for-realsies book) after a burlesque pole class, and it sent me down the path. I love Jo. Love her. She's smart and has so much artistic integrity.

Anyway, there are things you learn about the world of burlesque (touring, competitions, choices) when you sit down with someone who knows. Those aren't things you typically get out of a class. Those candid conversations are validating and educational. Sit down with a mentor in your field if you get the chance. I felt so good about my pursuits after that lunch. Also, I love Jo.

Creative Stretches

My husband is a creative hyphenate; he does everything.  He's a writer-director-actor-musician-puppeteer who designs-hosts-builds and strips.  I try to acquire hyphenates and strengthen the hyphenates I already have.  Everything I do makes me a better burlesque performer.  Here's what I did in the past week to contribute to my creative hyphenates, making myself a better performer in the process:

• Ballet class.  I take a 90-minute ballet class every week.  I got a late start studying ballet so I know I'll never be a prima ballerina.  I do know that ballet will strengthen my dance frame, bring more grace to my performances, and improve the height and form of my kicks.  Ballet class forces me to concentrate on what I'm doing.  I'm sure the year plus of ballet classes have influenced my burlesque.
• Tap class.  I take a two-hour tap class every week.  I had about six months of tap class ten years ago from a terrible teacher.  Kismet landed me in this class, and I'm learning so much.  I have to concentrate on the combinations so I can get them right.  I have to change my posture for tap class because we're learning down and dirty tap, not show tap.  I hope one day to incorporate tap into my burlesque.
• Acting.  I opened a play on Saturday.  I play a best friend-love interest type.  This is very different from what I usually portray in my burlesque numbers because it's very naturalistic.  Of course, I get to show something I don't otherwise -- vulnerability.  Assuming any kind of role as an actor gives me more options in burlesque.
• Writing.  I wrote a short play that opened Friday night.  On Friday night, I wrote a short play that ran just Saturday night as part of a 24-hour play festival.  Writing forces me to create stories rapidly, keeping my idea generator hot for creating acts.

Sharpening one's other skills keeps the mind in shape for being creative.  All of these activities are influencing my next acts.  I can't wait to see how it all pays off.

Early Influences

It's strange to me how I got into burlesque. I took pole dancing classes for a few years (which is another story) and had an incredible teacher who helped me discover that I could be sexy and I could dance. I was in her master pole class where we learned choreography and tough tricks and blended the two. We'd cover a different dance style each session.

This video is from my last pole recital with her in December 2007. (I had to stop going to classes because my burlesque performance schedule conflicted. Then the economy crashed so I couldn't afford my addiction.) This number opens with the toughest pole trick I've ever learned. I don't know that I did it again after the show.



This is a Leg Avenue costume that I pulled apart. I put rhinestones on the skirt and use it for my school girl burlesque number now.