Random Sexy Picture

I saw this and thought it was amazing. There was not much information available, since the website it was on had been deleted.

Well looks like burlesque and the old school bygone performance styles are back in Houston. Between Houston's Dem Damn Dames, Ruby Revue and the Jigglewatts, Houston has been flooded with some awesome performances. We are going to keep that ball rolling with Miss Kiki Maroon tonite, Viva La Inependencia  (I have dubbed freedom from clothes) and Houston Vintage 2011.

     Kiki's Sordid Sideshow!

Location: Boheme Cafe & Wine Bar

Time: ‎Doors: 7:30PM, Show 9:30PM Saturday, September 10th

     

Viva La Inependencia Tx Tour

Saturday, September 17, 2011 at 8:00pm

The Continental Club, Houston, TX

 

    Houston Vintage 2011

Location: Heights Firestation Yale and 12th St.

Time: ‎ After party at 9:00 Saturday, September 24th

Step Right Up, Folks!

If you are looking for Burlesque moves, I have had to delay that posting til a later date. But I promise something extra special.

This weeks blog was inspired by a show a fellow Dame has been trying to put together for several months. Finally, the stage is set for Kiki's Sordid Sideshow, Boheme Sat. Sept. 10th, check out our facebook for more information.

Your basic sideshow was exactly that, a show off to the side of the main event (usually a circus) to attract the townsfolk to the area. A sideshow could consist of many different acts. From the weird and unusual to the exotic and daredevil.

I was overwhelmed by all the wealth of information. I found Sideshow World a good source for interesting articles and pictures. I read one about the old girlie shows. Basically, girlie shows have been around since the days of the harem. In the 1800s, the girlie show of the carnival would have huge production numbers with many girls, fancy costumes, and huge bands. By the 1930s, girlie shows became small and pushed the exotic to the limits of what was legal.

Here is an example of a contemporary grinder and his spiel:

"They're going to do the hootchie kootchie for you inside, and you will see things you never dreamed were possible. They will wiggle and waggle and shake and shimmy, and they're going to show you everything you want to see. They are going to let you see how they can move every muscle in their beautiful little bodies. "This is the show you've heard about. This is the one that they're all talking about. You will never forget what you see inside that tent tonight. Here they come now, gentlemen. Let's give 'em a big hand and bring them out here. Here they come, and aren't they beautiful! There's Tammy and Lola, and the firey little redhead Fanny, and here comes Angel and little Debbie. They're excited and they're ready, and they can't wait to show you just what you want to see. Right inside the tent in just a few minutes..."
 www.whithaydn.com  (interesting fellow check him out sometime)

Pop Hayden -

I couldn't resist learning a little carny speak while I was at it.

From http://www.goodmagic.com/,

 　

"Carny," also known as "Ciazarn" or "Carny Latin" — it's a special "cant" (secret mode of encoded speech) used when carnies don't want anyone outside the business to know what they're saying.
A little like pig-latin, and so closely related to "Double Dutch" as to be almost identical, you insert an invariant nonsense syllable after each consonant. In Carny, the syllable is always "eaz", pronounced "ee-uz." For example, to say, "Can we take this hick?" It would come out (hard C) "Ceaz-an weaz-e teaz-ake theaz-is heaz-ick?"
You can hear quite a stretch of it in the old disco record "Double-Dutch Bus", and it seems to be one (among many) components of ghetto "gangsta slang."

Join me next week for my surprise blog.

Geaz-ood Beaz-ye  Midnight Joy xoxo

Random Sexy Picture

Here is another fabulous burlesque gem.

Promotional photograph for an article about London Burlesque

Upcoming shows: Sept. 17 at the Continental Club Houston and Sept. 24 at the Houston Vintage 2011 event at the Heights Fire Station. Also, support our fellow Dame, Kiki Maroon, on Sept. 10 at Kiki's Sordid Sideshow, Boheme Cafe. Look us up on facebook www.facebook.com/demdamndames and our website http://www.damndames.com/ 

Ten ways to tell if I am a stripper or a burlesque dancer

I was talking to a friend the other day, and it came up that I was going to be in some upcoming Dem Damn Dames shows. When I mentioned burlesque, her eyes grew wide and she exclaimed, "You're a stripper!" Her comment got me thinking. Yeah, one of my numbers is a complete striptease, but I don't consider myself a stripper. I take my costumes off piece by piece, but I consider myself an artist. So I wanted to see what someone else thought.

I remembered an article in Shimmy Magazine (Issue 2 Spring/Summer 2006) by Jo Boobs, who is a performer, and teaches at the School of Burlesque in New York. She was a commerical stripper before she started burlesque and these are ten ways she defines a stripper versus a burlesque performer:


1. Strippers usually mingle with the customers / Burlesque performers generally aren't expected to
2. Strippers play to whoever has the money / Burlesque performers to whoever cheers the loudest
3. Stripping is about the sales and interpersonal skills / Burlesque performers perform with exotic glamour and dance skills
4. Stripping is a job / With Burlesque performers income is rarely the primary motivation
5. Strip joint customers are often concerned about discretion / Burlesque audiences rarely are
6. Strip joint customers pick one or a few girls to interact with / Burlesque audiences sit and watch the whole show
7. Strippers usually have their credits in adult entertainment /  Burlesque performers usually have a theatrical background
8. People who go to strip joints are customers / People who go to Burlesque shows are audiences
9. Stripping is mostly about the nudity / Burlesque is mostly about the costume
10. Strippers look for individuals to entertain / Burlesque performers want the attention of the whole darn room!

*"There are many situations were none of these differences apply, and many burlesque performers are in it for the money."

As Dita Von Teese once said about being called a stripper, "If it was good enough for Gypsy Rose Lee, it is good enough for me."

Next week - Burlesque moves every burlesque performer should know about*

Sayonora - Midnight Joy xoxo

Random Sexy Picture

Old and new photographs play a huge part in costuming and inspiration for future shows.

Here is Gypsy Rose Lee in all her glory.

Make sure to check back often for more Random Pics of Sexiness and visit http://www.damndames.com/ for event information and other sexy pics.

What is this thing called Burlesque?

My name is Midnight Joy, and I will be one of your many hosts in this wonderful world of vaudeville, burlesque, and anything pertaining to entertainment in general. I hope to educate both performers and the audience on not just upcoming shows but history, costumes, places of interest, and anything else of curiosity. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the blog.

The Dem Damn Dames have been a performance group for about 10 months now. We have had two performances, and while starting out as a variety hour, our girls are embracing the burlesque side more and more. The lure of sexuality can be powerful. So, on more than one occasion the question has come up

What exactly is burlesque?

So I go to my good ole dictionary and came up with: “Mockery by ludicrous imitation: the mocking of a serious matter or style by imitating it in an incongruous way.”

Ok, not what I expected, but you have to think back to a life without TV, phones, or internet. People got their information by word of mouth, letters, etc. Shows would travel from town to town, and carry their ideals within the entertainment.

In A History of The Musical Burlesque by John Kenrick (Copyright 1996-2003) I feel they captured the modern notion of burlesque…“Most people think that 'burlesque' means female strippers walking a runway to a bump and grind beat. But that only fits the form in its declining years. At its best, burlesque was a rich source of music and comedy that kept American audiences laughing from 1840 through the 1960s."

I liked how the Black Orchid Burlesque defined burlesque: “Directly translated, Burlesque means 'in an upside down style.' Burlesque does just that, it turns societies' opinions on their heads.”

So with these definitions of burlesque in hand here are some modern examples of burlesque:

• Anyone who tells a joke with a double-meaning
• Saturday Night Live poking fun at politicians and movie stars
• Movies such as Young Frankenstein, Space balls, and the Austin Powers (they make fun of well-known entertainers, social mores, etc.)

According to A History of The Musical Burlesque "Shriek 2 (2004) is a superb example of the kind of comedy original burlesque performers like Lydia Thompson and her British Blondes offered in the 1860s, getting in good natured jabs at a wide variety of comic targets while challenging audiences to look beyond appearances—finding true beauty and bravery in unlikely characters.”

They go on to point out that The Jerry Springer Show is a tawdry version of the yester-year of burlesque.

There is so much information out there, I could literally write a novel on the subject. So, I encourage everyone to look up the many tantalizing articles written about the history of Burlesque. I can only give you an amushe bouche. (small one- or two-bite portion to tickle the tastebuds.)

For next week, one idea about burlesque that a modern performer cannot escape and comes up over and over is the difference between a burlesque dancer and a stripper.

Laura Herbert, the executive director of the Burlesque Hall of Fame in Las Vegas, is quoted saying: "There's a joke that's more truthful than I'd like it to be," she said. "What is the difference between a burlesque performer and a stripper? Strippers make money. Still, I believe that if your outfit can fit in your closed fist, you're probably not a burlesque performer." From Michelle Baldwin’s Burlesque and the New Bump-n-Grind



So next week’s blog is entitled: Top Ten Ways to Tell if I am a Stripper or a Burlesque Dancer

Ciao—Midnight Joy xoxo

Dame Auditions

We're having evening auditions on Tuesday, August 30, at the Continental Club, Houston! We're going to keep the auditions private and schedule interested dames .5 hours apart.

Please prepare a solo number (~2 minutes) and a brief biography including your relevant experience (dance, song, costuming, etc.). There are no constraints on the music. Our goal is to have variety and include neo-burlesque, burlesque, singing, comedy, or something unique to you.

Currently we practice/costume/drink on Tuesday evenings for 2 to 4 hours in the Montrose area. Ideally, we'd love every dame to come to every rehearsal, but that's proven difficult. We try to be accommodating to everyone's unique lifestyle. Additionally, occassionally we have mini-rehearsals or gatherings throughout the week as needed.

Please email demdamndames@gmail.com if you would like to be a part of our growing troupe.