Thursday, December 27, 2007

More & More News

Merry Everything... hope your holidays are and were fabulous.

HomeThere are tremendous things happening every day and here's what you need to know.

Voltaire Music Video: Members of WEBS are filming with Voltaire, the self-proclaimed "Gothic Renaissance man" for his music video, "Happy Birthday My Olde Friend." On January 3rd we will be in Philadelphia with a full cavalcade of other fun freaks and weirdos. Hopefully we will have photos from our experience to share with you shortly. We are already thrilled and humbled by the opportunity.

Wicked Faire: We are attending the annual Wicked Faire on February 8th and performing a full set (about a half an hour). Come one, and come all! Also on the bill: Voltaire (can't get away from him; it's meant to be!) and

BDSM Documentary: Attending more than one fetish convention in a year can get you a name... We couldn't be happier! We were invited by filmmaker Ariella Furman to have our Wicked Fare performance taped and several of our members will be interviewed for a documentary on bondage and submission and it's influence on society, as well as art. We will post information when we get it.

HomeClips: All the youtube clips are up from the Rock Stars & Strippers event! Also check out the old favorites and don't forget to RATE and COMMENT! Thanks to everyone who has supported us through the year!

Past News: Interview At NonProductive! Click Here for Details & Click Here for Videos!

Friday, November 30, 2007

Dita Von Teese


Ms. Dita shows us how it's done.

Monday, November 19, 2007

Rockstars

In a lot of confusion this past week, we never did post up a reminder here that there was a show on Friday (the 16th)... Anybody actually out there, reading this? I will only feel bad if there is, so do say hello! :)

We performed at the Rockstars and Strippers Magazine launch party... It was a lot of fun; an intimate, raucous setting. I think we all enjoyed ourselves. We did 5 new tracks; Randi made her debut as a lead performer, and I had my first solo choreographed segment. Angie and Regina rocked the hell out of everyone, and the ladies of "Fat Bottomed Girls" smoked the crowd. We brought everything back to "Start Wearing Purple," which is definitely one of our biggest "hits" as the audience always seems to really enjoy themselves when we do it.

I appreciate everyone's visitation and participation-- check out our photos at myspace.com/weburlesque

Expect videos soon.

--George

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

18 to Party

Our "Closer" video was flagged for the 18+ crowd... really?!



See if you agree through the blurry.

Friday, October 26, 2007

SalonCon YouTube Videos



Visit our YouTube account page to see the new videos added including "Poison Ivy," "Start Wearing Purple," "Big Spender," and more. Several more coming next week. Woo.

Thursday, October 25, 2007

Margaret Cho's The Sensuous Woman

Margaret Cho's The Sensuous Woman has announced a second two-week extension at off-Broadway's Zipper Theatre. Originally slated for a four-week limited engagement beginning September 26, the production had already extended once and will now play through November 17.

Created by and starring comedian Margaret Cho, The Sensuous Woman is a night of comedy, music and dance that celebrates the female body and features a supporting cast of renowned burlesque stars and comedians. Featured performers have included belly dancer Princess Farhana, transgendered comic Ian Harvie, burlesque performer Selene Luna, comic actor Liam Sullivan, dancer and choreographer Ryan Heffington, New York downtown favorite Miss Dirty Martini, and sketch comedians Diana Yanez and Kurt Hall.

source: Broadway.com

Genevieve and I both had the pleasure of seeing this show and you all should as well.

Monday, October 22, 2007

NonProductive

NonProductive
Thursday, October 25, 2007
8:00 pm - 10:00 pm


Check out ClickRadio on Thursday and hear from a few of your favorite Society members. We will be doing a half-hour segment in the first half of the show, and you should all listen and enjoy us. We will have a live reading from Madame Jinx, and stage performance that NonProductive is recording for the visuals (but you'll hear the ooo's and ahh's) as well as surprises along the way.

If you do miss us, they will be releasing a podcast of the interview as well including the visual footage.

If you hear us, give us a shout and let us know how we did!

Visit NonProductive's MySpace

Friday, October 19, 2007

Catherynne M. Valente

Author Catherynne M. Valente wrote about us (not by name) at SalonCon 2007. Read it here. It's an interesting perspective that you should check out. I did respond (username: liquiddatura) if you want to see that, too. Nothing earth-shatteringly bad, but a good editorial all the same. And she didn't hate us.

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Thursday, September 27, 2007

Hooping

The Society will be appearing at Wicked Labyrinth this Friday and Saturday. We will be going on at 10:00 on the Tavern Stage on Friday, and will be available in a suite for An Evening with the Society. Check your programs for suite numbers.

Jordana Marielle got some surprising press on Hooping.org Magazine. The online resource discovered "sweet and slightly insane" clips of JM working on her hoop skills in her backyard and just had to post about. Great!

That and more youtube clips are up from WEBS, including pieces from our gig at SalonCon 2006. Check 'em!

Thursday, September 13, 2007

SalonCon Pre-Reg

Pre-registration for SalonCon ends at 11:59 tomorrow, so get your tickets early for a discounted rate!

Avrilesque

Avril Lavigne films music video in Jersey City
Pop singer Avril Lavigne shot a music video at the Beacon in Jersey City this weekend, a representative for the development announced. The 21-year-old singer was at the complex -- the former Jersey City Medical Center -- on Saturday night. The video was shot in Murdoch Hall, which also was used in several movies, including Annie and Quiz Show.

According to the press release, the video had a "1920s burlesque" theme, complete with girls in fishnets. "Ms. Lavigne had two personal masseuses tending to her during the shoot," the press release said. The video is for "Hot," the third single off her third album, The Best Damn Thing.

--

Admittedly I like the song, but I am most amused by the "complete with girls in fishnets." That's so distinctive. Is that the only thing they could have mentioned?

Thursday, September 6, 2007

Evelyn Evelyn

Amanda Palmer and Jason Webley have just released a 3-track EP under the pseudonym "Evelyn Evelyn," conjoined twin singers in the style of a macabre Andrew Sisters. While there's no official word that it truly is Webley and Palmer, it's unmistakable.

Visit their MySpace at once and give a listen to their song "Have You Seen My Sister Evelyn," which is fabulous.

Choreography is already springing to mind!

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

Kinky Boots

Watched the utterly charming Kinky Boots. Check it out right now. There's a great character in Lola, played by Chiwetel Ejiofor (Serenity, Love Actually). The story is about a man who unwillingly inherits a dying shoe factory, and after several false starts (naturally), comes to an unexpected conclusion that he should restructure his market: "to women who are men." His inspiration and designer is Lola, a cabaret drag act who sings the hell out of "I Want to Evil," "Whatever Lola Wants," and a great medley that includes "These Boots Were Made for Walking" and "In These Shoes."

It's funny and interesting without being preachy, and is quite smart.

See it!

Monday, August 27, 2007

Floating World

Floating World has come and gone. After all the prep work that went into it, it would be nice to relax. That's not going to happen... SalonCon is less than a month away.

As for FW, it was a fun event. There was some trouble getting there this week, between cast interaction and not getting direct answers from the venue for what to expect. Sound did not work out as we hoped or expected. In fact we had to use a boombox that didn't carry sound very, very well so who knows what the audience actually heard. But we had an audience! And they clapped! It was certainly my worst Viktor ever; I gave up banter after about a minute and a half of blank faces. But they got way more into during the performances.

"Tell Me" was largely improvised by Regina and myself. We had an idea going in what we wanted to do, but it all came together on the stage. My favorite moments were throwing Regina to the floor (hot!) and taking her against my hips and twirling her around, her hair flying (hotter!).

Genevieve and Danielle rocked the hell out of "#1 Crush" and Sandy pulled off "Closer" very well (I felt so bad that she couldn't hear the music as clearly; with a song like "Closer" that is largely monotonous, that's killer), and Angie mesmerized for both "Poison Ivy" and "Why Don't You Do Right." Jordana, Genevieve, and I got through "Script Language" without a misstep and I think it looked really good.

Truly, the whole set worked out brilliantly. I would love to do the exact set again (next time, as Danielle pointed out, with a stronger final song-- "Why Don't You Do Right" is a lot of fun, but a more energetic track afterwards would've sealed the show a bit better), and we very likely may for the Labyrinth show (more on that another time--but I'm hoping it will feature both irony and ironing) or October if I get my way. The exciting November show is also still on the horizon...

The rest of evening featured our cast participating with Midnight Seduction. After the extremely quick show we just performed, I'm not sure everyone was really gearing to have a low-key roleplaying session with strangers, but we all ended up having a lot of fun. It was far more interactive (and voluntary) than we had realized, and the time flew by. We met a lot of great people, several of whom may be coming to our other upcoming shows or may be able to hook us up.

After the show, we packed and headed to a diner where we gabbed for quite a long time.

As always, a bit of post-show depression (it was over too fast!) but that's good--get's us ready for the next one.

Friday, August 24, 2007

Pre-Floating World

T-4 hours until call at Floating World. This is it, y'all. We're heading out now to make our respective stops.

Make-up in the car! It's tradition.

#1 Crush

Thank ducks. That last bit of choreography was worked out and suddenly, it was like everything fell into place. Quite literally. Our last rehearsal was rife with tension, clashing expectations and just... frustration. And neither of us had a particularly stellar day and it was late and we still had to nail down some elusive bits ... I was expecting at least a modicum of tension. What happened made me so very happy. We gelled. We worked together; Danielle gave incredibly valuable input and I changed some things around and suddenly we were like, "wait ... did that all just come together in just under an hour?"

Yes. It did. I'm happy with it. She's happy with it. Our bags are 90% packed, we're showering, eating and then collpasing into bed. Tomorrow is a busy day. I'm so excited to see how all this comes together.

Oh! Fae found a dress! It's lovely. It was far too expensive. She doesn't give a good goddamn. Unfortunately, my wallet gave a good goddamn and then some. It weeps now. But Fae being happy just makes the world sparkle and I like that.

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Rehearsals for Floating World

This has been a very busy week. Jordana, Genevieve, and I worked on a track for Floating World, which is happening THIS FRIDAY. We finally got all of it done, which causes both relief and anticipation.

Regina's birthday (23 y'all!) was on Tuesday and today (Wednesday), Regina, Sandy, Genevieve, and I got together to work on the final two numbers left unpracticed for Floating World. Sandy was amazing; she worked on it with her boyfriend, and it came out great. No spoilers, but I did take a video that hopefully will go up on our youtube soon (gotta edit it still). Regina and I nailed some basics down but a lot of it will be spur-of-the-moment.

Tomorrow, some SalonCon work with Dani, and then FLOATING WORLD ON FRIDAY!

I am very excited and also relieved for it to be over as well. SalonCon's in exactly 1 month. It's all happening so fast.

ALSO, VERY EXCITING NEWS coming soon! Don't want to give too much away and certainly not before Floating, but I'll be giving out official word shortly. It must be said that it's a fabulous opportunity and in November, so we've got some time. I just don't want too many sugarplums dancing just yet.

Focus!

Shenanigans

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Dolls Ideas We Wish We Thought Of

This is not our project; just something we thought was a cool idea and in support to act we love much.)
(REPOSTED
FROM THE DRESDEN DOLLS MYSPACE)

Hello Comrades:
In the many years of touring that I've done, one of the things i've been consistently impressed with is the high creative quality of the original artwork that people have brought to the shows in many forms. I can't tell you how many times i've seen someone with a handmade Dolls-inspired purse/shirt/lunchbox/duct-tape creation/thing and heard someone next to them say "you MADE that? can i PAY you to make ME one??"
so here it is, the age of over-inter-connectedness and the internet and it's time to change the world. I want to create an internet exchange forum in which really talented artists and artisans can directly reach out fans instead of posting photos their wares to the internet to get feedback. this is awesome but i would really like to see these artists making MONEY and doing BUSINESS with our fans. so it was that after years and years of discussion, the concept of Post-War Trade was born.
my good friend and fellow artist Katie Kay has agreed to take on the job of trying to organize this conceptual nightmare into a daydream reality, but we obviously can't do it without YOU. the main idea is to get as many artists and artisans as possible to submit their work, we will pick the stuff we think is amazing enough to be reproduced en masse, and the featured items will be sold on the net with the majority of the profit going back to the artist.
it's the DEMOCRATIC FUTURE OF MERCHANDISING! how AWESOME!!!! it's like Gwen Stefani's L.A.M.B. fashion line without the.....horrible capitalist connotations? sweatshops? spandex? no artist is too professional or amateur to get involved. ANYTHING GOES. that means anything. even spandex, for christ's sake!!!! if you can make it, and we love it and think other people will love it, we will sell it.
so spread the word to all your artist and artisan friends. there's a lot more information about the nitty gritty, katie kay will get y'all informed further:

from Katie Kay:
Calling all designers, artists, craftspeople and anyone who has ever thought of being any of those!
The Dresden Dolls are happy to announce their latest project, /Post-War Trade./ After years of seeing the most amazing pieces of art come from fans, we felt the need to share with the world at large—it is just too beautiful to keep under wraps! The time has come to bridge the gap between artist and fan, making these lovely creations available to everyone.
We'd love to see your best work—everything from wallets to lampshades to pillowcases, large fine art to toothbrush holders, journals to tea-cozies, alligator-leashes to zebra-saddles. The sky is the limit, as long as it incorporates Dresden Dolls-inspired imagery, or the name of the new project, /Post-War Trade/. We will hand-select several pieces at a time, and each artist will have a biography and photo featured along with their listing, as well as a link to a personal website. Artists and products will be in rotation, each one being featured for 3-4 months per cycle. Payment will work on a consignment or percentage basis, depending on the situation. Post-War Trade will be responsible for all marketing, sales and shipping, with a check being issued to the artist at the end of their featured time. After we receive photos of possible items, potential artists will be asked to provide us with a high-quality sample and should be able to reproduce several of the item within an agreed upon period of time.
We are looking for every level of artist, fans of the band and people new to our world—from people newly creating to established, professional designers! Please pass this along to your favorite artists, friends or talented enemies.
*This is the official call for /Post-War Trade/ submissions! Send photos/ sketches of your work to: postwartrade@dresdendolls.com
Deadline for our initial launch is September 3rd, 2007. If we select your item, you will be asked to mail in a sample, from there we will select the featured artists. Quantities ordered will vary on an item-by-item basis, taking into account cost and time restraints. Spread the word-- let's change the world of band merchandising, let's bring it into the hands of artists!
if you'd like more information or aren't sure about what this is all is or means, please email:postwartrade@dresdendolls.com

Monday, August 13, 2007

Check it out!

The New York Burlesque Festival at the end of the month! I don't know if I can afford to go, but some White Elephant people should check it out!

Miss Saturn and Scotty the Blue Bunny are the only people on the roster that I know of, but there are acts from all over the world that look awesome like Budoir Bondage and Trixie Little & The Evil Hate.

I really wish I had money...

Who wantsta be my sugar daddy/mommy?

Friday, August 10, 2007

Angela Lansbury

last night, Dan(te) and i got to meet
Angela Lansbury

i told Dan(te) that i finally had his birthday present and asked him to meet me in NYC last night after i got out of process. i wouldn't tell him what we were doing all week, and gave him hints that were good, if one were to really think about them. last night we met up in Bryant Park, and walked to Times Square. i purposely walked by the Spamalot theatre and said something like "hey, we could see Spamalot" as he had no idea what time we were doing what the surprise was, or what it was to begin with. i knew he wanted to see it, so the plan to confuse him worked. hehe. it all worked out well though. Angela Lansbury and Marian Seldes are in a play on Broadway till next week when the run ends, and the theatre is right across from Shubery Alley, where Spamalot is. we walked pass the theatre of the play, Duece, and i stopped outside right in front of the collage they have on the wall of the 2 actresses, but purposely in front of Angela Lansburys, which includes a huge picture of her as Mrs Lovett in Sweeney Todd. i rummaged through my bag "looking for something" and said something like "well, so, you know how you see Angela Lansbury behind you on the wall?" "yea..." "well you get to see her in person in a couple hours". he was confused, and when i said we were going to the show, he didnt believe me till i showed him the tickets. i had a bag with me, and when we were in the park i said something about how i needed to be careful with it and make sure nothing bashed into it. i showed him that in the bag, i had my original Sweeney Todd record from when it was on Broadway, my Mrs Potts bank, and his Sweeney CD. as i was reorganizing my bag, Marian Seldes walked by. we both looked at each other and she smiled. she stopped to talk to someone at the door, and i asked if she would sign my little notepad book. she did, and was sooo quiet when she spoke, and sweet as can be. she personalized the page and everything. i said i had seen her in the Process office a few weeks back when she had an audition at the casting agency. it was a good start to the evening.
we went to planet hollywood, where Dan(te) and i wandered a bit looking at all the movie memorabilia they have. after that we went to the theatre for the show. it had gotten awful reviews, but really wasnt that bad. we both agreed meeting Angela Lansbury was more important than the show, but it was still cute. and the language the 2 actresses used was just amusing to hear. there was a part where Angela Lansbury talked about pies(sweeney), and lucky strikes(con joke), to which we both laughed a good amount. after we raced out of the theatre to the stage door. Marian Seldes came out first and was just adorable. she stayed and signed everything for everyone and took pictures with whoever asked, and even was talking to people about all sorts of things. then Ms Lansbury came out. i was shaking so much, and the look on mine and Dan(tes) faces was nothing but excitement. we're both HUGE Sweeney Todd fans, so this was like the coolest Sweeney related thing ever. she was sooo nice and signed a couple things for me, my Sweeney record, the booklet from the record

and my Mrs Potts bank which i gave to my sister (she was Mrs Potts in a production of Beauty and the Beast at the Papermill Playhouse), and she signed Dan(te)s Sweeney CD, and took pictures with both of us. she went to the other people who were outside too, and then got in her car.

it was one of the best nights ever. we got on the bus going home, and were pretty much speechless. yes, shes a regular person, but is also someone we both admire greatly. i'm still in awe of yesterday.

Saturday, August 4, 2007

Floating World Prep

Thanks to a recommendation from someone at the Libertine Ball, the Society was invited to the Floating World fetish event in Edison. It's extremely gratifying to actually have someone see us perform and think that they want us for something else. It makes me proud.

We are setting up an entirely new set for the event; most of the cast hopefuls have confirmed much to my own relief, and while I can't say a lot about it now, I'm excited.

First rehearsal aimed for Monday. Like we did SalonCon, it'll probably be a rehearsal per number at different times. Looking forward to it. We also realized from SalonCon 2006 and Libertine 2007, that while we the numbers in common, a few months and poof a lot of choreography was hard to get back into. So I think we're taping it. Who knows; maybe we'll get some behind-the-scenes action up here.

Wednesday, August 1, 2007

Libertine Photos

It breaks my heart, but so far I haven't been able to find any photos of our actual performance at Libertine Ball. So far I have spotted 1 single image of Regina, though, in her gear from "Wicked Woman, Foolish Man." (site NSFW)

Fourth row, first pic. It's a great shot. At least we have proof we were there!

I e-mailed the Passional crew as well as the MySpace but no luck. Cross your fingers.

"So let me get right to the point..."

I am so hooked on "Big Spender" by Shirley Bassey right now. Unfortunately, not a song for any upcoming performance, but definitely going in Fae's box of tricks.

Geroge and I spent the evening having dinner and brainstorming. Much still needs to be done in the next few weeks and we had a night of it planning and scheming.

Everything is coming together so... amazingly. I bust into a grin everytime I think about the society and how it's grown. I can't wait for SalonCon. I can't wait to see how it all looks and feels and goes. There are so many frickin' talented people and such an expansive opportunity for a show.

The website is up and I'm so damned proud of it. George has done much of the work and I think the result is quite excellent. We still need more bios, more pictures, more of a lot of stuff. But it's coming in. It's getting done.

It's actually happening...

Sunday, July 29, 2007

Does Anyone Still Wear a Hat?

LOVE Elaine Stritch. I would love to see her do this live. Viktor owes a debt.

Elaine Stritch to Revive At Liberty at Cafe Carlyle
Elaine Stritch plans to revive her Tony-winning one-woman show, Elaine Stritch: At Liberty, at the Cafe Carlyle. Stritch will perform the show for three weeks, January 1-19, 2008, at the Carlyle Hotel's cabaret space, with music director Rob Bowman conducting an orchestra.

A limited run of At Liberty, co-written by Stritch and John Lahr, played for 69 performances at Broadway's Neil Simon Theatre in 2002, directed by George C. Wolfe. It won a 2002 Tony for Best Special Theatrical Event, and a televised version later won an Emmy Award. The show mixes Stritch's reminiscences of her long theatrical career (including roles in Company, The Little Foxes, Bus Stop, A Delicate Balance, Sail Away and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?) with 19 songs, including numbers by her friend Noel Coward and Sondheim classics such as "The Ladies Who Lunch," "I'm Still Here" and "The Little Things You Do Together." Stritch, now 82, will perform At Liberty in its entirety.

-- Broadway.com, 7/25/2007

Friday, July 27, 2007

The Libertine Ball

Still flying high on a truly scrumptious performance in Philadelphia. Officially our second performance ever, we didn't have a lot of time to get ready, but we pulled it together extremely well. We were invited through Deb at SalonCon and by extension Ms. Kitty, a country & blues vampire singer. How awesome does that sound?! Oh, yes, the event! It was the prestigious Libertine Ball! Admittedly, my personal BDSM event knowledge is limited, but we were completely game.

Genevieve actually spoke to me with this exact point of view, "We can't do this, right?" Not that we didn't want to (we've been dying to get our feet wet again during the endless wait of our biggest opportunity yet, SalonCon '07); quite the opposite. We just didn't want to get our hopes up. But after some frantic e-mails and calls, we got together a cast and decided early on, "Let's not go crazy--let's do an encore performance of 3 of the songs from SalonCon '06." Not a problem. Ok, problem.

The "Candyman" (Christina Aguilera) choreography and concept was written with Jordana, Lauren, and myself in mind. Lauren was going to be in Florida, so she was out. Ok, we'll try Dani, who worked in a different number at SalonCon '06 but had given me a heads-up she was totally down with doing "Candyman" at some point as well. Ok, no good; she's out, too! Fortunately, Danielle was available already for an entirely different musical number ("I Want You" by Rachael Yamagata) and was on hand for a last minute replacement, so she was doing 2 numbers of the 3.

Sarah and Regina confirmed and they reprised "Wicked Woman, Foolish Man"--a charming and obscure track by August Darnell that he did for the Dick Tracy soundtrack in 1990--and Danielle and Genevieve were good with "I Want You" at this point, having created the choreography for that on their own in first place.

Admittedly, I was nervous. An entirely new crowd, more intimate space than SalonCon, and well, I didn't know what to expect. I loved the building, everyone was extremely friendly (I guess if you're gonna let semi-strangers flog you, you're gonna be friendly), and we had a really great, responsive audience. I was able to crack some jokes that were setting appropriate ("In my home country, when you want to dance with a girl, you have to ask their daddy. I am glad that here it's pretty much the same.") and the dance numbers went flawlessly. I was even able to cement the "Tickle Tango" from Zumanity as my theme with two dance partners, and we introduced the gypsy-punk-dance-party that is Gogol Bordello's "Mishto!" as our finale.

As it turns out, we not only had a great time, we were able to effectively network. We already have a job offer in Edison, NJ. It looks potentially expensive (I won't name the event 'til it's confirmed) but if we are able to work that out (starving artists, all that) it looks like a similarly fabulous time. It comes before SalonCon '07, so we may be able to workshop at least one number planned for that, and try some others that wouldn't be appropriate.

Trust me, Genevieve and I are glowing.

Check back soon for details.

--George

Thursday, July 26, 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this blog is for select members of the Society to be able to share some thoughts, links, ideas, etc. Anything from "Hey, we just came back from this show," or "I was listening to this piece of music and thought our audience would love it, too" is appropriate and what can be expected here. Feel free to comment; one of us we'll get back to you!

Additionally, any mail that we get will be posted here with a response.

The writers of this blog are the actors behind the Society; there will be no IC posts in this blog.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

This is the blog for members of the White Elephant Burlesque Society. http://www.weburlesque.net