The Geek Easy

Posted on by Thor

Some of the Skill Focus Burlesque girls will be going to Dragon Con in Atlanta, Georgia to spread the gospel of Nerdy Burlesque. Dragon Con is the largest multimedia, popular culture
convention focusing on science fiction and fantasy, gaming, comics,
literature, art, music, and film in the universe! This year, Dragon Con will be held Labor Day weekend (August 31 – September 3, 2012) in Atlanta, GA. Gas money is expensive though, so Ruby Darling threw a Free Dragon Con themed burlesque party at the Geek Easy to get folks drunk and sell them cupcakes! The Geek Easy is located in the back room of A Comic Shop
(114 South Semoran Blvd. Winter Park).

Cherry Bob-omb and Ruby Darling were behind the bar. Cherry had a luscious display of cupcakes in front of her. I decided to get a spoors cupcake which was awesome.Cherry’s other half, Mr. Bob-omb was next to the keg of free beer which was kept cool in an R2D2 ice bucket. There was a cardboard box for donations. The foamy Yuengling beer was quite good, and I stuffed some bills in the box. It is hard to write anything without sounding suggestive. Bob had to keep pumping the keg and done just right with plenty of wrist action and rhythm, it is hilariously suggestive.

At 11PM the Skill focus girls gave burlesque performances on two model stands that were arranged runway style. Shy LaBuff came to the event dressed as a Lord of the rings Dwarf. The fiery red bear matched her hair.  Her performance however was as Mario from the Mario Brothers Donkey Kong game. As always she was hilarious. Syber Digit added some sophistication to her routine and Ruby Darling really knew how to linger before each and every sensual reveal.

This brings me to another important reveal, The Star Wars Celebration VI is coming up August 23rd through August 26th at the Orlando Convention Center. The Skill Focus: Burlesque girls are going to celebrate Star Wars in their favorite way: Striptease!  They’ve got your light side and your dark side right here. The show titled Chan Shot First: An Intergalactic Burlesque Tribute, will be at Sleuth’s Diner Theater (8267 International Drive Orlando). Enjoy a fancy adult beverage from our Star
Wars menu of drink specials and be amazed as Skill Focus performs burlesque numbers as some of your favorite
scoundrels, princesses, and various life forms. The show is Saturday August 25th starting at 8PM.Parking is ample and free. Look for Ripley’s and the Crab House!

Tickets are $10 general public, $8 for members of the 501st

Doors and the bar open at 7:15pm

18+ only – nudity and nerdity!

Call 407-363-1985 to reserve your tickets now…seating is limited – don’t miss out!

Star Wars themed drink specials will be available all night long, plus a full bar and appetizer menu.

For reservations, call 407-363-1985. Seating is limited!

Avengers ASSemble

Posted on by Thor

I went to a rehearsal for “Avengers ASSemble.” This will be a burlesque show put on by Skill Focus: Burlesque, themed after the recent blockbuster hit.” The cast, featuring, Ruby Darling , Rosita Sparkles, Cherry Bob-omb,, Syber Digit, Shy LaBuff , Nekkid RoboJoe and Stephen Focking were going to assemble at Theater Downtown (2113 North Orange Avenue.) When I arrived at 9pm, Ashley Small, the Skill Focus stage manager, was the only person in the theater’s lounge. She looked like she was in charge, so I asked her if I was in the right place. The room was a furnace, partly because I had just walked several blocks from Ethos Kitchen.  She informed me that the cast had a multilevel stage to work with and that tonight would be an undress rehearsal of sorts.

Cherry Bob-omb went into the theater, and I decided to follow and check out the stage. The theater itself was thankfully cool. I immediately found a seat and started sketching the complex set with it’s multitude of levels. The cast assembled all at once and they quickly got into costumes. Syber Digit was the first out of the dressing room and she had on an awesome Thor outfit, complete with a large hammer. She relaxed on the set and I was exited to sketch my namesake. Ruby came out in her black wig and a stunning red and gold, Iron Man themed outfit. She asked the cast at hand to pose with her and I sketched frantically. I was self conscious about how much time I was taking, so my hands flew.

Stephen Focking had a vintage WWII helmet painted blue with the letter A inscribed on it. He found a  large Tupperware lid in the dressing room and he used it as his Captain America shield. Each performer in turn went through their strip tease. Each item of clothing was telegraphed and the gyrations accentuated. This troupe has a wonderful way of taking an age old tradition and making it fun and playful. You will scream, holler and cheer as they shake it down Marvel style! The performance will be at Theater Downtown on Saturday May 12th. Doors open at 10pm and the show starts at 11pm. Tickets are $10 at the door or in advance.  There will be an after party in the lobby with the cast.

Vaudeville

Posted on by Thor

Thanks to Shy La Buff, I found myself as part of a Vaudeville act at Theater Downtown. The lobby of Theater Downtown felt like a large cluttered living room. There was a pool table in the corner and a small piano in front of a makeshift stage. Theater posters and large photos littered the walls. I didn’t see any theatrical sketches. I planted myself in a comfortable leather seat. Actresses arrived one at a time, listening to iPods and swinging their hips.

There was a rehearsal wrapping up on the main stage so, Ruby Darling started blocking out the Circus act of which I was a part. Cory Violence stood in the center of the red carpet and began reciting “Live Circus” by Tom Waits. He had to read the lines off his iPhone at first but soon he was off script.

Every actress in the room was soon recruited to be in the act. Ruby herself became One Eyed Myra, the queen of the galley. Cherry Bob-omb took the role of Horse Face Ethel and her ‘Marvellous Pigs In Satin’. She wore a dark beard and moved with a dancers grace. A-manda Lorian had a petite frame draped in an over sized mans outfit. The floppy hat was a size too large and it always kept half her face hidden in shadow. She swayed and staggered like a drunk sailor. She reminded me of a feminine version of Charlie Chaplin. Siber Digit was Yodeling Elaine the Queen of the air. She moved with languid and heavy depression having lassoed and lost another tipsy sailor. Shy La Buff was on target as Poodle Murphy. She held her arms high and arched her back so I could sketch. Chan Sterling as Funeral Wells stood prepared to throw his hardware. He tested the sharpness of the blade with his thumb.

I only had five minutes to do the sketch on my digital tablet hooked up to a projector. I had to plan everything out in advance so I could finish in time. Each knife was on its own layer in Sketchbook Pro, so when Violence shouted, “Leave the bum!” I could flick a knife layer on and it would appear on the sketch. No physical knives were thrown only digital hardware.