Intimi(dating): A Cabaret About Sex and Dating

Posted on by Thor

This post is sponsored by a very delicious mango flavored prosecco consumed on the Green Lawn of Fabulousness that left me floating in a wide zig zag pattern across the lawn not sure if my feet were touching the ground.

Katie Thayer is a powerhouse at the Orlando International Fringe Festival. She has become known as Bikini Katie for her unique advertising campaign where artists can advertise their shows on her bikini clad body with body paint. Placing an ad on her arm is cheaper than an ad on her shapely legs and an artist must pay top dollar to advertise on the the prime real estate of her chest.

Katie now has artists who help her by wearing bikinis to expand the advertising campaign. Katie purchased the award that Bobby Wesley had left unattended last year. He jokingly said he online that he owed Katie, and volunteered to wear a bikini at this year’s Fringe. Bikini Bobby honored that commitment, which I can verify since I saw him briefly at the beer tent. The ads were smeared and running because he had sprinted to a show at the Savoy, working up a sweat. The ads were legible but faint and dripping downward.

Back to Katie’s show Intimi(dating): A Cabaret About Sex and Dating which is at Savoy this year. Waiting in line to get into her venue in the Starlight Room there was a pre-show since we got to watch a male dancer in his thong gyrate on a platform near the bar. He kept nudging the thong down to his pubic arch as if about to reveal the not so hidden package.

Katie’s show was refreshingly honest and candid. I loved that two of Katie’s Bikini models were in the front row of her performance. Fringe is all about artists supporting artists. Katie held nothing back to reveal her sultriest scandals. When the sex was hot she was very honest about why. When she spoke about one relationship, the sex was no longer just about sexual pleasure, they became truly intimate.

Married men hid their secrets. She joked about how all women are master detectives when dealing with men. The trouble with her dating pool was that many of the men were international artists. She had less than stellar experiences dating Canadians.

Between stories Katie would play her ukulele and sing songs that helped musically define the bristling points of each story she related, followed by jokes about how she takes her men like she takes a cup of coffee. For the delicious punch lines you will need to see the show. Each sexual foray would lead to her questioning her choices.  But she lives fiercely and loves with absolute passion and abandon. Any failed relationships don’t knock her down; they make her stronger and more determined moving forward.

Experiencing this cabaret, you will leave feeling uplifted and hopeful that love and passion is always the right choice. As Katie says, “Life is more fun when you kiss and tell.” Hidden gems like this show are what makes Fringe great.

Remaining show times for Intimi(Dating): A Cabaret About Sex and Dating by Bikini Katie Productions, Orlando Florida. The Venue is the Starlight Room at Savoy (1913 North Orange Avenue Orlando Florida). Rating is 18 and up. The show lasts about 60 minutes. Tickets at $15. Be sure to get a Fringe button for entry. Happy Fringe!

Tuesday May 19, 7:00pm

Friday May 22, 8:30pm

Saturday May 23, 12:00pm

Sunday May 24, 7:30pm

The Lawn of Fabulousness at the Fringe.

Posted on by Thor

Much of the magic of the Fringe happens on the Green Lawn of Fabulousness. The beer tent is the place to go to order a beer and talk to actors and producers to find out the buzz about the top shows each year. As I was finishing up a drink and waiting for a friend, I noticed these fairy wings being created. I asked to do a sketch and she was fine with me sitting and observing. The wings made from flexible branches and light pink weave were going to be used for an interactive show happening in the evenings at the large live oak tree in front of the Mennello Museum. This wings had two battery packs which illuminated a series of tiny lights.

The wings were for Phoenix Tears Production’s Stardust After Dark immersive experience.The production company featured two immersive audio dramas at Orlando Fringe. With nothing more than a smart phone and a pair of headphones they will
transformed the area around Loch Haven Park into the magical Stardust
Kingdom. In Stardust After Dark, which takes place in the evenings, the audience encountered two characters as they invite
you to shed the mortal world and come and join them in an 18+
celebration full of pixie dust, rum, and the seductive call of a Siren.

I didn’t have a chance to catch the actual show. My only hint at the magic was this pair of light gossamer wings which were crafted with loving care.

The beer tent is at the heart of the Orlando Fringe.

Posted on by Thor

The best way to discover what shows to see at the Orlando International Fringe Festival is by word of mouth at the beer tent on the green lawn of fabulousness. A beer truck was parked at the edge of the tent offering beers on tap. “Just do it” orange buckets were below each tap. To get a beer you need to first buy a ticket at another tent. Apparently there is a city ordinance that makes it illegal to pay cash for beer in a public park. The tickets circumvent that ordinance. I got a $5 ticket and tried a beer that was a bit bitter for my taste. It was cold, so I still appreciated it in the hot afternoon.

This was the first day of Fringe and the beer wench was extremely helpful in not only slinging beers, but explaining how to Fringe to newer patrons.  She was also quick to compliment a woman on her beautiful breasts. My man boobs didn’t elicit a compliment. My second drink was a hard cider which is what I decided to drink for the rest of the Fringe. I bumped into Brandon Roberts who has to be the funniest actor in Orlando. He was in a show called Clink which featured acrobatics in a prison setting. He gave me the quick elevator pitch for the show, and I decided that I would have to go for the sketch opportunity. To promote Clink, Brandon said, “Fringing is a dirty business” as he dropped off bars of soap on my table with a Clink promotional photo on the wrapper.

I used the beer tent for cover when a torrential rain storm hit the Fringe. Wind gusts made any attempt as staying dry fruitless. As the rain died down, a man took his folding chair and used it to push up a heavy pool of water that was caught in the sagging roof of the tent. A huge waterfall caused children to laugh with delight. A woman from the fire oven pizza booth came out with a pizza paddle to do the same to another sagging tent. The rain stopped for a bit and I got as far as the Rep before it began to pour again.