Muchness and Light

Show Reviews: Magick City Sirens - E C Puffin's Haunted Burlesque - Jackson, MS - 10/29/2011

I traveled to Jackson, Mississippi to see the Magick City Sirens for their first show ever in that lovely Southern state.  I wasn't sure Jackson knew what was in store for them, but E C Puffin Entertainment (the promoter for the show) had done their job in getting the word out about the Sirens.  E C Puffin's Haunted Burlesque packed the Auditorium at historic Duling Hall, and some eager fans were there ahead of the Sirens' arrival.  Jackson was breathless with antici... pation.

I spent some time backstage with the lovely ladies before the show.  That's often my favorite time with them, watching the process of getting ready for their performances.  They always look so stupendously spectacular when they hit the crowd, but there's a hell of a lot of work that goes into that.  Jezabelle von Jane, troupe founder and Big Mama, is exacting of her girls.  A lot of time is spent having them change and perfect their make-up and costumes before they ever step out of the dressing room.  She is tough and meticulous, which is part of the reason she's been named Burlesque Performer of the Year three times.  She's brash and bawdy and at times intimidating—and unbelievably caring and sweet.  (Really, I want to be her when I grow up.)

I took my front and center seat moments before the house lights dimmed.  The troupe's newest Siren and Barker Extraordinaire, Frankie Bluu, did an amazing job of riling that already excited crowd into frenzy.  Jackson was ready for the Magick City Sirens.

The set list included 18 vignettes, 6 of which I'd seen before.  The first piece, "The Mummy", featured Ariiel Blaze, an adorable redhead who can woo a crowd with her cuteness and then sneak her singing and dancing on them until they fall in love.  Ariiel sashayed onto the stage from a sarcophagus, wearing an Egyptian burial mask and wrapped in linen strips.  She slowly peeled down to do a belly dance that was just fantastic.  Ariiel blew the crowd away again later with Journey's "Lovin', "Touchin', Squeezin'", plus she joined Tawny Rex and Abigail Lee for a group performance of Adele's "Rolling in the Deep".  Blaze is featured prominently in several of the vignettes and with good reason: she's energetic and charismatic and a damn fine performer. 

Tawny Rex, the delicious African American Siren, joined Big Mama for a new set, done to "Secret" by the Pierces.  Tawny poisons Jezabelle to keep her from telling her secret, then prances around the stage coyly until her rival gets her own revenge.  Later in the show, Tawny Rex did a her own danse sauvage in tribute to Josephine Baker, the black actress, singer, and dancer best known for her erotic stage shows in early 20^th century Paris.  Tawny's banana dance set to "Don't Touch My Tomatoes" was funny, though I almost got nailed by a plastic apple at one point.  She came back moments later to belt out Duffy's "Mercy".  Tawny Rex has got some pipes!  Her best performance of the evening may have been her shadow show, done to "Mad House" by Rihanna.  A screen and strobe lights and Tawny's curvy shadow opened the second act of the evening, and it was great.

The bombshell blonde of the troupe, Abigail Lee, started her evening with "My Heart Belongs to Daddy". 
I've seen her do this number multiple times before, but it's always fun.  She ends the piece in an inflatable pool and pasties, giving herself a naughty little sponge bath.  Her seductive eyes and innocent smile work well in this number, though they may have been better when she performed a sexy chair dance to Jace Everett's "Bad Things", the theme from HBO's True Blood.  There wasn't a man—and not a few women—in that crowd who would let Abigail Lee do any bad thing she wanted, as long as she was wearing nothing but those Daisy Dukes and pasties.  It was hot.  Seriously.  Abigail was also in the vocal spotlight for a beautiful rendition of the torch song classic "At Last". 

Tawny and Abigail joined Jinx the Graceful for a sexy, girl-in-uniform (think sequined USO) dance to "Candyman".  They topped it off with a trip around the crowd, offering Blow Pops for a buck.  (Yes, I got mine, straight from Jinx's mouth!)  Tatiana Heire showed off her own curvaceous shimmies to "Dance: Ten, Looks: Three", the tits and ass song.  A minor costume malfunction kept the crowd from seeing much of either, but it's always fun to see Tat doing her fearless thing on stage.

Jezabelle von Jane, however, was undeniably the highlight of the evening.  First of all, she's a stunner.  She's a total Glamazon.  When she comes out to work the crowd with Frankie Bluu, there's absolutely no ignoring the woman.  She's in-your-face ballsy and loud, and it works well as part of the show.  There are hints of that even when she's on stage, like during the all-Sirens-on-deck "Be Italian"—always a fan favorite. 

This night, however, she did her first solo show in a while, a black wax candle vignette that opened with a fan dance.  Jezabelle is simply mesmerizing on stage.  That dance, in which she pours hot black wax on across her scantily-clad body, is sexy and scintillating, but I could see a subtle vulnerability in Jezabelle during the piece.  The song ended, but there were still candles burning, and I could've watched her do that all night. 

I really didn't think they could top all that I had seen, but they surprised me with their version of "Thriller".  It was a Halloween show, after all, so I knew we'd probably see some sexy zombies or something before the night was up.  No one in the audience was prepared for what we saw, though. 

It started with Jezabelle von Jane in black leather pants and a red leather corset, à la Michael Jackson from the 1983 video.  The rest of the Sirens were in their own sexy mummy wear, dancing around the enthralling Big Mama.  The set was energetic, as expected, but the crowd was eerily quiet—stunned by the unexpected spectacle.  It really was like nothing I'd ever seen with this song, and the crowd roared to thunderous applause when Jezabelle shifted into an iconic red-and-black leather jacket, dancing her gorgeous heart out. 

They ended the show with the bawdiest of their numbers, all Sirens on stage, to "Shave 'em Dry".  Words simply cannot express how awesome this number is.  No one's naked, no one's peeling, but it is balls-to-the-walls fun and lewd and simply fantastic.  It was a great way to close the show, and the Magick City Sirens know it. 

I've seen the Sirens many times, and I will continue to do so.  They try to incorporate new songs into every show, letting each performer shine in her own glittery light.  Even when it's a piece I've seen before, I'm always blown away by how much these ladies give to their performances, whether together or by themselves.  They are obviously a troupe; they are an intimate sisterhood of lascivious fun who will support each other on stage and off, no matter what—and that translates beautifully for each and every show. 

Brava, Sirens!  Brava!

 

Show Review - Magick City Sirens - 8/12/2011

I arrived at Speakeasy in Birmingham on Friday night, August 12^th, around 10 p.m.  Speakeasy was one of the many local venues playing host to the Birmingham Arts and Music Festival.  I'd come to see Magick City Sirens, the Birmingham-based burlesque troupe, but made it just in time to catch the Ian Sturrock Memorial Pipe Band, who ushered in local faves Jasper Coal.  The tiny venue was packed, and nearly everyone had their pint in the air for an almost-punk, pipe and drum rendition of "Amazing Grace". 

The Sirens arrived around 10:30 in full pre-show accoutrement, each of the ladies bubbling equally with charm and cleavage.  They weren't scheduled to take the stage until 1:15 in the morning, and I was a little concerned about how many people would still be in attendance at the late hour.  Many people left between Jasper Coal and The Stop (a talented jazz/funk trio, who were unfortunately called "the porn music band" several times that night), and it might have been just me and the Sirens—which would've been totally okay.  But a crowd of about 300 poured back in just before showtime, and they were treated to a spectacularly fun little treat.

The Sirens had a new apprentice, Frankie Bluu, who was working as the barker for the evening.  She did a great job of getting the crowd frenzied in preparation for the show.  She was a natural in front of that group of equally-beguiled men and women, and I was surprised to learn it was her first time out. 

Due to limitations of the sound system, the nature of BAAMfest!, and the timing of the show, the Sirens didn't actually sing for this shorter-than-normal set.  Although the troupe doesn't normally repeat songs from show to show, I'd seen each of the evening's numbers before, though none was a disappointment. 

Abigail Lee, opened the show with a peel (it's not stripping, it's burlesque!) set to "My Heart Belongs to Daddy".  The beautiful blonde looked sweet and innocent as stripped down from her cute blue apron to her pasties and sponged off in an inflatable kiddie pool.  The fun irony had the crowd cheering and ready for the cutie-pie comedy of Ariiel Blaze's "Beyond the Sea", a beach-themed peel that included toy crabs and a confetti-rain-filled parasol.  The adorable red-head had everyone ready to set sail in search of a bathing beauty of their own. 

Tawny Rex pranced down to her bare minimums to "But I Am a Good Girl", her lovely dark skin contrasted against her white satin corset.  "Dance: Ten, Looks: Three" was heralded by the most voluptuous of the Sirens, Tatiana Heire.  "Tits and ass can change your life/they sure changed mine," delivered by the classically-trained, voluptuous lady in purple was lively and tongue-in-cheek.  (Which takes on a whole new meaning in such a bawdy setting!)

The troupe's final number brought Abigail Lee, Tawny Rex, and Ariiel Blaze back to the stage for "Be Italian", joined by Jinx the Graceful and the incomparable Jezabelle von Jane, who founded Magick City Sirens in 2007.  Jezabelle gave the crowd her all without ever losing a stitch, her dark hair and smoldering "come hither" engaging every single eye in the place.  Days later I learned she was so into her groove that she gave herself bruises, banging her thighs with her tambourine. 

As usual, Magick City Sirens gave a grand performance, doing an amazing job of engaging and enticing the crowd from the moment they stepped into the venue.  You can catch them again on September 10^th at the Barking Kudu in Birmingham, as part of Beer, Bands & Bullies.  Tickets are $15 at the door, with all proceeds going to Bama Bully Rescue. 

 

A little bit of naughty is a little bit nice. She's a whole lot of glam, sweat, sugar, sex, spice.

I love all things glitzy and glammy, in an off-center, tongue-in-cheek kind of way.  I don't love show tunes or Broadway by default, and I freakin' loathe Liza Minnelli, Celine Dion, and red carpet award ceremonies of any kind.   My very favorite movie ever is Hedwig and the Angry Inch, I spent countless weekend nights doing the Timewarp, and I have a deep, abiding love of vintage-sinspired lingerie. 

Somehow it was only this week that I made it to my first burlesque show. 

In all fairness, growing up in Alabama didn't afford a lot of opportunity to see scantily-clad women who could sing, do magic tricks, or maybe breathe fire.  Even after moving to Atlanta, the kids took up a lot of time, and it just never came to pass. 

Friday night, I traveled back to my hometown to see the Magick City Sirens, Birmingham's first burlesque troupe.  It was started in 2007 by their gorgeous house mom, Jezzabelle von Jane.  I'd seen her picture on Facebook and honestly have a little girl crush.  I was originally supposed to see them in May, but there was a big, public brouhaha about their show being cancelled at the last minute.  The venue owner apparently didn't have a good understanding of what burlesque entailed. 

And to make sure you know, burlesque is not stripping.  Most burlesque performers, both male and female, aren't nude.  They may be in their best, most revealing lingerie, but there's generally no full-on naked to be had.  They are singers and dancers and comedians and magicians and whatever-elses you would find in any other performance troupe.  They just happen to be racy, lacy, and pastied. 

The Sirens were beautiful, certainly, and each in her own way.  These ladies ran the gamut of small to extra large (says the curvy Amazon), and they were totally risqu -fied in their corsets and stockings and sparkly bits.  In the interest of full disclosure, I was myself totally sassified in black lace and pencil skirt with my glittery pink shoes.  Dress for the job you want, right?

What I loved about this was the courage those lovelies had to parade themselves, each in their full, beautiful glory, in front of anyone and everyone.  Make no mistake: these are real women, even the one who had a boob job.  (I won't tell you which, because that's not my secret to share.  You'll have to see them live and figure it out yourself.)  They are disproportionate and curvy and imperfect by societal and mass-medial standards.  And they were stunning. 

They were also talented and sweet and lots of fun to chat with after the spectacularly fun show.  I've decided that I want to be them when I grow up.  I might even hurry up and make that leap into adulthood if it means new shoes and frillies!

Seriously, there's something very alluring to me about that kind of performing.  I can sing, I'm relatively coordinated, and I clean up nicely.  I'm also boisterous and bawdy, though I know a couple of people who argue that I'm intense and maybe just a little crazy.  And I have issues—with my sexuality, with the public and private image of my body, and with being on in front of strangers.  Wrap all of that up in satin and sequins, and I'm totally in. 

The Magick City Sirens will be performing again at Al's on Seventh in Birmingham on July 24^th.  Plan to join me and Harley, please.  Just be sure to save my seat at the very front—keep it open and warm—in case I decided to join them on stage.