Rockabilly-Online

The Burlesque Assassins is the first feature film of Canadian writer / director Jonathan Joffe, whose previous short films have earned him 20 awards and screened at over 50 festivals worldwide.

The Burlesque Assassins. Beautiful, deadly, and a vital weapon in the war against communism and tyranny that threaten our freedom.
Created during WWII by the lovers turned resistance fighters Johnny Valentine and Katarina Molotov, The Burlesque Assassins used the feminine charms of the dancehall to lure their way within killing distance of the top ranking members of the Nazi regime. Their mission, SEDUCE AND DESTROY.

Read the rest of this entry »

One of the most freeing things about neo-burlesque is that, stylistically, almost anything goes. If a costume gets a performer’s creative juices flowing and makes them feel comfortable, beautiful and triumphant, it’s likely to be fair game. Yet this lack of rules can also be overwhelming, particularly for fledgling performers. Working in a space of true freedom takes effort and self-understanding, but there are some tricks which can inspire spectacular new costumes. Whether you’re a first-timer or queen of the stage, harnessing the world’s inspiration and wonder is the best way of recovering from a creative dry spell and wowing the crowd.

Performers From the Past

Knowing your history isn’t just a sign of respect for the performers who came before you – it’s also one of the best ways of jump-starting your costuming creativity. This doesn’t mean that you should simply go on stage as a carbon copy of one of the big names, of course. The history of burlesque has been written by countless women, and if you dig deep enough you can learn their stories, as well as the stories of equally fascinating non-burlesque stage performers.

Read the rest of this entry »

For some people, appreciating burlesque shows – as art, as entertainment, as an engaging fandom – is as far as their involvement needs to go. For others, seeing their first burlesque show is a revelation: they too could be on stage, harnessing their own creativity and passion for the benefit of an audience. Burlesque can lead down many roads, from confidence-building hobby to becoming a genuine star, but no matter where you want to go with your art you have to start at the beginning. By cultivating the basics, you’ll give yourself a leg up into the community you’re looking for.

Circulate And Hobnob

Burlesque is a community made up of many different personalities, subcultures, and goals. This blending and blurring can make easing into the scene an intimidating prospect, but – like with any community – meeting new people is often as easy as staying passionate and friendly. Attend any local shows you can and try to meet everyone from the performers to the fans. Almost everyone has a story to tell, and these stories can be goldmines of useful information on everything from available classes to surviving stage fright. If your city or town doesn’t have a burlesque community, you still might not be alone. To find like-minded fans, check online for interest groups, talk to regulars in the wider alternative community, and consider joining a dance class or two (see below). Even if you’re just starting out, your interest might be the driving force behind a new community! It’s also important to look into the long and storied history of burlesque, from the stars to its changing styles and values.

Read the rest of this entry »

Attention one and all! Austin’s fighting pride of East Riverside is at it again! We’re announcing the launch of our Indiegogo Campaign! We are trying to raise money to fund our “Ladies of Hades” tour this Summer, two music videos and to complete our new album. This is no small feat and we need your help! No donation is too small and there’s a slew of great perks to thank you for your contribution.

Based out of Austin, Texas, Danger*Cakes is an all-female band that serves a heaping helping of old school Rock and Roll with a side of punk-infused soul. Our songs leave you feeling full with a taste that lingers on long after. Bound by our love of creating and playing music, the ladies of Danger*Cakes have set our sights on making the music industry a more habitable place for women. We feel that everyone, regardless of age, sex, race, shape, size and creed should share in the joys music has to offer and the gifts it can bestow. It may be a man’s world, especially in the music industry, but we’re here to help level the playing field!

Read the rest of this entry »

Our next interviewee is Dustin Brown of Mr. Right and the Leftovers. Rockabilly on the Route is just a few short weeks away, so blast those motors and get ready to rock!

Tell us about yourself?

I been involved with music for about 15 years, started playing the guitar and then moved to the drums. I played drums in many bands over the years. I started to write songs for the last band I was playing drums with (Rusty Curtians). Members of that band moved to Massachusetts and thats when I decided to start Mr. Right and the Leftovers with Lou Gomes (Bassist) where I now play guitar and sing.

Read the rest of this entry »

Our next interviewee should be one already familar to our readers. As part of the all-female Austin powerhouse “Danger*Cakes” Tina Marie Bartolucci combines 50’s pin-up curves with the ethereal energy of a 60’s flower child. The girls are third billed on the festival, so I took some time to play catch-up with her.

Tina, you’ve been playing sax with Danger*Cakes since the bands first year. How would you describe the experience of playing with such a fast rising band?

Read the rest of this entry »

Once more I am bringing you the scoop on the upcoming Rockabilly on the Route festival. This time around we’re looking at the events slice of “burlyq!”

Tell us about yourself and how you came to involved with burlesque?

Read the rest of this entry »

“Rockabilly on the the Route” is a festival presented by La Loca Magazine and Vive Le Rock Productions. The festival will also include Burlesque performances by Albuquerque’s Gilded Cage Burlesk & Variete, a pin-up girl contest for Miss Rockin’ Route 66 2013. The first year line-up includes headliners Wanda Jackson and the Chop Tops. With support by Danger*Cakes, the Shadowmen,the F-Bombs, and Mr. Right and the Leftovers. This is the first in a series of interviews high lighting the fest. Today we’re sitting down with co-founder Ungelbah Davila, aka La Loca Linda !

Your website states that you “draws inspiration from her own multiculturalism” as well as “classic Americana.” Give some detail on that and how it relates back to the scene?

Read the rest of this entry »

I had heard that the Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend was the mecca of rockabilly culture in the world.  This wasn’t much of an exaggeration, as I found out.  There was a massive car show, live music on several stages almost around the clock, a vibrant marketplace, pin-up contests, swing and jive dancing, a fashion show, and of course, burlesque.  The Orleans Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada became the center of the rockabilly universe for a long, 4-day weekend in April with attendees coming from all over the world.

Official VLV Poster, art by Vince Ray

I arrived Thursday morning after an insanely early flight from Texas and dearly wished I could go back to sleep! More pressing, however, was that afternoon’s rehearsal and fitting for the Secrets in Lace fashion show.  I hadn’t seen what I’d be wearing yet, but I’m a huge fan of the high-quality, retro-chic brand, so I was very excited.  Off to the showroom I went, back to the dressing rooms where other gorgeous burly-Q girls were already trying on their glamorous underpinnings.  LouLou D’Vil ofFinland looked fierce in violet and leopard print from the Bettie Page collection, and Medianoche of Spain was divine in pink.  The ever-charming Dan Whitsett, CEO and mastermind behind Secrets in Lace presented me with the ensemble I was to wear, and I fell in love instantly.  It was the dreamiest, most delicious shade of mint green, and included silky undies, garter belt, a delicate brassiere and robe.  The shoes and stockings would be fit separately.  “! thought this would go nicely with your hair,” Dan said.  How wonderful of him to consider a redhead’s particular color scheme! But then, he is in the business of making ladies look even more luscious.  Several pairs of stockings were tried until I found just the right fit. The all-nylon fabric of these coveted silkies has no give, so a perfect fit is essential.

Read the rest of this entry »

It is a long, nine hour drive from Austin to New Orleans, but it’s a drive I’ve got used to and now enjoy as I watch the Texas hill country give way to lush swampland and Spanish moss.  We rolled into the Crescent City the night before the official start of the New Orleans Burlesque Festival, and there was a pre-party happening at LOA, just outside the French Quarter.  It was about midnight when we arrived, but I instantly got a second wind of excitement when I thought of reuniting with some of my dearest burlesque friends!

Lydia DeCarllo, Charlotte Treuse, Ruby Joule, Athena. By Derek Jackson

I dropped my bags at the hotel, slapped on some lipstick and hustled my road-weary self over to LOA, where I was met with the beautiful vision of burlesque folk spilling out into the night-lit street. I began collecting hugs immediately – from ‘the bishop of burlesque’ stage manager extraordinaire David Bishop, the fabulous photographer Derek Jackson, and ravishing raven-haired stars Lydia DeCarllo, Charlotte Treuse, and Athena.

Read the rest of this entry »

Readers of this column will remember that at last post, yours truly was in the running to perform at the Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekender coming up in April.  Well, thanks to you and a score of supportive friends and fans, I was voted into one of the few performance spots!  Endless thanks go out to all of you who voted– the race was so close, and every single vote mattered.

One time in Vegas... Ruby Joule, by Don Spiro

The pressure isn’t off yet though; the real competition hasn’t even begun!  You see, this burlesque show will feature the eight finalists competing for the big ol’ title of “Miss Viva Las Vegas 2012.”  I wanted to get the real low-down on what it takes to land this award, so I met up for cyber-cocktails with some of the previous winners.

Read the rest of this entry »

SAVE OUR SOULS PRESENTS THE SHAKE OUR SOULS BURLESQUE CONTEST In Association with Slow Burn Burlesque

Producers of the New Orleans Burlesque Documentary Are Offering a Grand Prize of A Trip for Two to New Orleans and a Chance to Perform With Slow Burn Burlesque and the stars of Save Our Soul At Howlin’ Wolf in July 2012
Save Our Souls is the provocative new documentary from director Mike Sanchez, which gives a raw and intimate glimpse of the neo-burlesque scene in New Orleans in the months after Hurricane Katrina through the eyes of the performers of the Slow Burn Burlesque troupe.

Personal interviews with the artists strip away the glitter and lashes, revealing the humanity of the art-form that calls this broken city “home.” As New Orleans rebuilds, the stories and the performances of Slow Burn unfold for Sanchez’s camera, playing out to a hand-picked rock ‘n roll score, which features music from The Yelling and Russian Mafia band Debauche.

Read the rest of this entry »

Picture by Dee Ann

I was happy to be invited to the Burlesque Circus show in Utrecht, the Netherlands. I really really am ashamed to say that I have never been to a Burlesque show before. I know, I know, how can you write for Rockabilly online and not… Well now I have. And it was all I have ever imagined it to be and more.

The theme was heaven and hell. Some people in the audience were dressed up as angels or devils, but most of them were dressed up in classic clothing, forties style, some with a twist. It is a circus, so not only pretty faces, high laquer heels, laced corsets, glitter pouring out of gloves, but also a motor mouth beard man who’s talk was like glue to stick every act together and create a very glamourous show. He was joined by a stage kitten, who picked up all the clothes and swept the floor which was covered with glitter and little red plastic hearts all the time.

Read the rest of this entry »

My second grade teacher told us, “If you don’t have the best of everything, make the best of everything you have.”  Some may find this a tired cliché, but this idea took hold in my 7 year old mind and has been with me ever since.  As a burlesque showgirl, I am in the business of making the best, and presenting the best of myself on stage, in photos, and in general.

photo by Chris Gomez

You’re probably familiar with the trappings of showgirl glamour; fishnet stockings, fake lashes, big hair, red lips… but what about the inner workings of a showgirl that carry her through the craziest of situations?  Burlesque performers often find themselves facing a variety of stages, crowds, and venues– from big beautiful theatres to dimly lit dive bars, and everything in between.  For the sake of sanity and beauty, it is of utmost importance to make the best of things. Always.  This skill is perhaps the most important accessory a showgirl can possess.

Read the rest of this entry »

We must have had more fun Friday night than we knew, because no one could be roused until 1:00pm on Saturday!  I popped a flower in my hair and walked with Michelle L’Amour and David around the corner to Roberto’s for lasagna and cappuccino; the breakfast of burlesque champions.  They had an awfully tempting selection of gelato too – perhaps we would come back later for that.  The front of the café was open to the sidewalk, so we sat in the delicious early afternoon breeze and watched passersby.

Later that day, some mutual friends of the festival from Las Vegas, Heather and Rolando, drove me into Old Port, the historic district of Old Montreal.  Eroded cobblestone streets, horse-drawn carriages, art galleries, and umbrella festooned sidewalk eateries marked this wonderful part of the city.  The solid old stone buildings towered on either side of the streets, at once gracious and imposing.

Since Heather and Rolando had not joined us for the “breakfast of burlesque champions” earlier, we stopped at a little sidewalk bistro, Le Sauvagine, with tables nestled beneath giant orange umbrellas.  I ordered a rosé and gazed at the people passing by from behind my big dark sunglasses.  Then… a familiar figure emerged from the crowd.  Rolando exclaimed, ‘look who it is!’ The lovely Roxi D’Lite (BHOF Reigning Queen of Burlesque 2010) was headed our way.

Read the rest of this entry »

I got off the plane in Montreal and breezed through customs and immigration with ease, but I was already late for the press conference that started at 5:30.  I found my fair cohort, MissCoco Lectric, at the luggage carousel and we headed to the ladies’ room for a quick change, Wonder Woman style.

As darling as those artist designed hotel rooms were, they did not have the Glamma Girl in mind.  The shower was smaller than a phone booth– I think I invented a new form of yoga trying to shave my legs!  The hair dryer only provided a warm gentle breeze, but nevertheless I made it to tech rehearsal early enough to see Baltimore’s Trixie Little walking through the paces of her mermaid act.  As one of the night’s big headliners, she later blew the crowd away with her discovery of a mermaid’s newfound legs… and other parts!

Trixie Little

When doors to the show opened at 8:00PM, I was ready with a cocktail in hand.  The Gladstone Hotel hosted the show in its grand old ballroom, conveniently across the lobby from the Melody Bar.  While the ballroom was filling up, I sidled up to the bar along with Darlinda Just Darlinda (NYC) who looked stunning in a long teal goddessy gown; Scarlett James (Montreal) with her tres chic blonde bob and brilliant smile; and Cherry Typhoon (Tokyo), enchanting as a magic doll, crowned with orchids.  I also got to finally chat with the vivaciously charming Burgundy Brixx (Vancouver).  A talented triple-threat, I first admired Burgundy a few years ago when she sang “La Vie en Rose” at Miss Exotic World in Las Vegas.  Tonight she would be performing a fabulous signature act to Brick House in a lusciously rich and innovative burgundy costume.

Read the rest of this entry »

I was incredibly honored to be selected to perform in the 4th annual Toronto International Burlesque Festival and was so excited to make my international debut– but the night before I was to fly to Canada, all I could think was, “I have no pastie tape!”  I tore my place apart and rang up some showgirl friends, all to no avail; and the shops were all closed.  How unprofessional!  How could I let this happen? Could I use eyelash glue instead? Oh dear– I’d have to get past my embarrassment and rely on the kindness (hopefully) of a fellow showgirl backstage.  But I couldn’t think about that now, I’d think about that tomorrow a la Scarlett O’Hara.  I had a plane to catch!

photo by Nathan Black

Read the rest of this entry »

Once upon a time, I found myself on tour with the blazin’ hot band, Johnny Hootrock, barrelling through the even hotter Death Valley (117 degrees during the day!) in a darling RV, with a less than darling broken air conditioner.  When we pulled up to the honky-tonk in Arizona, my cohort Coco Lectric and I had to quickly get into glamour mode and put on a top-notch show for those fine folks.  That was some challenge, let me tell you!  Just a couple of hours earlier, we’d decided bikinis were the only acceptable outfits to wear on this trip, and had taken to spraying ourselves down with water bottles to keep from spontaneously combusting!

Coco and Ruby in the desert...

Now that was a rather extreme situation, but since we seem to be having a global heat wave, I wanted to share some tricks I’ve learned for maintaining that glamorous demeanor, from growing up in Texas…

Read the rest of this entry »

Burlesque Ballroom, a popular and highly rated evening full of temptation, dance, timeless glamour, music, interior art and vintage fashion is making a tour round special Rotterdam locations this year.

On Friday July 1st Burlesque Ballroom can be found in the authentic chique atmosphere of hall “Staal”. In the forties and fifties this hall served as a posh meeting room for the Chamber of Commerce. This time it will be the home of international starlets from the world of burlesque. Breath taking ladies who will shine in the lime light.

Lady Redstar (Berlin), Victoria Romanova (Rotterdam), Lady Marmalade (Amsterdam) and Rotterdams own Burlesque superstar Deena Ray are all living out of their suitcase, tons of requests for performances, parts in plays, videoclips and movies. It’s almost too much to handle.

Read the rest of this entry »