The Bravissimo Burlesque
Bravissimo = Burlesque Royalty
The post-social networking world of DIY promotion has its ups and downs. The upside: those with a small (or even no) budgets can promote their projects and gain exposure in a way that wouldn’t have been possible 20 years ago. The downside: there are a whole lot of self-promoters and performers who wrap themselves in a womb of self-delusion and assumed importance. Everyone believes they are about to be stars… or worse, that they already are. Live performers huddle in cliquey troupes and collectives that are often more reminiscent of a ridiculous junior high reenactment of The Warriors.
Enter The Bravissimo Burlesque. Lil’ Steph and Miss Rose looked around at the trite cattiness that punctuated burlesque and sideshow troupes and said “enough.” The Bravissimo Burlesque has no time for egos or gang signs. It’s an open call for the vast wealth of individual performers on the east coast. Circus and burlesque stars come from all over the region to work their magic while leaving their attitude behind.
Like Swellco & Swellco’s Community Outreach Program, The Bravissimo Burlesque Showcase is often mistaken for a performance troupe instead of a reaction to them. That being said, perhaps it’s no wonder that our special events artistic director Louise LaTease, as well as Swellco & Swellco staffer favorites like Mr. Deadguy, Needles Jones & Heather Henderson are regulars, or that Lil’ Steph & Miss Rose are Swellco & Swellco staffers themselves. We operate so closely to them that we consider them to be our (slightly) more wholesome cousin. Kind of like a Marylyn Munster to our Ed Gein.
This month at The Hard Times Talent Contest, Lil’ Steph and Miss Rose will be once again exploring their dark side with Louise LaTease for a full set of ultra-disturbing Burlesque. If you miss it, you are a cunt. But you can redeem yourself by checking out Bravissimo every last Saturday of the month at WineO in Northern Liberties.
Photos courtesy of Dan Joyce Photography
Tags: bravissimo, hard times talent contest, lil steph, louise Latease, miss rose, mr. deadguy, needles jones, philadelphia, wineo
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