Our light under a bushel

Our lovely photographer, Katy Paige-McLean (NB: it's not her work below :-) ), currently has her own exhibition of photographs in a local art gallery. Alerted to the fact that the show includes a photo of the troupe backstage at a recent event, we popped in to have a look. And there we are, at the top of the spiral staircase, in a gorgeous pre-performance line up.

A small group of people were feasting their eyes on our picture when we got there. "Oooh," says one, "isn't that pretty?".

She's right. It is.

Bizarrely, they didn't connect me in my scruffy "doing my Saturday chores" outfit with the glamorous creatures in the photo. I guess it's pretty much the same experience for that Dita Von Teese.

Yours, flying under the international superstar radar,

Burlicious x

Like thistledown

We love how much our class makes us laugh. It's a proper tonic.

Our current routine has a chair move where we sit down, face the audience and take the legs wiiiiide apart sharpish. Seated as I am with my back to our troupe, I was treated to the fairylike sound of 28 showgirl hooves, all slamming into the floor at once.

Now, we do like to make the Earth move for our audience, but we don't necessarily want to knock 'em off their seat with a tidal wave of sound.

There's nothing wrong with a bit of clog dancing (OK, maybe there is) but it's not quite the sultry, seductive, temptress of a thing that we aspire to be.

But it is quite funny, and that's always a treat.

What they'll make of the blindfold move, we can only speculate. It could be like the zombie apocalypse out there next week.

 We love you to bits, Showgirls - you never fail to lighten our week.

Yours, bringing slapstick to burlesque,

 Burlicious x

Smokin'

We wanted to create a sexy, sultry, femme fatale of a new routine for our latest number - something altogether grown up, knowing and experienced. Something that would make our showgirls feel utterly delicious when they danced it. Something that would send audiences home to bed feeling, well, perkier.

As we worked on the thing here at Burlicious Towers, we became increasingly concerned that we might have created something beautiful but just a bit too elegant and restrained. We mused over and discarded the Voluptuous Jules' creation of a move she called "Jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, woof, woof, woof" (we'll leave that one to your imagination) and steered away from the hilarious but way too obvious heavy hint at fellatio using a glove. And we were left with something sinuous and seductive and smooth... but just a tad sedate.

Or so we thought.

It turns out (we find on our launch of it tonight) that when we're not dancing it in our cardies and our slippers in the kitchen; and when we translate it to its proper setting of a dozen showgirls in heels and corsets and stockings and fishnets and, oooh, so many gorgeous bits of femininity, it looks absolutely bloomin' scorching.

This, my lovelies, is definitely what the people want.

Yours, preparing for encores,

Burlicious x