Monday 10 February 2014

Birthday Princesses and Drama Dames

Copyright: Craig Richmond

Happy 2014 Sexy Bitches!

 I’ve returned to this blog after a shamefully long absence (my alter ego started writing too - I’m too many people sometimes!) and there have been colourful times since my last post.

Last year The Rebel Rebels said goodbye with a glorious final show with all the eclecticism and fun that fans loved about the troupe of five very different women with diverse tastes - it always worked out magically and that was the beauty of it. We stuck two glittery fingers up at cynical marketing while having a jolly good time doing so. The start of February this year saw Little Miss Naughty and I put on Birthday Blitz to celebrate our wintry birthdays along with Lolly Pops’. It was a packed one-off show and we felt so blessed to see our friends, family and Rebel Rebel fans come out in full force. As well as Rebel show favourites and the too-bloody-handsome Lucky van den Boon returning as host, we were honoured to welcome to the stage Manchester’s finest The Sassy Tassels and a couple of my mad bad Barelesque sisters - Miss Morphic debuting her fierce Big Bad Wolf number and Miss Cy as the sexiest murderess you ever did see.



Of course, there was one act I just had to do for Birthday Blitz - Dirty Diana. In a nutshell, Dirty Diana is an X-rated 1980s take on the Audrey Hepburn classic Roman Holiday with a little inspiration from claims in Cleo Rocos’ book about an alleged night out with England’s favourite rose. Dirty Diana got her first outing at Barelesque V - Through the Ages back in September and she’s enormous fun to play from sleazy choreography to Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s Relax to imitating those legendary coy yet sometimes mischievous facial expressions.


For me my latest creation is the perfect balance of dance and acting, the latter I’m finding to be the biggest passion. Last summer, I attended improv workshops largely out of curiosity. The first evening was terrifying - going straight into a role and interacting with other characters with absolutely no preparation! Argh! But I quickly caught the improv bug and thrived on every new challenge thrown at me. Improv also reminded me of why I enjoyed drama at school and youth groups - there’s a thrill of getting into the mindset of another person and going through something akin to spirit possession. And it’s a joy to collaborate with others and I’m realising that I’m not the lone wolf that I thought I was. This year I hope to further explore drama and enrich my performances by doing so.


I hasten to add that I have not abandoned dance in favour of acting! Since December I have been attending weekly Latin and Ballroom classes with my gorgeous man. The rumba is currently my favourite due its pure sensuality. Belly dance is still a passion of mine which, like the rumba, has that subtle yet intoxicating eroticism.


Barelesque returns to the RVT on March 20th with Unleashed!  - a night of wild animals, chaos and mayhem all in aid of the Albert Kennedy Trust. I will debut a new act which will deliver ferocity, sexiness and laughs - my three favourite elements in performance.  


Here’s to a 2014 of creativity, new adventures and passion!