Burlesque: Fuck Yeah!

creatrixtiara:

It’s nearly holiday season, and some of you may be tasked with coming up with entertainment for a party. Having been to a lot of my dad’s company functions since I was a kid, I’ve watched many of his staff and colleagues on stage with an act that seems to come out of nowhere.

Burlesque is still pretty trendy, and you may be inspired to break out something cheeky to “Santa Baby”. But even if you’re not game enough to be sultry in front of the CEO’s secretary, you can still use these tips to come up with something fun both for you and your audience.

Figure out your constraints - time, date, audience, resources, people.
When is the party, and how much time do you have to.prepare? How are your schedules like? This is especially tricky when dealing with multiple people as it’s hard to find times that work with everyone. who are you working with? What do they want to do? Do you have a budget? How much can you afford? What sort of space do you have? what’s your tech like - a DJ & full sound system, or just a CD player? is your office more straitlaced or are they open to cheeky?

It seems like a lot to organize at first, but if you can get this initial work done you’ll save yourself a LOT of headache down the track. Don’t assume anything - if you’ve got a question, ask it, even if it sounds stupid.

Find out the theme, if there is one.
Some parties have an overall theme, like Zombie Santa; others are based on color; some others don’t really have a theme per se but you can work out from the venue & dress code what the vibe would be. For example, if it’s black tie, it’s likely more upmarket/classy & formal than, say, a picnic in the park; if it’s in an open spot, you may not want to take off anything, but in a private room you could use a “Strip” (to another layer of clothing) to great effect. if it’s pretty open to interpretation, you can use some of the below ideas to establish a theme for your act.

Work out what you want to do, willing to do, able to do.
This is especially important if you’ve got a group, but do ask this of yourself if you’re going solo. Figuring out the talents and interests within your group will help with working out what will happen with your act.

Do note that some people may not be willing to share certain parts of themselves in front of others (offices can be quite tricky), while others may not have the strongest talent but have plenty of enthusiasm. Take it easy - it’s not an exam; your audience will likely be forgiving.

Think back to personal memories of the holidays - what does it mean to you?
Did you have any holiday rituals that were unique to you? Something that could be built on as an act? My partner’s family have a yearly ritual of watching National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, which has plenty of material for a number of acts - the battle to be the brightest on te block, the electrocuted cat, the sheer chaos of everything going wrong at once. Picking from experience makes the act a lot more sincere and heartfelt, and goes a long way into making it something original and memorable rather than the same old cliches.

If it’s been a while since you’ve celebrated these holidays, or if you’ve never really celebrated them to begin with, think back to when you’ve been involved - such as visiting a friend for Christmas dinner, or watching the tons of Christmas specials on television, or even how the decorative lights go up a month earlier and everyone drives around the city to see them. If you don’t have any useful memories, ask others! Somewhere in there is a story waiting to get on stage.

Get inspired.
Christmas and New Years are common burlesque themes, so take a look at other acts online - and in person if you can - to see what’s out there. Don’t copy it wholesale: instead, take notice of what you liked about the acts - the song choice? the gimmick? the performance style? Once you’ve made a few notes, refer to them to create an act that you would like to see yourself.

Even better, go check out a burlesque show or other kind of performance in your area. I’ve found great inspiration for burlesque in concerts and readings - events that weren’t even explicitly erotic or burlesque-like - by observing the performers, remembering what I liked, or even working on prompts and memories that were sparked by watching the show.

Keep it simple.
It’s likely that you have very limited time and a non-existent budget to work with, and if you’re in a group you all would be often too busy to meet. That’s ok: your job is likely not  that much on the line - it’s not Your Country’s Got Talent (though many of these tips can apply to professional gigs). Office holiday parties are a chance to relax and be silly, and people are often very forgiving - the sheer fact that you’re up on there to perform means you deserve all the accolades!

Sometimes we get a bit too ambitious and start planing for a piece that ends up costing way more than we ca afford in money, time, and energy. See if you can scale it down - do you really need those props? Is the piece too long? Could you just keep the singing part and not worry about the stand-up? Can you save money by repurposing thrift store pieces? Feel free to be experimental if you like, but accept the constraints as useful boundaries and work within.

Have fun!
It’s an office party. People are probably just happy there’s a show to begin with. You can afford to be a bit sillier, offbeat, raw and unpolished. There’s plenty of time to work up to professional level if you want to; in the meantime, relax, let go, and don’t take yourself too seriously.

Let me know if any of these tips have been helpful - and if you have any Christmas Burlesque you know of, do share!