For four nights, the WestCo Café became home to a captivating array of vixens, vamps and drag queens as “Madame Bouffante’s Burlesque Show” dazzled audiences throughout the weekend. A raucous half-hour revue of hothouse jazz and steamy prohibition era-style song and dance, the show proved so popular that a second Saturday night performance was added just to meet demand.
Directed by Kim Lippman ’06, the show’s sensibilities drew on the dance hall showcases of the 1920s and 30s, replete with a score of scantily-clad dancers and a sultry selection of jazz age standards (with a bit of Madonna thrown in for good measure). With tongue planted firmly in cheek, the multi-talented cast trotted a show that was refreshing in its old-fashioned ‘let your hair down and have a good time’ performance ethic.
In production for much of the semester with extensive rehearsals, the show’s success outstripped many of the performer’s expectations.
“The fact that we had to add a late show on Saturday night shows how well-received it was by the Wes community,” said cast member Jess Schoolman ’06.
With the band tucked in one corner, the stage presentation was suitably minimal; using a bare wall as backdrop, stage lighting consisted of a basic on-off operation. Packed into the Café both sitting and standing, crowds were duly encouraged to hoot, holler and generally show their approval at all times, making for a rowdy, fun atmosphere throughout the show. The impeccably tight house band, with keyboardist Dave Ahl ’05, bassist Eric Herman ’05, and drummer Robert Werner ’07, kept things moving at a brisk pace.
Opening the show was “Keep Young and Beautiful”, a cheerfully up-tempo tune trumpeting the virtues of looking good. Sung by Lippman herself, the song featured the full backing of “The Babes,” a ten-strong all-female dance troupe arrayed in pink slips that formed the heart of the show’s cast.
Most numbers featured the combination of a lead vocalist with a revolving array of back-up dancers, all choreographed through the dual efforts of Sarra Abunamaelga ’04 and Lia Jordano ’04. Sporting a dizzying array of lingerie, dancers and singers alike moved about the Café with a practiced ease free of any cumbersome self-consciousness.
“Once we had an audience it was just so funny to see the initial looks of shock,” said Jackie Cruz ’07. “I think the venue was perfect because it allowed it to be intimate while there were a lot of people and it fit the feel and style of the show.”
During Toby Shaw ’07’s mournfully bluesy treatment of “I Ain’t Got Nobody,” five of “The Babes” dispersed into the crowd to taunt and toy with various audience members at will.
One of the night’s most outrageous moments came during Lippman’s performance of the simmering down-tempo jazz standard “Fever,” when five male dancers in full make-up and lacy black slips took the stage to gyrate along with the music.
These “Voluptuous Five” included Craig Thomas ’06, who despite being rendered somewhat immobile by knee surgery, joined his fellow dancers in a wheel chair for a hilariously straight-faced send-up that left the audience in stitches. Halting the Voluptuous Five in mid-song, real-life exotic dancer-turned-Catholic School teacher Michelle Barberi took the stage as a guest performer to show them “how’s it really done,” providing one of the evening’s most thoroughly seductive dance numbers.
Despite the revealing nature of many of the show’s costumes, few performers felt serious pangs of impropriety or self-consciousness.
“It was never an option to be shy and timid, it just wouldn’t work with the mood and feel of the show,” explained Laura Catana ’07. “And there was no need to be shy…we looked hot!”
Many of the solo numbers were as equally riveting as the big-production dance showcases. Emilie Phelps ’07’s sultry “Why Don’t You Do Right” and Kara Brodgesell ’07’s crooning rendition of “I Wanna Be Loved By You” both featured coy stripteases that built on the already palpable heat of the lyrics. Hats, coats, and other such encumbrances were gradually shed, creating a playful suspense that drove the crowd wild.
“Spank Me,” one of the show’s most energetically upbeat dance numbers, featured the impressive choreography and dance of Laura Catano ’07, Jackie Cruz ’07, and Chelsea Smith ’07. Each performing with (and often on top of) a wooden chair, the three dancers moved in flawless coordination with the song’s pulsating backbeat.
Several performers also stressed the self-confidence and positive body image the show helped foster, and the family-like bond that formed among much of dancers.
“It became a type of sisterhood, especially because we did exercises to make us feel more comfortable with our own and each others bodies,” said Cruz ’07.
“The best part of rehearsal was that all the girls became so comfortable with their bodies,” added Catana ’07. “I think this show was incredibly empowering.”
The show’s playfully risqué sensibility was most evident in the evening’s last two numbers. “Harlem Nocturne” featured a full regiment of “The Babes,” including “ringleader” Jess Schoolman ’06, who wielded a black leather whip, cracking it occasionally on the floor to punctuate the song.
“It’s possibly the sexiest and most empowering prop a girl could ask for,” Schoolman added.
“All of Me,” the show-stopping finale, found Ben Morse ’04 taking a lead vocal in heavy make-up, high heels, and a silky chemise that gave way to reveal a tight-fitting lingerie ensemble. The entire cast joined him for the song’s closing refrain, with much of the audience singing and clapping along.
While audience participation varied somewhat in intensity from night to night, the show’s enthusiasm was contagious to the point that many of even the shiest crowd members were moved to shout and clap in encouragement.
“My favorite part was when the girls paired up and danced together. It was totally hot,” said Rachel Wertheimer ’06, who stayed to catch both shows on Saturday. “Who doesn’t enjoy shows with mostly naked girls dancing for you and only you?”
The show’s relative brevity left many audience members wishing the show had been longer, while its resounding success led some cast members to hope the show would become a yearly event. Overall, the tone was celebratory and energized after the final night’s performance.
“If I could have changed anything I would have moved it to a different weekend so that all of the people who went home for Easter could have had a little burlesque in their lives.” declared Smith ’07.
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