Spotlight Debut – Inappropriate Talent

I must say this show was so incredibly hilarious, I learned new ways to laugh!

I laughed all the way down to my toes so many times I woke up this morning feeling like I’d undergone a great spiritual cleansing.

Tell the world they can forget about years of therapy…give them more of this kind of comic relief and they won’t need any therapy at all.

Prestigious Burlesque Club

I feel like I’m a member of an exclusive club when I go to Sweet Tooth Events and this night’s production was a prime example of the hilarious hoopla that abounds.

In my attempt to describe it, it’s like watching your bestees act cheeky on stage in the most uniquely artistic and creative ways while you cheer them on from the sidelines. It’s an event I can attend solo, because no matter where I sit, I’m surrounded by friends.

The gals and guys on stage will come and chat me up and I get to share friendly banter with the folks at the next table, who sometimes end up on the stage in an audience participation piece. That is, with enough coaxing and cajoling from the rest of us.

Playful Production

Burlesque by definition is a lampoon or satire, and in a Sweet Tooth production, it spoofs the subject of strip-tease. A production complete with co-op set, costume designers, make-up artists, rehearsals, choreography and sound crew. It even has its own media photographers, who have exclusive rights to take photos during the event.

Sunny Mac of Mac Photo Art was the designated photographer this night. You could see her zipping in and out of position to get the best shots of the best action, which was a hard thing to do with all bustling going on around her.

Active Audience

I see burlesque as a symbiotic art form where audience interaction is part of the act, be it woots, wahoos, whistles, wild jungle calls or the sound of hands clapping with laughter. Audience involvement bolsters the performer and the crowd – it’s a highly interactive show.

The novelty behind Sweet Tooth Events is that audience participation doesn’t stop there, because they have more imaginative ways to engage both the shy and the brave. On one hand, they have mildly suggestive contests like Bosom Buddies Balloon Popping and Kinky Kitty with things like edible underwear as prizes for the winners.

On the other, they have an ‘Inappropriate Talent Show’ segment where no topic is off limits if you can present it in a comical tasteful way, which pros like Party Gramps (Malcom Wright) do very well with stand-up smut comedy.

Another ‘act’ of inappropriate talent was when Amanda Hogg from Passion Parties demonstrated how to use a Gigi. The only thing I’m going to say about that is, it will make some ‘jobs’ a whole lot easier, so you’ll have to ask her yourself if you’re curious to find out what a Gigi is.

And that’s just in the first half of this show!

Body Beautiful

This particular evening they had a targeted segment called ‘Stop Body Shaming’. It was a promotional photo where nine individuals posed in underwear or bikini and had a letter of the word B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L painted on their tummies. Then the audience appreciated them for their beautiful body in spite of its ‘flaws’. Undoubtedly, this bevy of Beautiful Nine deserved a standing ovation – and they got it!

Betty’s Back

This is the part where Betty Kruger (Sara Shaw) hobbled onto the stage, cane in one hand, girlfriend in the other, to take her place among the letters. This night was her homecoming from her close encounter with the ‘D’ word, since she had only been released from the hospital a few days earlier. And although she shaved her head, because she lost so much hair and had to lay on cushions in a booth to watch the show, she knew where the love was in her life and was determined to show up for it. She looked beautiful by the way!

Shirley Gnome

Then we got to the main guest performer, the inimitable ‘provocatrice’ Shirley Gnome from Vancouver who is a ‘smut vocalist’. Now I know all about what that means: she’ll knock the prude right of you. Crass, absurd and racy are mild in describing her song-strumming country brash style: it’s more like ‘posh raunch’ if you can put those two words in the same sentence.

I was jealously impressed in how she wove the true and taboo about intimate goings on into songs that would liberate the forbidden thoughts of even the most priggish. She is one sassy spitfire!

Take Some Home

When it comes to souvenirs and pleasure enhancing gizmos, during and after the show you can visit the display at the back of the room and take some of the excitement home with you. You can also mingle with the performers, get autographs and just hang out in the frisky flirtatious ambiance of the evening.

It’s all in good clean dirty fun!