London Burlesque Festival: Friday April 4th

Even Stella, our resident columnist, was in on the festival action!

Enid Takes to the Stage!

London Burlesque Festival 2007 - Newcomers Night ‘Battle Royale’

I was standing backstage in all my Enid garb, clutching my little poem and two chocolate éclairs, wearing some tenuously loose home-made pasties (I didn’t want to invest in proper ones in case this was both my first and last show!) and a baying mob outside, waiting…

I’ve been nervous in my time, but that was one of the most terrifying moments of my life. My first ever show, and there I was about to walk out on stage and try to read poetry… Poetry! To a crowd of drunken club-goers! A moment of madness that changed my life.

One year on, I shared my first Burlesque birthday with the LBF 2008 and what a celebration we had! Both of us had learnt and grown from gooey little babies into keen-eyed, determined toddlers with naughtiness on our mind.

I performed at two shows in one night, both were packed to bursting with people in search of something quite wonderful and I was so proud to see them get it. Beautiful, sassy, funny and inventive acts, each different and personal, showcasing everything I have grown to love about Burlesque: individuality, bravery and freedom. I remember a few years ago, feeling so useless to be young in this age, when students care more about plasma than protest and rebellion is more concerned with self-destruction than inspiring change, but being a part of this festival of joyous naughtiness, working with such bright, intelligent and creative women and men I felt inspired. Part of a small, fleshy revolution.

Chaz Royal has created something rare in the London Burlesque festival. His audiences aren’t pretentious or protective of their underground world; he attracts all the passionistas but with a lot of hard work he also brings total novices to enjoy and experience the unrivalled oddity and brilliance of Burly-Q. And people who spoke to me afterwards, people who had never seen anything like a stunning Norwegian dancer spitting snake poison into a man’s mouth, or a woman pleasuring herself on a baguette, or a stripper in a space-helmet or indeed, one reading poetry - these people felt it too, the sense of wonder that, nestled in amongst London’s nights of sports-drinking and cocaine there could be little pockets of beautiful bravery where every girl and boy has a voice and a body and space in which to enjoy it.

Thanks Chaz.

www.myspace.com/stellaplumes