London Burlesque Festival: Thursday April 3rd

Emerald Ace, by Michael Prior (www.michaelprior.com)

Emerald Ace comes Back for More…

On Thursday it was time for the UK showcase and I was billed at Barden’s Boudoir. I was really looking forward to this show as I was billed with a few performers I already knew. When I arrived, Scarlett Daggers (an old friend from the troupe I used to perform with), Misty Lux (whom I had already met in December) and Diva Hollywood (who I knew from the burlesque forums) were already there along with Esmerelda Underwood who I hadn’t met before. Being amongst familiar faces meant the night was fun from the word go, and as the other girls arrived there was a real sense of friendly support amongst the performers.

I was really flattered as Chaz asked me to close the show and also said he had received some good feedback about my previous night’s performance. Then it was time for me to grab a seat for the first half, which I was excited to see in full. My other half had got us a spot by the side of the stage and before it all kicked off I had a good chat with Diva and Suri Sumatra in the ladies loo!

The band on that night was The Hot Club of Bellville, who gave an energetic performance. It was just the sort of music I enjoy and the highlight of their set for me was a performance of the Cantina Band song from Star Wars. The only disappointment was that some members of the audience seemed a little a little disrespectful, chatting all the way through and a couple even shouting out in an inappropriate way.

The burlesque performances started and I was amazed by the diversity of the acts (especially considering I was one of four fan dances on that night and each one really was very different). I was particularly amused by Missy Macabre’s ‘Fan Dance’ which involved an upbeat routine using two large desk fans! And then, in no time it was time for another squeeze through the audience to get to the dressing room.

I gave myself plenty of time to get into my fan dance costume and wig which unfortunately meant I missed the acts from the second half, but in turn each performer returned backstage triumphant and glowing with that post-performance high. Finally it was my turn. I felt a little nervous as my fan dance is my only act which doesn’t involve comedy or stripping; I was a little worried the audience might feel duped! As it happened the audience were friendly and I felt very relaxed as I did my performance although, as always, it felt as though it was over before it began.

After the final bows, I changed and left quite quickly as Ant and I had to catch the night bus home and I was a little concerned about finding the stop. When we arrived at Victoria we found an all night sandwich place and treated ourselves to a midnight snack.

I really enjoyed Thursday’s show; all the girls were so friendly but I wished I could have seen everyones acts.

In all I found the London Burlesque Festival to be a real challenge; it pushed me out of my usual comfort zone but it was a great honour to perform at such a high profile event with such charming and talented performers and such a supportive audience. I would definitely recommend this event to any performers who want to see a lot of great burlesque and I couldn’t think of a better introduction to the London scene.

www.myspace.com/emerald_ace