Boys and Science

God, I realised I had finished my blog by getting ready for Teasy Pleasy, promising you photos and post about it then clean forgot. Oops…

Not like there is anyone to tell me off.

So, Teasy Pleasy was a good night all round. A few sound hiccups at the start didn’t distract too much from the night. Domino Burlesk was every bit as delightful as I remembered her to be as was Glory Pearl, Raspberry Ripples and the other performers. One again Miss Anticipation bought members of the audience to their feet with cheers for her act. God that girl is strong. She did press-ups, flexes and all sorts! Adorable! The only downside for the night was that one of the stall holders didn’t have Bordello leopard print shoes in my size! Gutted! By the way (HINT HINT), to anyone who wants to buy me something to make me smile. In fact any of their shoes would be good. I have been a good girl all year…sort of.

I spent the rest of the evening dancing with mates to the Whip Crackin Daddies…rather dishy trio, even if I do say so. The whole place danced along to them and they certainly have stage presence. The double bass player had girls swooning over him though admittedly, Jim Jeffries was the pinup of the group. His pretty boy looks grabbed all the girls’ attention. A fair few ladies were overheard gushing over him….The drummer got the girls squealing when he jumped into the audience to play. I safely retreated to the bar to watch the carnage of women and dancing commence. Awesome times to say the least. A late night and a stagger home with my best mate Big S that got me home so late it was disgraceful. Big S you have alot to answer for!! Just like old times then.

The next day was spent nursing a hangover and being dragged reluctantly out of my bed at Dixie Doll’s house to head off to shop, I crashed and burned with Tempest-Rose on the grass in the sun….

I even managed to pick up a new jacket for me to take to Paris for my show out there in October…oh how I love it. It’s green wool with leopard print cuffs and collar. Made by the delicious brand Aquacustum…spolit? me? yes! I did prat around in a few vintage shops as well. I managed to find a real treasure trove of a shop. When I arrived a new shipment of vintage French lingerie had just arrived. WOW, the whole lot were in perfect condition and some unworn.

If you are ever near Bournemouth/Boscombe/Southbourne I suggest you visit Clobber. It’s a great shop and I am going back to mooch some more as soon as I get back that way. I have my eye on some 40s dresses and some cowboy boots. The rest of the week revolved around rehearsals ready for the weekend show at The British Science Festival and a radio interview (more to be disclosed soon). I have to say a pretty subdued week all in all…though a lot spent listening to the Whip Crackin Daddies album Paul gave me. ‘Fire’ is my favourite though oddly reminds me of the old Rawhide theme song…oops did I say that?! :p

I noticed a few of my mates have liked it and have downloaded it off iTunes…

So last night saw me performing at the British Science Festival and I have to say, I had a brilliant time. I was put up in a very nice hotel with flowers delivered and wine (nice!!!) and was treated impeccably. The show went really well…my Gorilla act certainly raised a few laughs and Professor No No had them singing and dancing with me. Fabulous, so a special shout out to all at Aston University students who attended and to Mel Spencer for organising it for me to be there. MWAH! I would like to thank the free styling rapper who made a rap about me but I never got his name other than he was Canadian (from Vancouver) and loved science.

A rather surreal moment was dancing at the end of the night only to realise I was surrounded by people in white lab coat, it felt all too horror movie waiting to happen for me so moonwalked (yes moonwalked! *SHAME*) out of the circle and ran for cover at the bar.

Pretty much spending much of today (Sunday) catching up and rehearsing for my next shows. I have glitter all over me but then that’s nothing new. Off to listen to some Big T Tyler…I use some of his music in my acts. Great catchy beats I found. Right, ciao ciao!

Khandie Khisses has performed for BABC. More can be found at: www.khandiekhisses.com

Bella's Backstage

For some reason, every time I wake up the day after a show I'm always aching all over. I think the rush of performance blocks out any pain receptors and I'll push myself much harder on stage, resulting in my waking up with muscle aches. But it’s a satisfied sort of pain and after a hot shower all that was on my mind was food. Surprise, Surprise...

Not much is open in Hobart on a Sunday in the city centre, as Torsten and I found when we went exploring for food. We found one of those diner style places that looked like it never closes, where they do a reasonable breakfast. Nothing mind-blowing, but we were hungry and I didn't have much time before I had to get back and put my stuff together for the afternoon’s dance classes and tutorials. Next time I'll head straight for North Hobart, as I was reliably informed by the girls, that it is the best place on a Sunday for food.

I was teaching a basics class at Tasmania's Pole Dancing and Burlesque Academy and was amazed how quickly the ladies of Hobart picked up the choreography. It was a very sexy tease to a bit of Screamin' Jay Hawkins and they were totally rocking out to it with their boa's and gloves.

Both Grace Cherry and Lucy Sky Diamond had one to one tutorials with me and I tell you what, I can't wait to see more from these ladies. Aside from being just the nicest girls you'll ever meet, they are extremely talented. I'll be watching with some interest at where their performances go.

So with a full afternoon and evening of classes finished can you imagine what mind was on? Before I left, I got Grace & Sarah's recommendations on where the best fish & chips were and so that's how Torsten and I came to find Fish Frenzy down at the harbour. It was absolutely freezing cold in the loveliest way when we hopped out of the cab and bundled into the very laid back fish & chips restaurant. Glass of rough red, great chips, prawn cutlets, calamari & fish. One fish we liked, the other not so much but unfortunately I can't remember the names of them!

This was followed by an icy walk around the harbour to walk off our very full bellies. Having walked past the Art Hotel, I made a mental note to stop in there next time. Their dessert menu looked wonderful.

Then all the way back around to Salamanca which at night time in the cold with the fairy lights in the trees reminded me so much of Berlin at Christmas. Followed by caramelized fig, green apple, lemon and peanut butter fudge gelato (2 flavours each - I would recommend the peanut butter fudge) at Cargo and I was feeling a strange sense of contentment, as I trundled off to bed for another night's beauty sleep.

I seem to be asked more and more about my skincare regime and personal taste in fashion. I've avoided writing about it because it seems a little self-indulgent of me (not being any expert on make-up) but as there seems to be a bit of interest in the subject, I figure what the heck! This little post is about the make-up and skincare I use.

How do I keep my skin looking great? I don't. I wear lots of make-up on stage which is why it looks porcelain in the pictures but in real life it is an ongoing battle to keep my skin in good condition. Make-up, late nights, a few too many champers and my skin gets positively grumpy with me. I also have extremely fair skin and so am very prone to freckles at the first peep of sunlight through the clouds. In addition to this, the illusion I was under that in passing my teenage years that I would be magically endowed with clear skin has fallen rather short of the mark.

So it's simple for me, 30+ sunscreen, even in winter. Make-up wipes by the bed for those nights I cannot summon the energy to wash my face, or in my make-up case for the trip home from a gig along with a little travel pot of moisturiser. All over body moisturiser, I am religious about this after a shower because the water in the three places I am most, England, Germany and Australia, is very hard and dries skin quickly. My friend Bea DeVile (another Burlesque Against Breast Cancer alumni) has also instructed me to body brush or use exfoliating gloves for lovely legs, but I'm terrible at remembering this.

My other indulgence is the 'Brazened Honey' face mask from Lush. It works like magic when my skin looks really tired. I just need to perk it up before a show, or the day after a show when I want to go out again and not look like I dragged my glittered behind into bed at 6am that same morning.

As far as make-up goes, I seem to stick to my staples. One of my lifesavers in hiding tired under eyes is a concealer called Touche Magique by L'Oreal. I'm pretty sure any illuminating concealer would do though. A decent red lip liner too, I have stupidly sharpened mine to the point where I can no longer see what brand or shade it is, so I'll have to do some investigating! I often use just lip liner all over instead of lipstick for a show as it will not budge, but of course a decent red lipstick for after a show is a must. Also, loose face powder, not compact. Trust me.

Black liquid eyeliner and false eyelashes. They are a bugger to learn how to use properly but once you do, what a difference it makes. I still curse and swear when I'm putting on eyelashes as do most of my friends but it's worth it in the end! I once blogged about another burlesque lass, BABC’s Khandie Kisses I believe, who told me once that she had so many false eyelashes, she thought they might form one giant eyelash and crawl around her apartment. I'm proud and terrified to say that I am at that stage of monster movie eyelash take-over.

As to how to put them on properly, it's all just practise, I'm sorry to say. There’s no secret. One day I promise, you'll get to the stage where you can put them on while on a moving train. You'll still curse and swear though.

Finally, the perfect nail polish. I go pink for 60s and red for everything else. My particular red being a bottle of Chanel 159 Fire Red which, as I hold it up to the light now, I see is over halfway used. Tragedy!

Hair, well when it comes to hair, I am lazy. I'd rather have someone else do it, but I feel it is necessary as part of my sartorial education and I try. Although, I do make more shortcuts than I'd like to admit. I'm in love with my Vintage Hairstyling book by Lauren Rennels. If you'd like to learn how to do your own vintage hair and make-up, there are also a few fabulous classes available. In Brisbane ,see the Facebook page for the Bombshells Academy to join classes and learn everything you need to know on vintage hair and make-up.

So that concludes my ramblings for now. I'll try to do a blog on clothes at some point, if I can focus for long enough!

Bella De Jac has performed a number of times for Burlesque Against Breast Cancer and you can find out more about her at www.belladejac.com

Hobart, how I love thee...

So...yeah I've officially fallen head over heels for Hobart. It was like someone blended the best bits of Germany, England and Australia and crammed them onto an island with every possible eco-system. Incredible.

On the first day, we flew in over the countryside with the most fantastic view. It's all coves and bays and rolling hills. After checking into our hotel, my brother, photographer Torsten Baumann (of www.b551.com fame) and I did a walk around the centre of the city. I was struck by the architecture ...and the bitterly cold wind! But mostly the architecture, which wasn't difficult to spot as we had to stop every 5 minutes to take photos.

Brisbane has always had a habit of destroying things with a bit of history. Anything interesting and beautiful is torn down to make way for a few more yuppie shops and apartments. Or historical buildings are left to decay until they are no longer salvageable. The people of Bris rally against this kind of insensitivity to historical beauty but it is often to no avail.

So, to walk about a town where the architecture is so eclectic is incredible. Old stone, London style terraced, mock Tudor, cottage, mixed with 60s and modern buildings. But all different. The fact that the city is built on a big slope adds to the visual charm.

Friday night was dinner with the girls at Rain Check Lounge. The girls, and by that I mean the beautiful and talented ladies of Miss Kitty's Meow (headed up by Grace Cherry) made me feel right at home. The restaurant, by the way, was a great Tapas place. Mixed crowd, very relaxed, professional service, interesting (in a good way) decor and fantastic food.

Anyway, aside from the giggling at blown up classified ads of the 'Busty Blonde. Very Friendly' sort that decorated the restaurant walls the girls got me up to speed with a little shop talk about the impending show. When we finally faced the icy cold wind to head off to bed and I felt completely assured that it was going to run brilliantly.

I also learnt (with some jealousy) that Tigerlily's boyfriend is a chef. The girl has the down-low on every eating spot worth visiting! Plus, Torsten found a place called Pretzel World when he popped out for a fag, which pretty much sealed the deal on my opinion of Hobart.

So, we bundled into Tigerlily's car for the trip to Franklin. Thankfully, Grace Cherry had taken my costumes and props the night before so I only had a pile of make-up and hair bits and bobs to cram in the boot.

This trip was to be our only opportunity to see some of the Tasmanian countryside and the trip to Franklin was absolutely beautiful. When we arrived at the Palais Theatre there was a mist rolling in from the hills our enormous dressing room overlooked the River. One other highlight was finding out that Chicken Feed is the place to get glue on crystals and Lady GaGa Cds. Thanks girls!

The usual preparations ensued, hair dramas, eyelash fixing, make up applying, etc, etc. Meeting all the other performers was wonderful and it was a real variety show. We had a magician, Bob Buchanan for an MC, Lucy Sky Diamond on aerials, Sarah Muir on pole, tango dancers, cabaret performer, all the girls of Miss Kitty's Meow including Tigerlily and Grace Cherry plus Scarlett Jezabel and the bestest stage manager this side of the equator!

Considering the stage was slightly raked, I was concerned as when I did a sound check and run through earlier in the night, it was tilted enough to put me off balance. That, and my dress fell off. Which I appreciate is the point of the act but only when I've carefully timed it. So I was a little nervous going out for my first act. I needn't have worried. The show went perfectly. And I mean perfectly, which never happens! Usually you come off stage thinking, 'I could have done that move better,' or something of the sort but I was so happy with both acts and was on a complete high when I dashed into the wings to put my dressing gown on (a very pretty one mind you!) for final bows.

I was also lucky enough to be waiting in the wings for my final act when I was able to watch Scarlett and Grace do their duet fan dance. Fan-bloody-tastic. I know, groan, pardon the pun, but it was. The colour, the grace, the cheekiness. I just loved it.

Other highlights for me were Tigerlily's bubble act which was absolutely adorable with an excellent use of props and Lucy Sky Diamond with her trapeze act. She has inspired me to finally commit to creating a trapeze performance of my own, what a girl!

Torsten of course, was snapping away. I've also popped a couple of pics up on my Facebook fan page and others are visible at his blog, including a few lovely architectural shots of the theatre.

So feeling somewhat elated we all bundled back into Tigerlily's car for the scary ride home. That beautiful mist from earlier had turned into a fog so thick we had to crawl at 40km the whole way home. Some crazy cab driver shot past us like a bat out of hell while we were on one of the most impossibly thick spots where we couldn't even see where the sides of the road or lanes were. I don't know if he had x-ray vision or something.

Later, we found out that Grace Cherry's cab driver was also driving like a maniac all the way back to Hobart. Seriously people, if you are paying for it, you have a right to tell them to slow down. Not a fun way to end a night thinking you might die at the hands of a kamikaze driver.

Anyway, a brief mar on an otherwise perfect evening.

I absolutely collapsed into bed with an enormous sense of well being and looking forward very much to a sleep in!

A video from our friends....

Burlesque Against Breast Cancer friends, Jimmy Cairney of the Bobby McGees and Kate Kamikazie have gotten together and done this...

More Good Times...

Introducing.... Goodtime Mama Jojo

Burlesque legend joins Burlesque Against Breast Cancer

Hello Folks,

It gives me nothing but great pleasure to announce the news that BABC have themselves a new recruit on the management team. She is a British burlesque legend and her name is Jo King.

Jo has had over 30 years experience in performance and is the founder of Europe’s original burlesque training academy. She is the founder of the London School of Striptease and the London Academy of Burlesque, where she has taught over 10,000 women and not to mention a few of us guys too. Specifically, Jo has worked with people with disabilities and more recently, has taught burlesque those who have gone through breast cancer.

Why did she do this?

“I want women, all women, to feel fabulous about themselves regardless of age, shape, size or ability!”

AT BABC, we think that this is the perfect attitude of what we want to achieve and showcase, especially within the realms of Breast Cancer. Because this crippling disease shouldn’t hold back or hinder anyone from doing what they want. I mean, if Def Leppard can have a one-armed drummer, then....

Jo has collaborated with many well-known names including: The Erotic Awards, The International Workshop Festival, Seven Dials Festival, Coco de Mer and the UK’s biggest Burlesque Jam at the Royal Festival Hall. She also has an impressive list of television appearances including; Strip School for Channel 5 in 2003, the award-winning Crippendales in 2006 and more recently, Dawn Gets Naked (with Dawn Porter) for BBC3.

Jo choreographed showgirl Immodesty Blaize’s original, highly acclaimed, reverse striptease act. She has taught many of the current professional burlesque performers such as Miss Polly Rae, Honey Lulu, and Kiki Kaboom, all of whom have also benefited from Jo’s inimitable choreographic skills and artistic direction. She also choreographs actresses and dancers for film, television and stage work.

Jo is an ambassador for the industry, giving her candid views in the press and on many radio and TV shows. Considered an expert in her field, she is often hired to give her incredibly motivational seminars about self belief and positive body image.

We are very excited about what a difference Jo can bring to Burlesque Against Breast Cancer and how she can help us take the organisation to the next level, thus enabling us to sell more books, put on more great shows for you and raise lots more lovely money for Macmillan Cancer Support.

Mark, BABC