Rebel Without a Bra is coming to the Rogue Festival, Fresno, CA
Red Velvet and the Velvettes bring Rebel Without a Bra to The Rogue Festival. This burlesque cabaret introduces us to the history of women in burlesque. A titillating homage to burlesque icons, this show lays bare the tried and true tropes of burlesque history with cheeky comedic scenes, singing, dancing, and more.
Join us for an enticing experience combining theater, cabaret, and burlesque in this unique and sensual evening of entertainment. Learn about women in burlesque history through the eyes, ears, and memories of some of its most fascinating participants. From the sultry stage presence of Victorian lovelies in tights, to the French cancan, through the classical age of burlesque beauties, as well as the current neo-burlesque genre. This theatrical experience strips away the performer’s inhibitions (and yours) at this year’s annual Rogue Festival.
SF Gate called Rebel Without a Bra “A fleshy offering… celebrating the female body in various shapes and sizes.” “A loose look at burlesque history – with nods to Josephine Baker, Isadora Duncan, and Mae West.”
Burlesque is more than a simple striptease transported into an artsy playhouse. So says Jacki Willson in her book, “The Happy Stripper: Pleasures and Politics of the New Burlesque.” Jacki Willson writes “Unlike pure stripping, burlesque has a sting.” The burlesque performer has power. She owns her body and displays it in a manner that pleases herself. She “looks back, smiles and questions her audience, as well as her own performance,” says Willson. Rebel Without a Bra will give you a taste of the new burlesque while providing you historical content, a few chuckles, and perhaps the occasional guffaw.
Red Velvet, a life-long dancer, has performed in musical theater and burlesque throughout the U.S. and internationally. Red Velvet is proficient in various dance forms and teaches classes in burlesque, cancan, and Isadora Duncan dance. Red Velvet is co-artistic director of a monthly show in San Francisco, DIVA or Die Burlesque, and is artistic director of the cancan troupe, The Velvettes. She has performed with the award-winning Hot Pink Feathers and the award-winning Flaunt Follies, Bombshell Betty’s Burlesqueteers, Alegria Samba Dance Company, and was artistic director for the dance group Pretty, Pretty Please. Her burlesque performances have won Judge’s Choice at the 2019 Arizona Burlesque Festival, Most Classic at the 2016 Great Burlesque Exposition, and Most Humorous at the 2014 Great Burlesque Exposition. She co-created five full-length burlesque/cabaret/theater productions: Rebel without a Bra, At the White Rabbit Burlesque, Hotel Burlesque, Just Another Zombie Holiday Show, and Dollhouse Monsters. Come and Try a Slice of Red Velvet!
Rebel without a Bra: A Burlesque Cabaret at the 2020 Rogue Festival; Presented by Red Velvet and The Velvettes; Created by Red Velvet and If N’ Whendy Directed and Choreographed by Red Velvet Performed by Bunny von Tail, Coco Jewelle, Dee O's Mio, Tanqueray von Grafenburg, and Red Velvet Where: Severance Theatre, California Arts Academy, 1401 Wishon Ave, Fresno, CA When: Friday, March 6, 9:30PM Saturday, March 7, 6:00PM Sunday, March 8, 5:00PM Friday, March 13, 7:00PM Saturday, March 14, 8:00PM
Tickets: $15 (price not inclusive of the Rogue wristband) Advance tickets available at roguefestival.ticketleap.com. Tickets may also be purchased at the venue. Box office opens 30 minutes prior to each show.