Key West The Newspaper

Key West Burlesque is set to scintillate across the island’s many stages with its eleventh October-May season line-up of seductive shows that expand beyond traditional burlesque borders. Follow the yellow brick road starting Friday, October 20th to the Waterfront Playhouse with “The Wizard of Oz” and brace yourself for more as Key West Burlesque favorites Moana Amour, Aurora Natrix, Miss Jenna Beth, Shelly Watson, Nick Locapo, Key West Burlesque dancers and more “flesh out” a roster of performers that will knock your socks off while slowly removing theirs.

If you’re new to burlesque, expect to see much more than a variety show with a series of bare-it-all strip teases. This troupe is unlike any other in the country, offering full theatrical productions and parodies of well-known material including upcoming wildly-creative interpretations of “The Wizard of Oz,” “Star Wars,” and “The Nutcracker,” with bedazzling costuming, sets, and choreography and a full scope of entertainers that command your attention with or without a birthday suit.

“Our shows are sparkly, glittery, naughty, funny, dance-filled comedy and action like no other show in town,” says creator and director Christa Hunt, who performs as the burlesque queen of the Conch Republic Tatah Dujour. “Each of our productions and the acts and numbers really vary from show to show. You will see magicians, aerialists, pole dancers, roller skating ballet dancers, modern dancers, live vocalists, drag kings and queens, and maybe even a rat or two.”

Founded in 2006 to showcase the classic art form of burlesque, Key West Burlesque’s first show rolled out as “The Red Rooster Revue,” a Waterfront Playhouse performance featuring traditional variety acts by a handful of performers with a live band. Though many islanders had never heard of or seen a burlesque show before, it was met with rave reviews throughout the community. The troupe went on to perform off-Duval in the back room of photo studio Senses at Play as well as at different businesses and events throughout the community. Kelly’s Caribbean restaurant later became their main stage, with scripted theatrical and festival-style shows featuring a cast of twenty to thirty local and international performers, and has since grown to offer productions with full plots and story-lines and large group choreographed numbers that intrigue and delight.

“Shows like the Space Show and Kong Fu became synonymous with Key West Burlesque,” says Hunt. “We also did festival-style productions that brought in some of the best burlesque performers in the country and smaller, fun shows like Dirtie Birdie Burlesque at the Green Parrot.”

For the last five years, Key West Burlesque’s productions have moved to almost all big-stage extravaganzas with higher production value and bringing in the finest in burlesque entertainers from across the county. But despite their growth, they retain the “grass-roots” element that crowds have come to know in love from these entertainers.

“We continue to offer an up-close and personal feel that Key West Burlesque has always given the audience,” says Hunt.

Whether you’ve seen them before or not, you don’t want to miss out on what promises to be a season of continuous reinvention and sensual, comedic entertainment like nothing else on the island.

A sneak peek at the season’s line-up includes: October’s The Wizard of Oz, December’s Nutcracker, Febrauary’s Valentine’s Show, March’s Tribute Show, May’s The Sexy Side of Star Wars, and special all-season shows in Islamorada and Key West’s Bourbon 801.

For more information, visit keywestburlesque.show. To purchase tickets for Wizard of Oz, visit waterfrontplayhouse.org or call their box office at 305.394.7445.  Sponsored in part by The Monroe County Tourist Development Council.