I was never a half-assin’ it kind of gal. If I made a decision to do something, you better believe I was going to do it big (and most likely sparkly).
For example, a recent performance goal of mine was to travel. I would pick a city I wanted to visit and then try to get booked to perform during my time there. And why not just drive right in and start with New York City? With some help from a wonderful and talented gal I met at Burlycon, Lovely Legs Malone, and a few emails- bam!- there I was scheduled to perform at both Kitty Nights Burlesque (http://www.kittynights.com) and Shaken and Stirred Burlesque (http://www.sugarshackburlesque.com). Accompanied by my companion and prop master, Georgie D, SinnSavvy Productions owner/my bestie Rayleen Courtney, and multimedia director Tyler Spencer, we took the city by storm. The producers, performers and audiences couldn’t have been more fantastic and we made tons of friends and promises to return.
Another great way to perform abroad is via festivals. I hadn’t been to Vancouver B.C. in years and thought it would be wonderful place to begin my festival adventures, so I decided to apply for the Vancouver International Burlesque Festival (http://www.vanburlesquefest.com) and was absolutely elated when I was accepted. This meant sharing a stage with numerous incredible performers including Miss Exotic World 2010 Roxi Dlite!
Since I was putting together an application for Vancouver anyway I thought, what the hell, why not apply to the Burlesque Hall of Fame competition? I mean, it’s only the one of the most renowned burlesque festivals in the world. It’s only labeled the Superbowl of burlesque and one of the highest honors in this field. If you’re going to do it, might as well aim for the top, right? Well, it worked! I was selected as one of 10 performers from all over the world to compete in the category of Best Debut. And how excited and honored I was to find out that my burlesque sisters and good friends, Charlotte Treuse (http://charlottetreuse.com/default.aspx) would be right there alongside me in the competition and Nina Nightshade (http://ninanightshade.com/default.aspx) would be performing in the showcase. Portland represent!
Then on April 15, life threw me a curveball. During a fabulous duet with Zora Von Pavonine at the April Rosehip Revue, I went down into a splits and felt a snap. I finished the performance with no one knowing that my right leg was about ready to buckle and my toes were numb, but once backstage I collapsed and was rushed to the ER. A week and a half, a lot of pain, and an MRI later, it was revealed that I had completely torn my hamstring off of my pelvis and would need immediate surgery to attach it. I have never really injured myself aside from a pulled muscle here and there throughout the years, but apparently my “do it big” mantra extends to all areas of my life.
So here I am, 4 days post surgery with a whole new plan. I was incredibly saddened to have to pull out of the Vancouver festival but I WILL go to BHOF in Vegas. I am very proactive in every possible angle of healing in both Eastern and Western medicine and I am mending strong and quick. In fact, I am planning on setting a new record for healed hamstrings. Because if you’re gonna do it, do it big and cover it in glitter.
