BURLESQUE FAN TECHNIQUE:
PRINCESS FARHANA

Internationally acclaimed dance star PRINCESS FARHANA
has performed, taught and written about belly dance and burlesque
for eighteen years. She has appeared in Egypt,  France, Switzerland,
Belgium,  Portugal, Mexico and Canada, all over The United Kingdom and
across the USA.

As a belly dancer, she was voted “ Favorite Oriental Dancer Of The Year
2006 and 2008” by Zaghareet Magazine. She  has performed live at major
concerts with Arabic superstars Amr Diab, Hakim, Natacha Atlas, and Alabina,
and has been seen in many Arabic television shows.

As a burlesque artist, she has been a competition judge at the USA’s
legendary international burlesque competition, The Miss Exotic World
Pageant, and has been  a returning workshop teacher at Tease-O-Rama.
She has been featured on the covers of numerous mainstream magazines,
belly dance publications, and was featured on the cover of the London
Sunday Review’s feature on American Burlesque.

For twelve years, she was a featured soloist in America’s premiere
burlesque troupe, The Velvet Hammer, and starred in two
documentary films on the troupe as well as in Arts And Entertainment
Channel’s ‘”This Is Burlesque”.  Along with other Velvet Hammer
performers, her photos are featured in Katarina Bosse’s book,
“The New Burlesque”. Several images of the Princess as well as her
writing can be seen in the newly published book on the troupe,
“The Velvet Hammer Burlesque”.

From 2006-2008 she was the featured dancer in comedian Margaret
Cho’s touring burlesque and variety show, The Sensuous Woman.

The Princess has  acted and danced in numerous motion pictures;
music videos (for Madonna, Sheryl Crow, Ricky Martin and many others)
television shows; and in documentary films on belly dance and
burlesque both performing and as an interview subject.  Her most recent
film credits are  as Estelle  ( a three-breasted carnival cooch dancer) in
“Firecracker”  (2006) and as assistant choreographer for the major motion
picture “Charlie Wilson’s War” (December 2007) starring Tom Hanks
and Julia Roberts. She is the subject for  award winning director Steve
Balderson’s documentary “Underbelly: A Year In The Life Of
Dancer Princess Farhana”  in  theatrical release and on DVD
since March 2008.

Along with film maker/dancer Augusta ( Penny Starr, Jr.)
she  co-produced  the first-ever instructional burlesque DVD,
“Boom Boom: Hot Burlesque Moves For Cool Chicks ( 2005) and the
first-ever instructional  fan dancing DVD, “Fan-Tastic!” (2008)

 

MAKE-UP AND HAIR DESIGN: KAT BARDOT

As the other half of the Miss Exotic World Best Duo 2008,
KAT BARDOT graduated from SUNY New Paltz with a Bachelor of Sciene
in Fine Art.  Immediately after graduation, Kat moved to LA and began
her make-up career doing make-up for pin-up and burlesque photography.
Kat also runs the Los Angeles chapter of Dr. Sketchy’s Anti-Art School,
a bi-monthly event where artists can come for a cocktail and draw a
wide array of burlesque dancers and sideshow performers and is a
regular performer with the Sacred Fools Theater Group.

She currently works in print, theater and
independent film and offers special make-up design
services for performers, creating custom looks to coordinate
with their performance and costume.  In the past, she
has taught both the ‘natural’ look for stage, as well as
drag queen extravaganzas. 

 

BURLESQUE CHOREOGRAPHY: LUX LA CROIX

LUX LaCROIX is a rising burlesque starlet, documentary filmmaker,
professional dancer and award-winning choreographer. Professionally
she has worked with artists such as Chris Brown, N.E.R.D.,
OutKast and Janet Jackson. She has danced in several LA venues such as
The Derby, Broadway Bar, El Cid, The Bordello, and Hyde.
Lux is also a regular performer in the Mexican Wrestling and
Saucy Striptease extravaganza known as Lucha VaVOOM!

Lux has been featured performer the past three years
at the New York Burlesque Festival and this year she was
named Miss Exotic World's 2008 1st Runner-Up as well as
"Most Dazzling Performer".  Lux teaches the art of
burlesque dancing in her Bump and Grind 101 class series
as well as co-producing a monthly show, Burlesque-A-Go-Go,
at Mr. T's Bowl in Los Angeles.

 

WIG STYLING: VIXEN VIOLETTE

VIXEN VIOLETTE is a Los Angeles based burlesque
performer known for innovative costumes and great (fake) hair.
She was recently namedone of the top 20 of modern burlesque
performers by AOL Time Warner. She is also the costuming teacher
for the Bump’n’Grind Bootcamp and co-producer of
the monthly show Burlesque-a-Go-Go.

TASSEL TWIRLING: DESIRE D'AMOUR

DESIRE D'AMOUR , the “Creole Queen of Burlesque”, has appeared on
CBS, NBC, and CNN and was the central focus of a German documentary on
the Exotic World Burlesque Museum and Pageant. She can be seen in
“Beyond Burlesque”, a film by Jo Martin. She has been pictured in the book “Burlesque and the New Bump-n-Grind” as well as Maxim Magazine.
Most recently, Desire was one of the international burlesque performers
featured in Style Monte Carlo Magazine and has her own card in the
Starlet Poker Deck created by burlesque filmmakers Guerilla Monster Films.

Desiré has performed as a dancer and actor with Lucha Va Voom,
Dane’s Dames Burlesque, Spectacular!Spectacular!, and San Francisco’s
Famous Burlesque Orchestra. She has also been seen on the Tease-o-rama
stage in both San Francisco and Los Angeles. She has competed in the
“Miss Exotic World” competition since 2003, wowing the crowd with her
amazing tassel twirling. Most notable, Desiré was a regular cast member of
the long running Va Va Voom Room in San Francisco in 2004 and spent
summer and fall of 2005 touring with Fluffgirl Burlesque.

Recently relocated to Tuscon, Desiré contributed her talent and expertise to
Tucson’s first burlesque troupe, Black Cherry Burlesque. Currently you can
see her on stage with Los Angeles’ Rock’n’Roll Stripshow, Victory Variety Hour
and in Tucson with Cirque du Sin Cabaret.

She has performed at notable clubs such as the Slipper Room in New York,
The Derby and The Key Club in Los Angeles, and Bimbo’s 365 Club in
San Francisco.

Desiré is one of the few burlesque dancers who can twirl pasites
with the tassels lit on fire!

 

COSTUMING TIPS AND TRICKS:
VENUS DE MILLE

The Deity Of Desire is reborn! She has come to Earth as Burlesque Artist
VENUS DE MILLE, crowned “Legend In The Making” at the
Miss Exotic World 2005 Pageant. Mere mortals are held spellbound by
her heavenly body and dazzling performances which combine
the glamour of Hollywood with the temptation of striptease and the
bluster of a good old bump ‘n’ grind… earning her the nickname
“Weapon of Man’s Destruction”.

Her accordion skills are unparalleled, and whether she’s serenading
the audience while shedding flimsy garments, rappelling from the rafters,
or transforming before your very eyes into a ball of flame, she always
envelops the crowd in preternaturally supreme theatrical experience,
continuously reducing human spectators to helpless piles of rubble with
a mere glance.

With a  Master’s Degree in Theater, she has been sharing her costumin
expertise with other mortals for several years now, teaching Burlesque
Costume Classes at Costume College (Van Nuys), Stiletto (Redlands),
Tease-O-Rama (San Francisco), and BurlyCon (Seattle).  In addition to
costuming many of your favorite burlesque starlets, she has unveiled
her own line of luxuriously embellished gloves under the name:
“Gloves By Venus”

Venus has graced the stage at such diverse events as The Velvet Hammer Burlesque, Tease-O-rama, The Miss Exotic World Pageant, Bricktops!,
Burlesque Bingo, Buckingham Burlesque, The Bordello Burlesque Show,
The Victory Variety Hour, Lolita La Vey’s Cabaret, Margaret Cho’s
Sensuous Woman, Little Minsky’s (San Francisco), Columbia City
Cabaret (Seattle), The Bedroom Club (Seattle), the Vintage Erotic
Cinema Series, the LA Dyke March, and Comic-Con.

 

BUILDING A LARGER-THAN-LIFE
BURLESQUE PERSONA :
TIGGER!

James "TIGGER!" Ferguson is an actor/dancer/stripper/librarian
who has performed in New York and abroad for over 20 years, dancing
from Austria to Australia with performance artist Penny Arcade and
touring America's Bible Belt in a pink Sodomobile with controversial
filmmaker Michael Moore.

As Tigger!, he has been NYC's premier Boylesque artist for 11 years,
called "the King of Boylesque." In 2006 he was honored to win the
1st ever Mr. Exotic World title (Best Boylesque) at The Burlesque
Hall of Fame in Las Vegas. He has also received four Golden Pastie
Awards, including "The Performer Most Likely to Get Shut Down
by the Law" and "Most Unpredictable Performer." He has burlesqued to
packed houses all over, recently including:
Hungary, Holland, Sweden, Portugal, France, Toronto, Seattle, Las Vegas,
Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, and DC. He has taught burlesque
on both coasts and in Canada, at universities, theatres, bars, and
burlesque academies.

He has acted in Shakespeare, Apollinaire, Wedekind, a Tennessee Williams
world premiere with Julie Atlas Muz, and numerous original works.
Independent films include Tomorrow Always Comes, Louis the XIVth Street,
Flaming Creatures (blind remake), Radical Earth Magic Flower.