A Show To 'Die' For: A Quest for Burlesque Takes Center Stage at The Whiteside
A Show To ‘Die’ For: A Quest for Burlesque Takes Center Stage at The Whiteside
January 17, 2025
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The Whiteside Theatre was transformed last Saturday into a lively and chaotic circus, with a cast of 14 transporting their audience to another dimension — one full of tassels, glam, and seductive Dungeon & Dragons flair.
Most performers were dressed as different characters, with some even displaying skills that coincided with the game. The show’s host, Petunia Rufflebottom, promptly greeted the audience inside the downtown Corvallis theatre at the promised time of 8 p.m. Jan. 17. Petunia is a familiar face among the Disco Circus Centerfolds community. Dressed as a cockatrice (bird-lizard crossbreed), they delivered humorous jokes throughout the show, whilst providing information on the performers.
Petunia also encouraged the audience to interact with the performers by making “lots of noise” and contributing dollars; a nurse and a goblin stood at the ready to snatch the cash with nets. The event was produced by Disco Circus Centerfolds and Chaos Kitten Burlesque, and called “A Quest for Burlesque: The Bard’s Blacklight Showcase.”
The first performer, Chaos Kitten, strutted out with striking neon green hair and a brightly-colored ensemble. Not only are they the producer of the show, but they also co-produced every second and fourth Tuesday show at The Sparrow and Serpent in Eugene. Chaos started with a strong performance, spurring on the audience after stripping down to a neon-green harness.
Ryan Heartz followed with a charismatic drag king performance. Even though he somehow managed to roll a one numerous times on a giant 20-sided die, Ryan rolled a plus-8 in charisma that stole the audience’s attention. Not only were his moves inspirational, but so is his goal for encouraging kings of the drag scene.
The show continued with the next two performances from Herbiwhore and Monday Mayhem. Herbiwhore came out serving mind flayer (humanoid aberration) realness, with tentacles dangling from their face and a mindbending musical track playing in the background. The audience ate up their truly captivating and wildly mystifying burlesque performance.
Monday Mayhem levitated onto the stage afterwards, wearing a flowy garment that captured her soft yet powerful presence. Mayhem is an accomplished contortionist and it shows; she curved and twisted around a folding chair, leaving the crowd speechless. You can find Monday at her birthday show, which will take place Feb. 8 in Eugene.
Spicy Caliente conquered the stage next with some searing staff action. Not only was he fully immersed in UV light, but he also twirled a digitized double-sided baton that showcased multiple images as the song he danced to progressed. Even though Caliente kept his face concealed with a devil’s mask, his body remained anything but.
Petunia then introduced the next performer: “Sucky sucky vampire action, Aura Fixation.” Fixation waltzed out in a long red cloak, taking the audience’s breath and blood away with a single gaze. They bore fangs, flashing a chilling smile whilst stripping down to a smaller garment. Fixation will be in Port Angeles performing in Murder! By Pasties on March 21.
During intermission, the audience had the opportunity to partake in a raffle that included different D&D paraphernalia as well as tickets to another production. Black Rainbow, a local curator of goods, also donated items and delicacies. Fifty percent of DCC’s profits were donated back to the Whiteside Theatre, which is a grand, spacious, non-profit venue that is over 100 years old.
The theatre’s first-floor seating was almost packed full as an estimate of over 80 people attended. The over-18 audience enjoyed experiencing the performance together, with many individuals dressing on the D&D theme. Profits were also donated to Vina Moses, a non-profit organization located in Corvallis that provides free aid to over 8,000 people each year by donating clothes, household goods, food, and other items.
The remaining eight performers consisted of:
Audrey Darling, a DCC founder conjuring beholder action
Rosey Posey, marking 10 years of burlesque as a “cutie patootie with a dazzling bootie”
Lilith E Claire, channeling hot goblin movement by dancing to David Bowie’s Magic Dance
Darius, who portrayed a tiefling (humanoid with devilish traits) during his bellydance performance that left the audience gawking
A tail of two tabaxi (catlike humanoids) consisting of Bambi Bitters, a graduate from BodyMagickTemple’s 101, and Grimly Beloved, a newcomer to the stage whose first performance was during the duo
Crybaby Valloween, a master seamstress and a truly gifted entertainer
Pixie Kat, who advocates physical and mental health through her contortionist performances while living with multiple sclerosis
And finally, Viva Vendetta, who got the crowd clapping throughout his entire bard (poet-singer) performance, dancing around while pretending to play the fiddle. Vendetta’s acts are “a battle cry for every soul who’s ever felt like they were fighting alone.”
“Express yourself in any way possible,” Crybaby Valloween said. “If it makes you happy then that’s what matters.”
And, in the closing words of Petunia Rufflebottom, while she handed out plastic dinosaurs at the end of the show: “Be gay, do crime.”
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