Friday Tip

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s a new year and it’s going to be tax time soon. That alone sucks, but are you also scrambling to get your information together? Here’s your tip:

Set up a system to record your burlesque-related income and expenses.

Whether you use accounting software, a spreadsheet, or a notebook, that’s up to what works best for you. Also, the schedule is up to you — maybe you want to record items immediately or maybe once a month is bookkeeping day. Just don’t leave it all until the last minute. Start now and future you will thank past you for making it easy.

M2These writings and other creative projects are supported by my 18 Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page. Or you can just tip me if you liked this.

Published in: on 9 January 2026 at 5:46 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Friday Tip

Dear Constant Reader, 

It’s the first Friday of 2026! I have spent this week having no idea what day it was, but I remembered just in time to send you a tip.

When packing for a show, last in, first out.

To be efficient backstage, pack your suitcase in the order that you’ll be taking things out. A well-packed bag keeps you from digging through frantically looking for your g-string. It’s right on top because it’s the first thing you’ll be putting on.

And if you’ll excuse me, I need to go pack for tomorrow night’s gig.

M2These writings and other creative projects are supported by my 18 Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page. Or you can just tip me if you liked this.

Published in: on 2 January 2026 at 9:03 pm  Leave a Comment  
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10th Anniversary Show 12/6/25

Dear Constant Reader,

Usually, we do two shows at Deacon Giles, an early and a late, and they’re the same show. This time, we did Brrrlesque for the early show, but for the late show, we presented…
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10 years of fine spirits and craft cocktails! And we’ve been there for most of it. One night, about 9 years ago, Brigitte, very drunk, called Scratch, told him that we had to perform at this great bar she was at, and the rest is history!

To celebrate, we decided to do a show filled with some of our favorite acts that we’ve performed there. With one exception, this was entirely different acts from the show we had performed earlier in the evening.

Ava Fox, Betty Blaize, Devastasia: Going Bananas (“Going Bananas” by Madonna/”Day-O” by Harry Belafonte”)
This was probably the first act we knew had to be in the show. Originally created for A (Re)Movable Feast, it was one of the main acts in The Boston BeauTease Go Bananaz!, a show Brigitte had been suggesting not very subtilely for years. There’s a story about that show and the Salem city government, but I shall share it another time, perhaps. Let us just leave it at that Ian, one of Deacon Giles’ owners, is very detail-oriented and ultimately saved the day.

Mina Murray: Moon Over Bourbon Street (Sting)
This was another act that everyone said had to be in the show. It’s one of my Halloween go-tos. However, I realized that it shares some costume elements with a different act and I was going to be doing both in this show. So, I made a brand-new hip belt, which goes with the theme of the act. I only had time to do the bare minimum of rhinestoning, but I’m still pretty  pleased with it.

Scratch: Martini Time (magic)
This time the correct song was on the playlist and everything went off flawlessly.

Ava Fox: In the Mood
We had to have Ava tap dance and this is a cheerful, celebratory number.

Betty Blaize: Sweet Child o’ Mine (Post-Modern Jukebox)
Betty gets to show off her dance chops as well as her costuming with this striptease.

Devastasia: No Diggity (singing: Post-Modern Jukebox arrangement)
Another chance to hear Devastasia’s lovely voice.

Mina Murray: Whole Lotta Mina (“Whole Lotta Love” by Hollywood Vampires)
I love this number. The music absolutely does not go with the troupe aesthetic, but I don’t care (and neither does Devastasia, who always encourages me to do it.)

Betty Blaize: Malambo No. 5 (Yma Sumak)
This is an over-the-top song and a matching costume. Betty has had a feathered headdress and backpiece for a while and, rather than create, say an elegant showgirl act, she became a tropical bird. It’s a gorgeous costume and the act is a touch ridiculous, just like Betty.

Devastasia: Steamroller Blues
I’m not the only fan dancer in the troupe, but our styles are pretty different. Also of note is the Devastasia’s costume is a color would wouldn’t expect from her — bright pink!

Ava Fox: Upside Down (Paloma Faith)
Ava has been working with chairs for a while and I think this is her finest number — and I’m not alone. She performed it at festivals in Scotland and Australia.

Scratch: The Vanishing Bandana (magic)
This is one off the troupe’s favorite magic tricks and we insisted Scratch perform it.

Betty Blaize, Mina Murray: Wim-a-weh (“The Lion Sleeps Tonight” by The Tokens)
This is without a doubt the goofiest number we have. It’s also one of the oldest. Betty and I came up with it over the course of a week (when I think I had the flu) in like 2007. It contains some authentic ’60s go-go moves and  16th-century Indian dance hand gestures. It’s very silly and somehow, it remains a crowd pleaser.

And that was our last show of 2025!

M2These writings and other creative projects are supported by my 18 Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page. Or you can just tip me if you liked this.

Published in: on 31 December 2025 at 4:20 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Brrrlesque 12/6/25

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s that time of year again, when we have our annual winter-themed show. We had a couple of traditional seasonal treats and a few new ones. As always, we had Marek on lights and sound and a rare appearance from Matilde as stagehand. The show went something like this:

Ava Fox, Betty Blaize, Mina Murray: “Kindergarten” (Unkle Ho)
This is one of our standard trios, which we’ve been doing for years. Since it’s the holiday season, we had tall peppermint sticks and wore red velvet skirts, newly trimmed with white faux fur by Betty, to replace some really sad marabou. We used to do this to a song called “Booty Swing”, which has a great rhythm and terrible lyrics, so we retired it. After a lot of work, Scratch and Betty found this song, to which Betty adapted the choreography. Although we rehearsed it a bunch, once on stage I reverted back to the old choreography near the end. Ooops.

Devastasia: Snow-woman (“Frosty the Snowman”/”She Made My Blood Run Cold” by Ike Turner)
It’s a shame this act appears only at this time of year, because the costume is amazing. You’ll look at snowmen in an entirely different way.

Scratch: Magic
With the help of the audience, Scratch performed a minor miracle… and was able to finish getting dressed.

Ava Fox: Stocking Peel (“Black & Tan Fantasy” by Dave Rose and His Orchestra)
This act was a one-off joke for our holiday special back in 2020, but Ava decided to make it into a real act. After all, she already had the giant stocking…
Ava stocking

Betty Blaize: Betty, it’s Cold Outside (“Baby, it’s Cold Outside” by Ray Charles and Betty Carter)
We could not have a winter show without bringing back Betty’s classic duet with Dino Martini.

Mina Murray: Sugar Rum Cherry (Duke Ellington)
This is still one of my favorite fan dances. I love it even more now that that fans I had made for it have been refurbished by Donna Touch.

Devastasia: “I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm” (singing)
We’re always happy to have a chance to hear Devastasia sing.

Ava Fox: Gift-Wrapped Boy (The Big Happy)
Ava is the best present! She taps her little heart out wearing a costume that looks like wrapping paper. And then she unwraps herself, down to jingle bell pasties!

Scratch: Martini Time (magic)
This was a touch awkward as Scratch’s music wasn’t on the playlist — magic of live theatre, folks! However, he’s such a good showman that he was able to use a song from the pre-show playlist and you never would have known, if there hadn’t been the back and forth with him and Marek.

Mina Murray: What Are You Doing New Years Eve? (Post-Modern Jukebox)
Maybe it was a little early in the month to be thinking of New Year’s Eve, but I only ever get to do this act in December. I always say I should come up with a new number for this costume, because it’s glorious.

Ava Fox, Betty Blaize, Devastasia: Reindeer Games (“Stompin’ at the Savoy” by Benny Goodman)
This is another one of our standard trios, created by Brigitte Bisoux, but we wanted to make it more holiday-ish. Picking red, green, and silver costume elements was the first idea. I don’t remember what came next, the antlers or the harnesses with bells, but before we knew it, they were reindeer. So, it only seemed fitting them to have glowing red pasties, which Devastasia skillfully made for them.Reindeer 1

And then we did a second show afterwards with an entirely different set of acts. Stay tuned!

M2These writings and other creative projects are supported by my 18 Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page. Or you can just tip me if you liked this.

Published in: on 30 December 2025 at 5:51 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Friday Tip

Dear Constant Reader,

Happy Friday! It’s practically the Solstice and days are about to start getting longer. I for one, can’t wait. Speaking of light, here’s your tip:

Work in a well-lit space.

Whether costuming or choreographing, you need to be able to see what you’re doing. If your work area doesn’t have good light, you can get a couple of clip lights at the hardware store. They’re not pretty, but they’re fairly cheap and you can move them around. 

A finished product wants to be checked under stage light conditions, but while you’re creating, you should be able to see your work in the best light.

M2These writings and other creative projects are supported by my 18 Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page. Or you can just tip me if you liked this.

Published in: on 19 December 2025 at 10:49 am  Leave a Comment  
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Friday Tip

Dear Constant Reader,

Happy Friday! Here’s your tip:

Before taking costumes to the dry cleaner, test a swatch.

Sometimes the dry cleaner seems like the best option to get a costume clean. However, the chemicals they use sometimes interact badly with the trimmings we use. I have heard stories of AB coating coming off rhinestones, glue loosened, and feathers left limp. I personally had some silvery trim that came back permanently dulled (it’s okay, it was only a little and I replaced it with something better).

So, test it first. Take a scrap of fabric from your costume (or something similar if you don’t have leftovers) and attach samples off all your decorations to it. Then take that to the dry cleaner and have them clean it. If everything remained intact and beautiful, you can take the real thing in. If not, you might want to try again elsewhere or figure out another method to clean your costume.

M2These writings and other creative projects are supported by my 18 Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page. Or you can just tip me if you liked this.

Published in: on 12 December 2025 at 4:05 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Helping Hamilton

Dear Constant Reader,

Chef HamiltonThis is Hamilton A. Cat. He’s a character in Robert Lay’s books (the Giblet & Belle and Holmes & Watson series), but he’s also a real cat. Hamilton is very sick and his vets don’t have a diagnosis yet. In fact, his family was prepared to say goodbye. However, Hamilton is a fighter. He’s not giving up! Currently, he’s at home with his family with a feeding tube while the vets figure out what’s wrong.

If you have pets, you know that veterinary care is very expensive. After a lot of nudging from his friends, Robert agreed to create a GoFundMe, which you can find here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-for-hamilton-a-cat

You can also support Hamilton by buying Robert’s books. The holidays are right around the corner and surely you know someone who would love a good mystery featuring cats:

Giblet & Belle –
The Case Of The Missing Ring
The Case Of The One Still Too Many
The Case Of The Vendetta

Holmes & Watson –
The Case Of The Diabolical Daughter
The Case Of The One Bridge Too Far

As Georgia Dunn put it so eloquently in Breaking Cat News:Let's save a cat

M2

Published in: on 10 December 2025 at 11:04 am  Leave a Comment  
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Friday Tip

Dear Constant Reader,

Happy Friday! Here it is somehow December already…

Tomorrow we’ll be at Deacon Giles Speakeasy Lounge in Salem for TWO different shows. Come at 7:30pm for Brrrlesque, our festive winter romp, or 9pm for our celebration of a decade of Deacon Giles!

Here’s your tip!

Strong abs are a must for floorwork and crunches are a great way to build up those muscles. 

Stay safe — remember to keep your lower back pressed to the floor and your neck long.

And by the way, Devastasia will be teaching floorwork in January!

M2These writings and other creative projects are supported by my 18 Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page. Or you can just tip me if you liked this.

Published in: on 5 December 2025 at 3:26 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Book Review: Holmes & Watson

Dear Constant Reader,

You might recall that I thoroughly enjoyed the Giblet and Belle series by Robert Lay. His new series, Holmes & Watson, stars two of the characters we met in The Case of the Vendetta, Holmes, the superior orange cat and Tyler Watson, exonerated ex-con. It’s five years after the events of that book and the two of them, along with young genius Cassidy Macgregor (now grown), form a detective agency.

In the first book, The Case of the Dubious Daughter, a missing persons case becomes something more complex, sinister, and far-reaching. When Isabella De León’s parents hire the detectives to track down their daughter, the case leads them from Connecticut to St. Louis, where they discover wide ranging crimes involving a Colombian cartel, the FBI, and a shadowy organization that controls more than you might imagine. There is also romance and some of Holmes’ backstory.

I was privileged to be a beta reader on the second installment, The Case of the Bridge Too Far, which was recently published. When the agency looks into an art theft, they ultimately come face to face with their nemesis. Does he know that they are on to him? While the investigation goes on, Cassidy is preparing for her wedding and Holmes must deal with a cat from his past. There is excitement and tragedy, as well as humor and love.

The ending left me wanting to know what happens next. Fortunately The Case of the Enemy of My Enemy is due out next autumn. I have inside information that this book will conclude this series of thrillers, but there will be more books featuring the cast of cats!

As has become customary, each book has a bonus short story and a selection of recipes from the paw of Chef Hamilton A. Cat. The Dubious Daughter has recipes submitted by readers and tested to be selected by Hamilton (disclosure: one of them is mine) while The Bridge Too Far supplements the story with three recipes served during the course of the tale.

If you want a sample, I did a reading of the bonus story from The Case of the Bridge Too Far, “Lily and the Great Vampire Hunt”. It’s a Giblet & Belle story, starring Belle’s kitten.

You can follow these links to buy all of Robert’s books at Bookshop.org*:
Giblet & Belle –
The Case Of The Missing Ring
The Case Of The One Still Too Many
The Case Of The Vendetta

Holmes & Watson –
The Case Of The Diabolical Daughter
The Case Of The One Bridge Too Far

They make great holiday gifts!

M2

* Yes, you can get them on Amazon and B&N, but Bookshop.org supports small bookstores and I’m an affiliate, so you’re supporting my endeavors as well.

These writings and other creative projects are supported by my 18 Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page. Or you can just tip me if you liked this.

Published in: on 1 December 2025 at 2:00 pm  Leave a Comment  
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The Spookeasy Lab 10/18/25

Dear Constant Reader,

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It’s our favorite time of year! Our Halloween show in Salem! This year we were short one performer, as Ava was in Australia, performing at the Perth Burlesque Festival, and we were delighted to have Jeanie Martini fill in. We performed the same show twice, as is our wont on Halloween, and it was a great deal of fun, as usual.

Betty Blaize and Mina Murray: Sister Act (“I Can’t Do It Alone” from Chicago)
This act is so much fun! We created it for our second Halloween show, in 2006. Betty is the glamourous showgirl and I am her murdered sister. She manhandled my corpse around the stage, trying to recreate our duet. The hardest part about playing dead is not reacting when I hear the audience laughing.

Devastasia: Black Widow (“Experiment in Terror”)
Draped in mourning black, Devastasia transforms from a human black widow into a spider. The engineering on her boa-bustle is quite clever!

Lani Cakes: Witchcraft (singing)
Not only is Lani a stage kitten, but she sings too!

Betty Blaize: You’re the Boss (Brian Setzer)
This is Betty’s oldest act and still a crowd pleaser. Inspired by Lorraine Lane’s “Satan’s Dance”, Betty is tempted by the Devil. I’m always impressed with the skill with which she brings that puppet to life.

Mina Murray: Pandora’s Music Box (Nox Arcana)/ I Put a Spell on You (Screamin’ Jay Hawkins)
This was a brand-new act. I wanted to use my fishbone fans and an amazing duster, made by Big Fannie Annie (not for me, originally; I bought it at auction). Scratch suggested the music and Devastasia made the glowing pasties possible. Patrons can watch the video.

BtS: The bra I wear for this number comes apart into two pieces. When I was changing for the second run, I could only find half. I panicked for a moment, then took the straps off the bra I wear for the finale and whispered to Lani to give it back right after the act. I spent a lot of that second performance hoping it didn’t fall down and expose the pasties too early.

Devastasia: Skeletons in my Closet (singing)
Not familiar with this song? It’s from the video game Seventh Guest. So is one of Devastasia’s tattoos.

Jeanie Martini: I Only Have Eyes for You
I couldn’t watch Jeanie’s act because I was changing, but I can assure you it has an eye-popping reveal,

Scratch: Urban Legend
An apple, double-edged razor blades, Scratch’s mouth… what could go wrong…

Betty Blaize, Devastasia, and Mina Murray: Poison (Post-Modern Jukebox)
Three not-very-bright murderesses try to take out the competition. We had to be very careful with three of us on that stage, circling the table like sharks, as there’s always the possibility of falling off the back!

Our next show will be December 6th at Deacon Giles. We’ll be doing two shows that night as well, but the early show, Brrrrlesque, will be a celebration of all things winter and holidays, and the late show will be  celebration of Deacon Giles’ 10th anniversary. We’ll be performing a bunch of our favorite acts from tthe past decade of shows.

M2These writings and other creative projects are supported by my 18 Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page. Or you can just tip me if you liked this.

Published in: on 29 November 2025 at 1:15 pm  Leave a Comment  
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