Familiar Stomping Grounds: All-con and the Tarantino Show

"Audiences know what to expect, and that is all they are prepared to believe in." - Player King, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead by Tom Stoppard

As you've noticed, I have been quiet lately, both here and on the stage.  I really burned myself out in March but couldn't stop going until the end of April.  Add in some changes to my health, and I've had to readjust my overall lifestyle.  It's a work in progress.  Oh and my photo editing program died on me (which is pertinent as you will find out later).

Inspired by one of my favorite BMX riders Scotty Cranmer, I attempted to start making video for Youtube.  However, my daily life isn't that exciting, and both lab and backstage have aspects that are off limits.  So it's back to writing, which better fits my skill set and technological resources.

By Neither Noir
www.neithernoir.com

I did seven panels at All-con this year.  Although I enjoy talking about all of the topics, that's a lot to handle.  Thankfully, and unfortunately, Vylette La'Pairadoux and I decided to put Ladies of Power on indefinite hiatus.  There are other cosplay charity groups and panels about social issues, and both of us are more focused on burlesque anyway.  I do have a new panel idea that I would like to submit next year, but I have to make sure I don't overdue.

Despite my exhaustion, I had a great time.  Ben Dover joined Black Mariah and me for the nerdlesque panel; it was cool getting a drag perspective.  As you may have seen with an earlier post, I got lots of wonderful photos by Neither Noir, including some of my new Flannery cosplay with The Companion as Flareon (both from Pokemon).  I even got to talk skateboarding with the guys!  Unfortunately I forgot to lint roll my shirt so I have to do some editing to get rid of Flareon's tail fluff. 

Shortly after All-con was the third Quentin Tarantino tribute: Burlesque Is a Basterd.  I debuted my O-Ren Ishii act at the last tribute so I was excited to show off the revamped version.  However, I initially did not feel as well-rehearsed, but I hustled during the days leading up to the show and focused on the areas that needed work.  Then my sword broke the night before the show.  The Companion was kind enough to make a late night run for glue and my dad has since then helped me reinforce the blade, but I'm thinking I need to scrap a particular move that I don't always execute successfully anyway.

By Firebird Images
www.firebirdimages.com

Regardless of that and my panic about being late as a result of my late work schedule (I should take show days off but it disrupts the lab a lot), this was probably my best performance as O-Ren.  I may not have gotten all the moves, but I really felt in character.  Practicing only the facial expressions has helped a lot.  I also added fishnets to the costume and realized how much they flatter my butt.  It makes a huge difference when you don't have much junk in the trunk!

By Firebird Images
www.firebirdimages.com

The cast and crew consisted of people I'd met from different shows, which was cool.  The crowd was awesome; one guy even recognized me from All-con!  I've been thinking about what I would do if I decided to bring a new routine to the next Tarantino tribute.  Honestly I haven't seen too many his films so I don't know.  I know Gogo Yubari is the obvious answer, but I'd have to learn how to spin poi (and make a less spiky weapon) to do her properly.  It's too early, and I'm only just feeling good about O-Ren.  Perhaps it's better to focus on continuing to improve the act.  It's sort of like my History of Burlesque panel at All-con.  Every year it's always popular (okay, not so much this year due to the timing and location), and it's got good content so I keep doing it.  Old and familiar isn't necessarily bad because they might not be so for others.

Queen of the Crime Council

A little over two years ago, a burlesque fan boarded the light rail in her cosplay, prop meteor hammer and camera in tow.  I was determined to check out the Quentin Tarantino-themed burlesque show in my Gogo Yubari costume.  Little did I know that it would play a huge part in getting me into the Dallas burlesque scene and set me on the road to competing for a crown.

Villains and Villainesses
By Mr. Photopix
(www.mrphotopix.com)

When Appaloosa Red announced that there would be a sequel to the Tarantino tribute, Pulp Friction, I knew I had to submit an act.  I chose O-Ren Ishii instead of Gogo because I'm not a fan of the Asian school girl stereotype (even if Gogo is a subversion) and I wanted a challenge.  I decided to play upon her mixed heritage since I could relate.  As an American-born Taiwanese with Chinese ancestry and a love of Japanese culture that people mistake for being my ethnicity, I wanted explore the layers of identity and show that there's more than what meets the eye.  To make the concept more O-Ren, I decided to represent the cultural identities as personas she adopted for assassinations.  It helped tie all the looks together because regardless of what she's wearing, she's still a badass.

Of course, this complex idea meant another complicated costume—or rather, three costumes.  To my great fortune, Black Mariah had an old kimono and I was able to use the ties from my yukata.  I decided to get a real obi, which led to me having to learn how to tie it and figure out of it without being a tangled mess.  Equally questionable was my choice to use a G-string that I happened to have (yay lingerie sets).  It saved me from buying another costume piece, but I had my apprehensions about baring that much.  I reminded myself of the insecurities I had already overcome and went into Pulp Friction with the "Go big or go home" mindset that had gotten me this far.

Pulp Friction
By DV8Photo
(dv8photo.com)

I really have to thank Appaloosa Red for having this high maintenance routine in her show and the stage kittens for lending a hand.  Despite a little mishap, I had a successful performance and probably the best obi removal I could ever wish for.  I was happy to have been able to show a different side to Hana Li, and I was inspired by all these different interpretations of Tarantino films and characters.

The PistolettesA Go-Go were in Pulp Fiction as the Crazy 88s, and they wound up talking me into auditioning for the Texas Burlesque Peepshow's Villains and Villainesses show, which was also a competition for Evil Queen of Burlesque.  They had the idea of having me enter with them like in the movie and then do my solo after their routine.  I hadn't planned to audition due to a friend's wedding being the same day.  It was an afternoon wedding so with some help, I worked out a schedule that allowed me to do both if I was cast.  It sounded good in theory and The Pistolettes and I were selected.  Then I had a week of the worst luck ever— which included my bus to the Texas Theatre not showing up.

Villains and Villainesses,
with the Pistolettes A Go-Go
By Samuel Hsu

The Companion, who already skipped some of the reception by waiting out in the cold with me, came to the rescue.  The Pistolettes were also extremely helpful in getting me ready to go, especially Coco Dependent who worked magic on my wig.  Things seemed to be looking up, but the bad luck reared its ugly head again.  There was a technical error (it's theatre; it happens), but we made it work.  And I really do mean we since the stage kittens and The Pistolettes played big roles.  This was a test of my capabilities as a dancer, which could use some improvement yet I should not doubt.

Villains and Villainesses
By Mr. Photopix
www.mrphotopix.com

I hadn't really thought much about the competition aspect until I saw photos of the crown.  Then the reality of being a contender for Queen sunk in.  In a way, all the unrelated stresses I had to deal with kept me from becoming too competitive.  Being among such talented dancers was enough of an honor for me—a big congratulations to Blaze for becoming our first-ever Evil Queen of Burlesque.  I did my best with what is only my second solo act, and even if I'm not Evil Queen, I still got to be the Queen of the Crime Council.

More photos can be found in my "Performances" album.