Moonlight and Fire, the Debut of Mamo-chan

"It’s in my dreams I find the right moment.
It is the night that brings me the moonlight." - "Sailor Moon" by Platina Jazz feat. Douglas Unger.  Translated from the original japanese lyrics by Douglas Unger.

What happens when you attain one of your dream cosplays?  You come up with a new costume to fill that spot, of course!  Thanks to Black Mariah, I had done Sailor Mars, the first cosplay I ever wanted to do.  I was perfectly satisfied with portraying the character until I saw the 2013 live-action musical Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon - La Reconquista.  It differed from previous productions in having a woman play Tuxedo Mask, a.k.a. Mamoru Chiba or "Mamo-chan".  Yuuga Yamato came from the all-female Takarazuka Revue so she had lots of experience playing the dashing male lead.  I was smitten.  I wanted to have a fraction of her coolness, and by extension, I found myself wanting to be Tuxedo Mask.  The idea was further encouraged by discussions of a Sailor Moon cosplay group, which already had a Mars.

Yuuga Yamato in La Reconquista
www.theaterguide.co.jp

Around the same time, I discovered a cover of the anime's theme by Platina Jazz featuring Douglas Unger, "Moonlight Serenade".  They added a tango touch while adapting the translated lyrics to Tuxedo Mask's point of view.  The song just asked to be part of a burlesque number.  Since I was working on my solo debut at the time, I filed that away in my brain.

By Mr. Photopix
www.mrphotopix.com

I started to put a routine together at the end of last year with hopes of reaching out to shows with more classical themes.  Although I initially included the character's signature mask, I realized that I could make the outfit more generalized to appeal to a wider audience.  Yamato's Tuxedo Mask didn't really wear a mask either.  I could just save that for cosplay, which I did for All-con out of eagerness to be the character (sadly I was never at a con where the Sailor Moon group was happening).

No Mija Productions presents: Fuego Noche Tropicana might have been an unexpected show for the act, but I learned that you should always submit if you have an inkling of being a good fit.  This being a Latin-themed production meant that I did have to properly incorporate tango into the choreography.  Thankfully Youtube had a lot of helpful tutorials, and I mastered the basic 8-step for both the leader and follower, along with embellishments that could work in a solo routine.

By Mr. Photopix
www.mrphotopix.com

Although the audience was not expecting the Sailor Moon theme, they seemed to love the act.  It's tricky business combining cultures but also a lot of fun when it comes together.  I definitely had a blast because everything had finally come together and I was living out another dream.  Since I was also in the closing group number by Fuego Danza Company, I couldn't hang into my tuxedo.  That was probably the evening's biggest challenge: going from anime bishounen (pretty boy) to a sparkly, feathery samba dancer.  Even with the feminine elements of my routine, I still aimed for a more androgynous look.

The group number was a fun way to close a great first show for No Mija Productions, and while I wound up having a very tired Friday morning in lab, it was worth every bit of my energy.  I came away ready to both do more with Fuego Danza Company (catch us at the San Antonio Burlesque Festival) and with "Moonlight Serenade".

Upcoming shows: Tuesday Tease and San Antonio Burlesque Festival

I'll be performing tomorrow at the queer variety show Tuesday Tease.  The theme is "Dirty Nerdy" and there's no cover for 21+.

Later I'll be heading to the San Antonio Burlesque Festival with Fuego Danza Company on August 1.  We've been accepted into their Saturday Night Spectacular!  Click here for tickets.

Body Acceptance series - Eyes

 "Men seldom make passes
At girls who wear glasses." - "News Item" by Dorothy Parker

Recently I did a photoshoot with Musico Roots for her Esteemed project.  It made me confront my struggles with body positivity and gave me motivation to finally get around this series—called "Body Acceptance" because I believe we don't have to be positive about every part of our body, but we need to find some level of acceptance (modification included).  I've been wanting to write a post about being a severely myopic performer as well so I decided to start with my eyes and talk about both their appearance and their function.

Like many Asian-Americans, I grew up with kids making fun of me for my eyes.  If that wasn't enough of a blow to my self-esteem, my own family often commented on how I "would be so beautiful if it weren't for [my] small eyes" or how I should get double eyelid surgery when I got older.  Even now people think I’m sad, tired, or angry when my face is at neutral.

From Buzzfeed's

"25 Beauty Struggles Asian Girls Go Through"

Ami-rian / Getty Images / Cathy Ngo / BuzzFeed

I've never desired double eyelid surgery, but sometimes I wonder if it would make life easier.  On top of having small eyes and monolids, my eyes are droopy and my eyelashes slant downward.  This makes wearing contacts, mascara, and false eyelashes a perpetual struggle.  I've tried every trick in the book with falsies and curlers, but gravity wins in the end.  Buzzfeed hit the nail on the head with all my eye make-up struggles.  If surgery could get rid of some of these and spare me the agony of having an eyelash or three frequently in my eye, I would be thrilled.  At the same time, I doubt it would actually get rid of my insecurities.  I'd be better off going under the knife for vision problems.

That brings me to the source of my biggest performance nightmare: my rigid gas permeable contact lenses.  Before every show, I freak out about the possibility of getting glitter, an eyelash, or a speck of dust into my eye and causing excruciating pain and lots of tears.  RGP lenses are an updated form of hard contacts, which means I can constantly feel their presence (one can get acclimated to them, but my eyes don't like wearing them every day).  A tiny thread on them feels like being poked in the eyeball.  I've had a couple of close calls and one incident while kittening.  It makes me feel bad that I end up being this liability to producers and stage managers.

So why do I bother?  Well, I can only see clearly about 4.5 inches from my face.  Everything else is a collection of blurry blobs.  I'd rather not risk taking a tumble off the stage; plus, unfocused eyes make me look high.  My small eyes and monolids keep me from being able to insert soft contacts, and my vision is still changing so LASIK will have to wait. 

I laugh at irony of contacts being preferred because glasses obscure my face and reflect light, yet having RGP contacts limit my expressiveness due to the fact that the lenses actually shift around my eyeballs.  I make do with what I have by working to be a better actress and sometimes drawing in that double eyelid.  I also get my bit of critique in with my "Black Glasses" act.  The ending is a reminder that glasses in real life are not accessories that enhance or conceal a person's attractiveness.  They're a necessity for near- and far-sighted individuals to live a normal life.

Photo by Dolly Cosplay
http://www.facebook.com/dollycosplaypage

I want to end with a note of acceptance.  Initially I struggled to come up with something positive to say because my eyes have been my least favorite trait since childhood.  A few years ago, however, I discovered the character, Kyoya Hibari from Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Not only is he a badass with a serious demeanor that I identify with, but he also had narrow eyes (that don't look closed like Brock from Pokemon).  Cosplaying him made me appreciate the eyes I have, and I'm excited about another future cosplay for the same reason.  This is partly why my aesthetic has shifted toward the masculine since big eyes and long lashes are often associated with femininity. 

My droopy eyes have also forced me to master the cat eye.  It's the one aspect of make-up that I can do well, and obviously it has been very useful in burlesque.

On a final note, you can come see my cat eye (and my "Black Glasses" act) tonight in Denton for Glitterbomb:

Upcoming show: Fuego Noche Tropicana

No BHoF for me this year, but I am going on vacation. I'll leave you with an announcement of a show I'll be in on June 18.  Fuego Danza Company and No Mija Productions Presents: Fuego Noche Tropicana.  

It's a night of Latin-themed performances ranging from burlesque to belly dance, salsa to samba.  The show will run from 9 to 11 PM.  Click here to purchase tickets.

Don't Quit Your Day Job, But Plan to Lose Some Sleep

"No man can taste the fruits of autumn while he is delighting his scent with the flowers of spring: no man can, at the same time, fill his cup from the source and from the mouth of the Nile." - Nekayah, The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia by Samuel Johnson

I recently found my quote binder, and I've decided that I could put it to more use by having a quote here so that's going to be a new thing.  I've also decided that rather than update you on random happenings in the past month or two, I would tackle another subject: juggling burlesque with a full-time day job and a second hobby-job (more on what that is later).  Although it is completely possible to do burlesque full-time (i.e. perform, teach, costume, and all things related), that is not an easy path and not one of my choosing.  Even if sometimes I do want to drop everything else for burlesque.

Somehow I manage to throw cosplay and cons in mix too.
I'm a little beat here because this was panel #5
Sunday morning at All-con.

As the title of this blog indicates, I work in a research lab.  Part of why I elected to not get a Ph.D. is because I want to have the time to have my two hobby-jobs: burlesque and blogging for a couple of sites.  Not saying that you can't do burlesque and grad school, but that's beyond my personal capabilities.  Due to professional concerns, I don't want to reveal too much about the blogging.  Let's just say get to write about things I like and cover fun events.  I call blogging and burlesque "hobby-jobs" because while I am doing them for fun and not income, I still have responsibilities that I can't ignore (see Dangrrr Doll's latest Burlesque Beat article, "8 Tips for Fostering Professionalism in Our Scene").

I don't mind being busy.  When experiments stressing me out, I can go home and work on a blog post or go to dance class and let the endorphins take over.  Recently I experienced a lot of frustrations with an event I had to cover.  There was a burlesque show after it, and I decided to go and be Hana Li for an hour.  I needed that break and seeing inspiring performances re-energized me.

I also got to meet Dangrrr Doll and Stella Chuu
at the aforementioned event and see Tifa Tittlywinks again.

On the flipside, trying to coordinate different deadlines is tough, and when something goes awry, everything can come crashing down.  Sometimes I'm not as focused during rehearsals because I have lab meeting or I have 100 photos to edit.  Other times, I'm rushing to get a costume finished that I end up late for work.  An extreme example would be my finger injury from two months back.  While carrying boxes in lab, I shut the door all the way on my hand.  No fingers were broken, but there was a lot of internal bleeding.  As a result I had trouble typing out a post and almost couldn't stage kitten for the Rocky show.  It's actually caused me to change a glove peel in a routine I've been working on because even now, my middle finger is still bruised and a little swollen.

Further complicating time management is the troupe factor.  I wasn't sure about being two troupes because of my schedule and dependence on public transport (which is yet another factor).  However, I'm trying my best and am grateful for understanding instructors and helpful troupemates. 

Life would be so much easier if I had a Time Turner, but I imagine that wouldn't get rid of the physical toll.  I have had to say "no" a lot during the past couple of months for both troupe and solo gigs.  It always pains me to do so because I never want to let people down.  However, as annoying as it is, the day job takes precedent, and before that comes my physical and mental health.  That's why I have to constantly remind myself to slow down and enjoy something completely unrelated like watching action sports or reading.  I should probably add "sleep" to the list of break activities, but hey, I'm still figuring this time management thing out.

Making a Man Out of Myself

I have a lot of catching up to do.  Since the beginning of March, I've been preoccupied with shows, conventions, lab teching, and a nasty injury.   I'm mostly healed, but I still can't type with two fingers so blogging has been very low on my list priorities.  However, now that I have some down time, I decided that it was time to start catching up here.

By Robert Hold
www.roberthold.com

Remember when I said that I was going to focus on refining old routines rather than work on new ones?  Well, that plan went out the door pretty quickly.  Sometimes inspiration and opportunity come together in a perfect storm that you can't escape.  It's what ­­­happened with my "I'll Make a Man Out of You" act for Panty Raid's Bare Necessities show.

I had gotten the idea­ a few months ago for another show.  Although I'd never really wanted to do Disney burlesque, the song was too catchy to resist.  However, the popularity meant that I really had to think this routine out.  It sat in the back of my mind until I saw that Panty Raid was looking for Disney acts.  I'd been wanting to return to Sue Ellen's so the timing was perfect.

Sort of.  Because I wanted to pay tribute to the training scene, I needed to brush up on both my drag and martial arts skills.  Although I had done drag only once, I wasn't too unfamiliar with adopting a masculine persona due to my crossplay background.  However, this time I wasn't portraying a youthful pretty boy—I needed to be a man.  Thank goodness for on-line tutorials. 

By Robert Hold
www.roberthold.com

As for the martial arts, my younger brother was a black belt in taekwondo so I used to watch and mimic his practicing.  I joined him for camp one summer and took a semester of it in college.  Once you learn those moves, they don't go away.  Unfortunately, taekwondo didn't meld with dance so I studied kung-fu and tai chi videos.  Now I wouldn't recommend doing this to seriously learn martial arts, but it worked well for creating the illusion of a martial artist.  While I was practicing, I couldn't help but feel a desire to take classes.  It was interesting to see how my attitudes has changed since as a kid, I was "too busy" to join my brother in classes and thought my grandpa's tai chi was weird and boring.  I definitely have a new-found appreciation. 

The show changed my mind about Disney burlesque.  I'd always had an irrational fear of corrupting childhood memories, but now I know that burlesque just created new ones.  I gained a new fan with my martial skills so I was happy that the training paid off. 

Doing this act gave me insight on who Hana Li was as a performer.  It felt so natural to be in drag at first, and I enjoyed presenting dichotomies of masculine and feminine, serious and silly.  Panty Raid was the perfect place for me to explore this, and I'm thankful for that opportunity.

I also acquired a new sense of creativity from combining the two different forms of movement.  While I might not have been able to do a flying front kick stocking peel (things in your head don't always translate into real life once you consider skill level and physics), I came up with some new tricks that I hope to bring into other acts.  And I did learn a flying front kick, which is a great way to keep the audience members alert.

Check out some highlights by Kevin Huckabee:

All-con cosplay and upcoming show

It's been a busy month, and I've got some full-length posts to type up.  However, I'm going to tease a bit with a photo of one of my All-con cosplays by the wonderful folks of Neither Noir.

Big Boss - Metal Gear Solid 3

I also want to talk about an upcoming production, Texas Burlesque Peepshow's Oh Rocky.  Like last year, I will be busting out my fishnets and picking up after the fabulous performers.  The show is tomorrow so get your tickets RIGHT NOW.