Clowning Class - well, that's different!

Priscilla Costa

If you were to ask my what I did today the answer would be something I never thought would come out of my mouth, 'Oh, I have a clowning class from 1 - 3'. Yes. Today I was lucky enough to take part in a bouffant clown class taught by Priscilla Costa who has been studying clowning for over 6 years and performing numbers such as 'pre-pubescent pussy power' in Vancouver.

Pussy power? That doesn't coincide with the spotted jump suit, creepy Ronald McDonald that I know?! 


No it doesn't. And that is a good thing. I came to the class today completely open minded hoping that learning aspects of clowning could help improve my comedy for future burlesque numbers. Priscilla taught our class of crazy ladies stage presence, how to be comfortable with your 'flaws' and how to turn uncomfortable emotions into something entertaining.

Flaws, emotions... wahhh... that doesn't sound funny!


Oh but it is when you address 'flaws' by dressing up in ridiculous costumes and making them louder and dealing with emotions by making duck noises and flailing about. While the entire class was great, (honestly, it was better than I expected) my favorite part was picturing passerbyers below our open window... walking their dogs on a quiet Sunday afternoon and hearing girls yell 'MUTHER FUCKER', farting and quacking above them.

Now don't worry mother, I'm not going to run away with the circus and become a clown but what I will take away from this class is how to laugh things off. For example, HA I HAVE TINY BOOBS! And how I can take that comedic confidence to the stage.

I must say that being in this world of burlesque and being a part of the Screaming Chicken community has opened my mind to so many different things and for that I am very grateful. I hope to say 'Oh, I have a clowning class from 1-3' again very soon.

Burlesque + Hip Hop = Eeekk...Stripper?

Since my only performance in the burlesque world was been a comedic piece, I wanted to try my hand at something a bit sexier. I have my first burlesque gig on December 11th in Surrey (Come watch! Contact me for tickets). It's a Vaudeville show with pro wrestling, metal bands and burlesque and as I picture the crowd as little bit rougher than that at the Wise Hall I thought spicy is the way to go!

Before burlesque, I loved hip-hop dancing. Something about the hard hits and upbeat music is so much fun, I wasn't great at it but I was good enough to enjoy it. So, for my performance on the 11th I wanted to combine my new love for burlesque with my old love of hip-hop. The song I've chosen is Crawl by Kings of Leon, a song that I personally think oozes sexiness on its own. The costume is all black, with bits of leather and spikes, a very 'hard' look.

I've choreographed most of the number and I love it. However, I fear that maybe... just maybe... the costume, the song and the hip hop influence may give off a stripper vibe? Or maybe I am fearful of trying to be sexy when I haven't convinced myself that I have the ability to? I would love to know if any other burlesque dancers out there have done a number of this effect or have ever had this fear? I don't feel like a stripper doing it but I just...don't know.

Would love to hear thoughts and advice!

www.rufflesilkskin.com 

My Becoming Burlesque Solo - Costume

On November 13th at the Wise Hall I nervously and excitedly took the stage for the first time as burlesque dancer Rufflesilkskin. For the past two months my classmates and I worked away on our solos piecing together music, costumes and characters with a huge boost from our teachers Melody Mangler, April O'Peel, Voodoo Pixie and Violet Femme.

In the end my pieces were the Pink Panther theme song, an array of reversable costumes and me playing a nervous bank robber. The number seemed to go over well with the audience and I was relieved to hear laughter in all the right places! A few people asked me how I decided to put together that number. My response is Aya Tsukioka, a Japanese fashion designer who designed clothing to help protect from attackers. One of her pieces was the vending machine skirt.

That's where I got the idea to make all my costume pieces disguises. Melody and the gang told us to create a reason to take our clothes off and disguises became mine!

My costume consisted of:

- A forearm/moustache
- A shirt/stop sign
- A bra/glasses
- A skirt/vending machine

With help from a handy glue gun and my mummy I was able to put my first burlesque costume together!

My version of the vending machine skirt

Double the bra, double the fun!

The Postess with the Mostess!

Hello out there! Welcome to my blog and my first official post! My name is Rufflesilkskin, I am a new burlesque dancer in Vancouver, BC and a fresh graduate from the Screaming Chicken Becoming Burlesque program. With my debut performance only 2 weeks ago, I have been bitten by the burlesque bug and am eagerly pursuing more opportunities in the burlesque community.

Here I hope to provide some insight as a newcomer to the burlesque scene in Vancouver and tell of my wiggles, giggles and woes of making it and breaking it in the burlesque scene.

Come by and visit often!

www.rufflesilskin.com