Return to Form

October 18, 2018











Return to Form

Kathy and I have always been big supporters of the local Burlesque scene, since Key West Burlesque first appeared on the scene, we have been pretty much a constant presence at the many wacky and wonderful shows that have been performed on various Key West stages. But for some reason, the past few years, our attendance had waned and we just have not been going so much. Perhaps we just needed a little break or maybe something of the magic that we experienced with the wonderful shows we first saw had worn off a bit.









Key West Burlesque has always been fantastic, they were at the vanguard of what I believe is a cultural renaissance that our island community has been experiencing in the past fifteen years or so. We have always enjoyed their creative, sexy and fun performances and many of our friends have participated over the years and so when we were offered tickets to see their latest show at the Waterfront Playhouse, “Madame DuJour’s Magical Gameshow and Burlesque Experience”, we jumped at the chance.



Effie, Cale and Kathy





I was curious what the experience might be like, having been away from the scene for some time, but it was freaking wonderful. Easily the best show they have produced in years, the Magical Gameshow and Burlesque Experience was amazing. Themed to coincide with and run concurrently to Fantasy Fest, whose theme was “The Games We Play”, the game show theme was perfect in that it really got the crowd involved and having a good crowd is key in burlesque.









Also critically important is to have a good master of ceremonies who can keep the crowd engaged and entertained between the set pieces and weave the show together under a consistent theme and this show had an incredible and effective person in that role, Nick Locapo, a very experienced magician and entertainer who was absolutely terrific.











Over the last decade Locapo has he has performed his close-up and stage act for over a million people. He spent 5 years as a featured magician performing at NBC Universal Studios and today he is a resident performer at the legendary P3 Magic Theater in Columbus Ohio. P3 showcases the world’s foremost illusionists in front capacity crowds week after week. Nick is also the face of Penguin Magic, the biggest magic shop in the world.









His magic was stunning and completely mystifying and he held total command over the crowd. Of course the focus of the show is the talented burlesque troupe assembled for the show. The show featured appearances from some of Key West’s favorite local performers including Tatah Dujour, Moana Amour, and Chief Peach. They were joined by the extraordinary Miss Jenna Beth and aerialists Kerry and Katie Tice. The show also had a rotating cast of surprise guest performers that includes Cheeky Derrière, Aurora Natrix, and Sofia Lun.





Kathy, Erica and Virginia



The show was just fantastic and fun, it featured all sorts of crowd interactions with audience members being pulled on stage to participate as well as the performers often venturing in to the crowd to get the people directly involved. The game show aspect had patrons feeling like they were participating in a fun TV gameshow, where every few minutes there was a sexy striptease.







The night we saw the show Miss Jenna Beth was amazing and the guest performer was Aurora Natrick who rocked it as the Wicked Witch. But maybe the best part is seeing our friends the local performers giving it their all to entertain the crowd. It was a spectacular evening of entertainment and to top it all off it was a fundraiser for the Key West Montessori School as all the bar proceeds benefited the school.