Misty Montaigne’s Night of Fabulousness

Ah, the traditional variety show. A little comedy, some singing, some male belly dancing, some balloon animals, a bit of acrobalance, some aerials.

Did we mention dessert? OK, maybe not so traditional.

This smorgasborg of entertainment is coming to OmCulture (2210 N. Pacific St) this Friday and Saturday, April 15th and 16th at 8 pm. We caught up with Wallingford’s own Misty Montaigne for breakfast at Julia’s recently and got the scoop:

Wallyhood: So where did the idea for the show come from?

Misty Montaigne: I first started working on it as a proposal for the Little Red Studio’s “Color” series. There was the Red Show (a Valentine’s Day-themed erotic robot mime show), the Black Show, the Gold Show, etc. They were all variety shows: some theater with a break in the middle for music and dancing and some great desserts. I had made some progress on it and started evolving the character as a bit in the Gold Show and some others, and then the LRS ended the series. But I kept working on it, and then I went to the Bizarre Bazaar at OmCulture and immediately thought: this is it, this is the place for the show I’ve been working on. I grabbed Michael right then, we walked around the place and it was done.

WH: So what’s the show going to be like?

MM: Well, I don’t want to give too much away, but I will say when we held auditions, we had people come in from all over: Seattle, Olympia, and up further north, so it’s a great mix of circus acts, burlesque, singing and more. The performers are amazing. Actually, the performer coming from the furthest away is my brother, Hakan, from Pittsburgh. He’s been making a name for himself performing up and down the East Coast as a male belly-dancer, but I’ve never seen him perform myself, so it should be fun. It sounds like it’s a nice break from his “regular” job in the Carnegie Mellon Robotics department.

WH: Hmm…so, burlesque and balloon animals? Should kids come?

MM: Yes, absolutely. Originally, we were planning to serve alcohol, and it was 21 and over, but now that we’re not, I looked over the acts, and the burlesque is really more silly fun than erotic. Of course, everyone makes their own choices with their kids, but I think it’ll be fun and appropriate.

WH: So, more Jessica Rabbit than Jessica Hahn?

MM: Exactly.

WH: Is this a one-time thing, or are you planning more?

MM: I’d love to do more, but this is an experiment for the space, to see if it works as a theater. Every neighborhood needs their own theater. Why should Capitol Hill and Fremont have all the fun?

Tickest are $20 in advance, available through OmCulture’s ticketing service. There’s also an $80 VIP package, that includes 2 tickets, parking right in front of OmCulture and a gift certificate for a massage from Sierra Kennedy, a signed poster and photos with the cast.