ATLRetro

When most people think Steampunk setting, images of Victorian London likely come to mind, but across the Atlantic and a steam engine-pulled train ride inland stretched a vast frontier. This Saturday night, July 23, at THE WEIRD WEST SALOON, the fine folks at The Artifice Club transform The Solarium in Oakhurst into a steampunk version of that less polite society where the law often came down to the fastest draw.

Festivities kick off at 5 p.m. with the opening of the Trading Post Market with vendors of unique jewelry, weaponry, costumery and other unexpected ephemera. Then at 7 p.m., doors officially open for ticketholders. Chance your cash for charity in the saloon casino, test whether you’ll be caught dead or alive in a quick draw tournament and kick back an alcoholic beverage in period sets created by mad geniuses Sean O’Shea and Penny Dreadful Productions. Of course, there’ll also be entertainment aplenty from Blair Crimmins & the Hookers (read an ATLRetro interview with Blair here) to Mistress of Ceremonies/Sheriff Sabrina Pandora, tunes spun by DJ Swivel and Artifice Club maestro/founder DJ Doctor Q to a bevy of Atlanta burlesque beauties, dressed delightfully down as sexy saloon personas including Fonda Lingue, Ruby Redmayne, Tupelo Honey and Talloolah Love.

The tantalizing Ms. Love graciously consented to give all you ATLRetro cowboys and girls an exclusive sneak peek, as well as the scoop on a Friday pre-party and late night after-party for those who want to play in the Weird West beyond the Witching Hour.

How did The Artifice Club get the idea for a Steampunk Western theme night?
There are many cultures to pull from when you talk about the Victorian era. Many of us start out with the European influence because it seems the most natural. Since The Artifice Club wants to explore all advents of the art form, the American twist was where we went with it this time, and it seems like everyone is really jazzed about it. It’s something new, and a great excuse to whip out those sewing machines, spray paint and epoxies! It’s time to think about a new slant on a good costume and new props, because you can always use a new form of weaponry, just ask Bill Harrison! The West Coast does a lot of really cool wild west conventions as well but not on the East Coast. That should be remedied.

It’s often said that THE WILD WILD WEST 1960s TV series was an early example of Steampunk. Can we expect to run into Jim West (Robert Conrad), Artemus Gordon (Ross Martin) or—yikes—Dr. Miguelito Quixote Loveless (Michael Dunn)?

You might, though I find that most of our Steampunks lean toward doing unique costumes. Though, you never know with this crowd, they tend to surprise me at every turn! I know that the burlesque portion of our show is most definitely inspired by movies with saloon girls, such as THE UNSINKABLE MOLLY BROWN, RIVER OF NO RETURN, and even a little French import from CAN CAN. I think Doctor Q would do flips if someone did the 1960s version of Loveless or Gordon, but that’s my opinion.

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Friday, July 15

Veteran rock/Texas country singer-songwriter Steve Earle & the Dukes play the Atlanta Botanical Garden, while R&B performer and former Gap member Charlie Wilson is at Classic Chastain. Randy Travis celebrates 25 years of “genuine country” at Cobb Energy Centre. Catch an IMAX movie and learn to salsa dance with Salsambo Dance Studio at Fernbank Museum of Natural History’s Martinis and IMAX. Vocalist Julie Dexter performs at Friday Jazz at The High Museum of Art from 5-10 p.m. Visit the galleries through the evening and enjoy food and cocktails. And the Plaza Theatre dishes out a Full Moon Midnight Encore of 1981 John Landis classic horror flick AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON. Read our Retro Review by veteran FANGORIA writer Philip Nutman here.

Saturday July 16

It’ll be honkytonk heaven at Star Bar with Shovels & Rope, BareKnuckle Betties and bassist Joel Hamilton. I hear there’ll be some table dancin’ going in, but for the full foot-stompin’ scoop, read our exclusive sneak preview with Kool Kat of the Week Julea Thomerson of the Betties here.

Also playing today at the Yaarab Shrine Center are the Atlanta Rollergirls. At 5 p.m., the Dirty South Derby Girlstake on Brewcity Bruisers, and at 7:30 p.m. it’s the Denim Demons vs. Apocalypstix. Help Daniel Timms, who was in a motorcycle accident, and Sussi “Chevy” Shavers, who was in a moped accident, recover from some serious medical bills at the Bone Breakers Ball at Elliott Street Pub and Deli. Performers include boylesque/burlesque beauties Fonda Lingue and Ruby Redmayne, and there’s a silent auction of cool art, tattoos, pin-up photography and more. Andrew and the Disapyramids stir up the surf at 529 Club with FishHawk and Winter Ransom. In case you missed our Extra Kool Kat of the Week feature with guitarist Joshua Longino, you can still catch it here. Two Atlanta classics, Michelle Malone and Col. Bruce Hampton are at Eddie’s Attic and The Five Spot. Fedora Blues performs at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack. Holliday Brothers blues it up at Hottie Hawg’s. And, of course, DJ Romeo Cologne transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Lounge into a ’70s disco/funk inferno late into the wee hours.

The Serenaders.

Sunday July 17

The Serenaders serve up a retrobilly “dunch” gig between 1 and 4 PM at The Earl. At Eddie’s Attic, groove to Grammy Award-winning drummer Yonrico Scott‘s Band and legendary New Orleans mojo soul performer Coco Robicheaux.

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Monday July 11

From 3 PM on, savor tropical sounds and libations, as well as a Polynesian dinner during Mai Tai Monday at Smith’s Olde Bar. Kingsized and Tongo Hiti lead singer Big Mike Geier is Monday night’s celebrity bartender at Sister Louisa’s Church of the Living Room and Ping Pong Parlor. Northside Tavern hosts its weekly Blues Jam.

Tuesday July 12

It’s a full moon movie Tuesday as two 35 mm classics featuring creatures on the prowl return to the big screens of Atlanta two most Retro cinemas. Elizabeth Taylor slinks like A CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF at the Fabulous Fox Theatre. Read Dean Treadway‘s review of the 1958 film based on the Tennessee Williams play of the same title, also starring Paul Newman and Burl Ives here, and be sure to be there by 7 p.m. for the Mighty Mo‘ organ singalong, cartoon and vintage newsreel. Then at 9:30 p.m. at The Plaza, Splatter Cinema presents AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON, the 1981 John Landis-directed cult favorite that introduced audiences to the full-body monster transformation with special make-up effects. Read Philip Nutman‘s review here.

Sultry and sexy ’80s torch-singer Sade performs with John Legend at Philips Arena. Grab your horn and head to Twain’s in Decatur for a Joe Gransden jazz jam session starting at 9 PM. JT Speed plays the blues at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack. Notorious DJ Romeo Cologne spins the best ‘70s funk and disco at 10 High in Virginia-Highland. Catch Tuesday Retro in the Metro nights at Midtown’s Deadwood Saloon, featuring live video mixes of ’80s, ’90s, and 2Ks hits.

Wednesday  July 13

Sade plays a second night with John Legend at Philips Arena. Vocalist Boz Scaggs sings American classics from Gershwin to Rodgers and Hart at Classic Chastain with former Doobie Brother Michael McDonald. Get ready to rumba, cha-cha and jitterbug at the weekly Swing Night at Graveyard Tavern. Deacon Brandon Reeves bring the blues to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack and Danny “Mudcat” Dudeck blues it down at Northside Tavernrespectively. Dance to ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s hits during Retro in the Metro Wednesdays presented by Godiva Vodka, at Pub 71 in Brookhaven.

Thursday  July 14

The Craigger White Band bring back the spirit of ’70s rock at Kathmandu Restaurant & Grill in Clarkston. All Thursday shows at the Vietnamese restaurant are free and all-ages. Go Retro-Polynesian to Tongo Hiti’s luxurious live lounge sounds, as well as some trippy takes on iconic pop songs, just about every Thursday night at Trader Vic’s. Party ‘70s style with DJ Romeo Cologneat Aurum Lounge. Breeze Kings and Chickenshack bring on the blues respectively at Northside Tavern and Fat Matt’s Rib Shack.Bluegrass Thursday at Red Light Cafe features Hunger Valley Boys.

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From 1994 to 2005, only one Atlanta nightclub had a reputation for being the most audacious, notorious and outrageous. If you lived here then, you know which one I’m talking about—The Chamber. Tucked away in a warehouse behind the strip clubs of Cheshire Bridge Road (now The Jungle), you might not see much besides a few lonely Goths swaying tragically to an industrial soundtrack if you arrived early. But around 11 pm to midnight, they began to arrive and soon the place would be packed with the city’s most diverse nightlife—fetish enthusiasts in black leather and latex, dazzling drag queens, big hair, marvelous make-up and, standing out like neon in a church, mundane preppie “tourists” from Buckhead and the ‘burbs.

However, the Chamber wasn’t just about crowd-watching. It featured live entertainment both on a main stage and in a variety of titillating smaller spaces such as The Shower Room, the Peep Show and the Flashlight Room. While not as extreme as the BDSM scene in New York, the fetish shows strived to be provocative but also never forgot a sense of playfulness, and you could even purchase your own fetish-wear and sexy lingerie onsite at a satellite location of the Little 5 Points boutique, Throb. At the end of the wee hours of the morning, like other great local clubs such as 688 and the Metroplex, a night at The Chamber became less about shocking a few yuppies and more about the friends you made. And like every memorable grand salon, behind the curtains was a great hostess, Mon Cherie.

This Saturday April 16, for one night only, Mon Cherie will be resurrecting that scandalous spirit with Mon Cherie’s The Chamber Reunion in Purgatory and Hell at The Masquerade. Among the festivities are live fetish performances, burlesque/Boi-Lesque,  aerial feats, go-go dancers, drag skits, body paint, a chocolate bar, a dungeon/play area, vendors, raffle and, as the Facebook event listing coyly promises “more surprises to tickle your fancy.” Ever the ringmistress, over the years since The Chamber closed, Mon Cherie has proven an uncanny ability to assemble the best in local talent to stage a parade of Rockabilly Lounges, burlesque shows and other one-of-a-kind social gatherings. So it’s no surprise that this event’s performers include many stars of the local fetish and burlesque scenes including emcee Miss Mason, Secretroom alumna Evil Sarah, Fonda Lingue, Stormy Knight, Catatonic Raucous, Chandler Bearden, Melissa Coffey, and many more. But to give you an exclusive sneak peep, who better than Mon Cherie herself…

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As tickets go on sale for next year’s Southern Fried Burlesque Festival, Atlanta burlesque maven Talloolah Love looks back on an absolutely fabulous first year…

I have to give my eyes a rest, as I may develop rhinestone cataracts after seeing such an array of magnificent, world class acts as graced the stage March 10-13 for the first-ever Atlanta burlesque convention: The Southern Fried Burlesque Festival. Plenty of articles have been put out there about the two gals behind the event. Masterminds and inner puppeteers, Ursula Undress and Katherine Lashe, were certainly exercised to the extreme as they worked their little tail feathers off to put this show on, and boy, didn’t it show! The vendors room alone could have struck you blind for all the fabulous glitter, rhinestones and color. As someone who has been to many festivals all over the country, ATLRetro asked me to share my experience as a spectator with a sweet nod and smooch to everyone behind the event who volunteered and assisted in their own ways to make it all happen.

Lydia DeCarllo

I arrived Friday night, just before doors. The moment I came in, the fabulous Lydia DeCarllo, the international sensation from Vancouver, swept me up. Now that’s my kind of welcome wagon! We chatted about her trip in and about how she’s been since we last saw each other at the Texas Burlesque Festival. Derek Jackson, Atlanta photographer and avid burlesque advocate, arrived soon after along with world-famous Rick DeLaup, founder of the New Orleans Burlesque Festival. I took a quick jog over to the bar, as I am quite familiar with the Decatur Holiday Inn and Convention Center, which has been newly renovated and also is the home of TribalCon, a national bellydance convention I try to attend every year. The bar was literally dripping with burlesque stars, but the most fabulous in attendance at that moment as Ms. Torchy Taboo, Atlanta’s own burlesque Godfather. She held court there as only she can, a moment I so sorely missed out on because there was so little time to commiserate before the first big show began.

Talloolah Love and Derek Jackson

I took my seat in the VIP section with Rick and Derek and used my commemorative Jo Boobs pen to take notes on the festival’s first all-star show. My only disappointment was that when Derek invited me to sit VIP, my vision of it would be some kind of small gift bag or at the very least drink tickets for the conveniently located hotel bars in the ballroom. But not this year. Happily the bar’s prices were so reasonable it wasn’t as big of a deal as it could have been had the event been held in Atlanta. Still, if I were to critique the VIP experience for its price, a small gift of appreciation would have been nice and usually expected at most festivals.  All of this, though, was again mitigated by the national celebrities who came to chew the fat with us, like Atlanta’s own Mike Geier, the evening’s emcee, and Margaret Cho, along with the cast of DROP DEAD DIVA.

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Atlanta certainly has earned its place on the map of the Neo-Burlesque Revival with amazing performers and troupes. Now this steamy Southern city finally is getting its first bonafide burlesque festival, too. In case you’ve been too naughty to notice, Southern Fried Burlesque Fest dances into town next weekend, Thurs. March 10- Sun. March 13, 2011, at the Holiday Inn Hotel and Conference Center in Decatur. But co-founders Katherine Lashe and Ursula Undress (Syrens of the South Productions) kindly have agreed to pull back the curtains and strip down to some of the delicious details…

Katherine Lasche & Ursula Undress invite you to some Southern-fired fun at Atlanta's first burlesque festival.

1. Is there any story behind how you hatched the idea for Southern Fried Burlesque Fest and why Atlanta needs its own festival?

Katherine Lashe: Atlanta’s the biggest city in the Southeast and a hot bed for burlesque with guest performers coming in all the time so it seemed to make sense that we should have a festival to show off all of the amazing talent from all aspects of burlesque that the Southeast had to offer, in addition to showing the Southeast what the rest of the world has to offer as well.

Ursula Undress: I had heard some talk about how we needed to do something like it here at a few of the Atlanta Burlesque & Cabaret Meet-Ups and had been to a few other state-specific festivals. So I supported Katherine with wanting to move forward with one here and told her I would do whatever I could to help. We definitely have the talent in the city and surrounding areas—so it has become sort of a regional thing.

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