In
the days leading up to the Dallas Burlesque Festival, people would ask,
"Are you excited/nervous/ready?"
I was all three at various points and sometimes all at once. As the big day grew near, I stopped freaking
out and fussing over little things (the Olympics were a nice distraction). I realized that no matter what happened, my
solo debut was something I put my heart and soul into and I would be happy with
that.
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| By Karlo X. Ramos www.karloxramos |
When
I set out to create my first routine, I wanted it to completely represent me
while appealing to a broad audience. I
can get pretty niche with my interests, and I don't want to be just a
nerdlesque dancer. I knew that I wanted
to use "Black Glasses" by Angela Aki because I could relate to the
lyrics and there was some wordplay I could incorporate. Also, it would be nice to introduce people to
a singer they probably had never heard for (she's a bilingual J-pop musician). Another goal of mine was to incorporate some
satire or social commentary because I've always enjoyed that aspect of
burlesque and it's important for me as an artist. The song provided the opportunity to poke fun
at a movie trope. After much
contemplation on the type of nerd girl to portray, I chose a comic book fan in
order to fire back at people who have railed against "fake geek
girls" while simultaneously conquering my fear of being perceived as one. In short, this routine was me: Asian, nerdy,
feminist, silly, and fun. And yes, I've
learned to embrace the cute too.
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| By Karlo X. Ramos www.karloxramos |
My
nerves returned during tech rehearsal.
Even though I had danced on the House of Blues Cambridge Room stage
before, I was still overwhelmed by the bright lights and loud music. I wound up rushing through my routine, and in
my desire to not take up other people's precious rehearsal time, I skipped the
series of reveals that had me concerned.
However, there wasn't much else I could do besides pay attention to
mental notes and get my make-up done.
Renee
Holiday gave me an applicator for my false eyelashes, and it helped me win the
long, tough battle…sort of. I didn't
have time to trim my new pair so I used the crummy old ones that sit
funny. I fussed with them so much that
one fell off right when Lyric Laveau and the Jazz Quartet finished. The end of the music signaled the beginning
of the dancing; fortunately I was in the middle of the setlist.
The
eyelashes and my contacts behaved for the rest of the night, and watching the
other performers helped me get into the zone.
Playing with Mr. Cheeze also calmed me down. I still obsessed over details and tried to
make sure the very busy kittens new where my stuff was. I realized that I needed a way to get on-stage
without ruining my first "reveal", but thankfully I was able to solve
that problem. Then Pixie O'Kneel had
finished her act, and it was my turn.
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| Isn't Mr. Cheeze adorable? |
When
I got on-stage, everything became automatic.
I don't really remember much besides the bright lights and glancing down
at audience members even though I told myself to look up. I fed off their energy so the more responsive
they were, the more I gave back. It was
an adrenaline rush.
The
perfectionist in me would normally pick apart my performance, but I felt so
amazing afterward. I could be critical
another night. Everybody had such great
things to say to me— Mary Lynn Mayhem told me to get used the compliments. I'm definitely proud of myself, but it's hard
to not say "Aw shucks" (not that I would say that, but it's that
feeling).
After
the show, the Companion and I wound up hanging out with my Dallas School of
Burlesque classmates MayMay, Jay, and Rory.
We invaded the Stone Sour auction in our search for a quieter place to
chat and met up with The Dirty Blonde and Dapper John. Since everyone was hungry, we decided to go
to Café Brazil— only to be reminded that it was Thursday and they were open
late. Buzzbrews, however, was open so we
went there and enjoyed yummy food and hot chocolate. It was nice way to cap off one of the best
nights of my life.
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| By Karlo X. Ramos www.karloxramos |
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