Ready to channel my inner Howard Cosell, again

I know this week is all about getting revved up for the greatest night of all time, on Thursday night. But we've got a lot of other things coming up too, also exciting. This is totally happening:

We're back, baby!

Leading the way

This is our cast backstage before the Battle of the Burlesque at the Palace of Wonders, Saturday in Washington DC. For the first time in the history of burlesque at the venue, we sold out the place to the absolute limit, and there was such a big crowd that couldn't get in, that we decided to do an impromptu second, midnight show to accomodate them. We had an almost full house come back for the late show! It was, without a doubt, one of the most triumphant nights of my life. And it points towards many of the exciting things we've got coming up the rest of the year, stay tuned.

A January of Adventure (in which I mostly stay home.)

January is an epic beginning to the new year, when Clams Casino and her cohorts (including yours truly) are bringing NYC burlesque down the entire Eastern Seaboard! Clams and Anita Cookie are bringing Little Brooklyn and hooking up with Baltimore's acrobatic king and queen, Trixie Little and the Evil Hate Monkey, for the Party Show tour!

That epic journey through the sultry South culminates in the weekend-long Key West Burlesque Holiday Extravaganza! Clams is performing in the Saturday night all-star bash.

After that, she catches her breath back in NYC, and then Casino O'Fortune Entertainments heads to Washington DC for the return of the Battle of the Burlesque Stars!

Tonight!

That is all.

Just to get you in the mood...

...for our presentation of Battle of the Burlesque Stars, on September 29th, here's a big ol' slice of 70s awesomeness, courtesy of Youtube. Considering the Battle of the Network Stars ran every year from the early 70s to the mid 80s, there are almost no good clips of it on Youtube--almost all that are on there, are edited together scenes showcasing particular actresses: Lynda Carter, Cheryl Ladd. Fair enough; the Battle of the Network Stars was a slo-mo replay T'n'A fest! There must of been a contractual clause that none of the actresses were allowed to wear bras during the running events. But anyway, all of the OTHER great things about the show, pretty much, are captured in this nine and a half minutes. Enjoy!

I'll bring my best Howard Cosell.

A Clams Casino and Neil O'Fortune presentation, September 29th at Public Assembly, part of Monday Night Burlesque.

We Are the Champions

Last night's show was an absolute triumph; amazing crowd, amazing cast, amazing performances, amazing theater. Completely exhausted. Taking our bows on the stage of an Off-Broadway theater to rousing applause, surrounded by my genius friends and loved ones, most of them not wearing any clothes, was a dizzying, surreal moment that I can't stop thinking about today, the sheer joy of that moment that makes the tremendous work of being an independent producer so, so worth whatever it takes to make that moment happen.

I recently looked back at some of the early posts on Pound Sign, from around this time two years ago, and I had a very different trajectory in mind for my creative life here in New York City. I've been thinking about the things that I would have written about then that now I simply haven't had the time or, frankly, the strong inclination to; this year's Whitney Biennial, the opening of the New Museum. Experiences like those, make no mistake, remain a vital part of my cultural life, and that kind of contemporary art still informs how I think and what I do. But I'm not sure if my focus will ever be there again...

Wow, that got serious for a moment. Any reader who doesn't know me personally certainly stopped reading around the part about nudity. So, onward! This summer the adventure continues: in July for the first time Clams and I are co-producing a show with Jonny Porkpie and Nasty Canasta, also known as Pinchbottom Burlesque! And we're bringin' it to the fabulous Asbury Lanes! Stay tuned for The Shore Thing: A Burlesque Road Trip! And then in August, the two of us return to Coney Island's Burlesque at the Beach series for: Clams Casino and Neil O'Fortune present: AM Gold!

Ya Mo Be There!