Charlie Jane Anders • March 07, 2008
Doctor Who and the Naked Breasts of Doom
"We're pretty sure there was never an episode of Doctor Who in the 1970s where Leela, the barbarian warrior, pulls out her giant knife and slices the Doctor's clothes off... and the Doctor turns out to be a woman. And then Leela loses her jungle bikini and they both end up wearing nothing but panties and the Doctor's scarf. The only place you can see that scenario play out is at a burlesque show like the Pinchbottom Burlesque, which is taking the love of science fiction to a whole new level ...
The demented Doctor/Leela scene is just one of the scenarios that plays out in Naked Planet, the science fiction burlesque show from New York troupe Pinchbottom Review. In another scene, Anita Cookie dresses as a hot Vulcan ensign on Star Trek, before stripping down to just two Starfleet insignias (covering her nipples) and a G-string. There's a super complicated plot about an evil galactic empire and rebels searching for an exiled burlesque queen on the Naked Planet, but really the set pieces are what make it awesome."
Full article and photo gallery here.
Telegraph.co.uk
Rodney Bolt • February 11, 2008
The Big Apple with sauce on the side
"Vaudeville's naughty cousin is back - and nowhere is it more popular than in New York. Rodney Bolt enjoys an evening of irony and titillation.
...A dancer drops the last stitch of clothing to reveal, not what one might expect, but a moustachioed Groucho Marx mask. In New York burlesque is back - but with a difference....
My friend Dora - about as deep a denizen of Manhattan as you can get - took me along to two of the best nights in town. Pinchbottom Burlesque offers shows that change monthly, at Collective: Unconscious in Tribeca on the Lower West Side. Tribeca (the Triangle Below Canal Street), once derelict and neglected, has over the past few years become a hotbed of restaurants and hip clubs. "This part of town is just so transformed," said Dora, as our taxi deposited us at the hole-in-a-wall entrance to Collective: Unconscious...
The lights dimmed, manic movie music began, and we were off. Jonny Porkpie and Nasty Canasta stepped on stage to host the show - a Marx Brothers send-up, loosely following a storyline about saving an ailing theatre by turning it into a bawdy-house. Along the way came risqué magic tricks, a peek-a-boo performance by a tattooed lady, many a cheeky flash from male and female performers alike, the odd nostalgic burlesque routine, and the hint of a lesbian sub-plot.
It was daring, funny, imaginative and titillating to all tastes - and, at $15 a ticket, about as good entertainment value as you can get in New York City."
FULL ARTICLE
Rodney Bolt • February 11, 2008
The Big Apple with sauce on the side
"Vaudeville's naughty cousin is back - and nowhere is it more popular than in New York. Rodney Bolt enjoys an evening of irony and titillation.
...A dancer drops the last stitch of clothing to reveal, not what one might expect, but a moustachioed Groucho Marx mask. In New York burlesque is back - but with a difference....
My friend Dora - about as deep a denizen of Manhattan as you can get - took me along to two of the best nights in town. Pinchbottom Burlesque offers shows that change monthly, at Collective: Unconscious in Tribeca on the Lower West Side. Tribeca (the Triangle Below Canal Street), once derelict and neglected, has over the past few years become a hotbed of restaurants and hip clubs. "This part of town is just so transformed," said Dora, as our taxi deposited us at the hole-in-a-wall entrance to Collective: Unconscious...
The lights dimmed, manic movie music began, and we were off. Jonny Porkpie and Nasty Canasta stepped on stage to host the show - a Marx Brothers send-up, loosely following a storyline about saving an ailing theatre by turning it into a bawdy-house. Along the way came risqué magic tricks, a peek-a-boo performance by a tattooed lady, many a cheeky flash from male and female performers alike, the odd nostalgic burlesque routine, and the hint of a lesbian sub-plot.
It was daring, funny, imaginative and titillating to all tastes - and, at $15 a ticket, about as good entertainment value as you can get in New York City."
FULL ARTICLE
NYTheatrecast
December 09, 2007
"Episode # 180 - Burlesque Roundtable
In this episode, Trav S.D. moderates a roundtable about contemporary burlesque. (Trav S.D. says the table is not only round but curvaceous.)
Our guests are three of NYC’s burlesque scene’s biggest stars: Bonnie Dunn, Julie Atlas Muz, and Nasty Canasta. Each of these ladies shares insights about her own career and her views of how burlesque has evolved into a sophisticated live entertainment form."
Download the podcast
December 09, 2007
"Episode # 180 - Burlesque Roundtable
In this episode, Trav S.D. moderates a roundtable about contemporary burlesque. (Trav S.D. says the table is not only round but curvaceous.)
Our guests are three of NYC’s burlesque scene’s biggest stars: Bonnie Dunn, Julie Atlas Muz, and Nasty Canasta. Each of these ladies shares insights about her own career and her views of how burlesque has evolved into a sophisticated live entertainment form."
Download the podcast
Village Voice
Elena Dahl • October 09, 2007
"On a recent Friday night, local troupe Pinchbottom Burlesque traveled back in time to put on 70's Cop Show Burlesque, starring good-guy cop Jonny Porkpie (leader of the P.I.N.C.H. Squad) and notorious Nasty Canasta, a crime boss on roller skates."
PHOTO GALLERY HERE
Elena Dahl • October 09, 2007
"On a recent Friday night, local troupe Pinchbottom Burlesque traveled back in time to put on 70's Cop Show Burlesque, starring good-guy cop Jonny Porkpie (leader of the P.I.N.C.H. Squad) and notorious Nasty Canasta, a crime boss on roller skates."
PHOTO GALLERY HERE
Village Voice
September 19, 2007
VOICE CHOICE "Charlie’s Angels, Starsky & Hutch, and Police Woman were all classic cop shows of the ’70s, but to the creators of Pinchbottom Burlesque, they all lacked one vital detail: nudity. Now the best burlesque show in town seeks to ratify that with its new crime-fighting caper P.I.N.C.H. Squad (Police Investigative Narcotics, Counter-feiting, and Hootchy-kootch). Set in Disco City, the story follows the funkadelic policeman Jonny Porkpie and his team of sexy detectives on a mission to stop the roller-skating crime boss Nasty Canasta and her illicit burlesque and counterfeiting ring. The lineup includes cuties Little Brooklyn, Darlinda Just Darlinda, and Anita Cookie. Undoubtedly, strip searches will be a recurrent theme."
September 19, 2007
VOICE CHOICE "Charlie’s Angels, Starsky & Hutch, and Police Woman were all classic cop shows of the ’70s, but to the creators of Pinchbottom Burlesque, they all lacked one vital detail: nudity. Now the best burlesque show in town seeks to ratify that with its new crime-fighting caper P.I.N.C.H. Squad (Police Investigative Narcotics, Counter-feiting, and Hootchy-kootch). Set in Disco City, the story follows the funkadelic policeman Jonny Porkpie and his team of sexy detectives on a mission to stop the roller-skating crime boss Nasty Canasta and her illicit burlesque and counterfeiting ring. The lineup includes cuties Little Brooklyn, Darlinda Just Darlinda, and Anita Cookie. Undoubtedly, strip searches will be a recurrent theme."
Metromix
August 30, 2007
"... The most imaginative (and funniest) burlesque troupe in the city is Pinchbottom, a collective led by Nasty Canasta and Jonny Porkpie. Their shows take oddball themes (sci-fi, superhero, cowboy) and put on a show that's equal parts sexy and funny (usually tilting more on the latter side of things) ..."
August 30, 2007
"... The most imaginative (and funniest) burlesque troupe in the city is Pinchbottom, a collective led by Nasty Canasta and Jonny Porkpie. Their shows take oddball themes (sci-fi, superhero, cowboy) and put on a show that's equal parts sexy and funny (usually tilting more on the latter side of things) ..."
LA SPLASH
Stephanie Nolasco • June 29, 2007
" ... The sudden growl of a saxophone silences the crowd and Nasty Canasta kneels in front of a stool wearing a hunter green pleated suit. Like an acrobat in heat, Canasta shakes her jet-black bob, stands on her head, then quickly removes her jacket and skirt, exposing her dark chemise and suspender stockings. The sax, howling faster in anticipation, encourages the pale, petite dancer to reveal her patent pasties ... "
Stephanie Nolasco • June 29, 2007
" ... The sudden growl of a saxophone silences the crowd and Nasty Canasta kneels in front of a stool wearing a hunter green pleated suit. Like an acrobat in heat, Canasta shakes her jet-black bob, stands on her head, then quickly removes her jacket and skirt, exposing her dark chemise and suspender stockings. The sax, howling faster in anticipation, encourages the pale, petite dancer to reveal her patent pasties ... "
Theatermania
June 28, 2007
Pinchbottom's Burlesque, hosted by Jonny Porkpie and Nasty Canasta, has made quite a name with theme-based shows that serve up substance with striptease. These include War, in which George Bush invades Manhattan, and Blasphemy, a sendup on religions. With this show, the pinchbottom guys and dolls now turn their attention to the Great White Way.
June 28, 2007
Pinchbottom's Burlesque, hosted by Jonny Porkpie and Nasty Canasta, has made quite a name with theme-based shows that serve up substance with striptease. These include War, in which George Bush invades Manhattan, and Blasphemy, a sendup on religions. With this show, the pinchbottom guys and dolls now turn their attention to the Great White Way.
MINISTRY OF BURLESQUE MAGAZINE
June 09, 2007
"The next category [in the Miss Exotic World Pageant] was the Best Duo act and the first up was Pinchbottom Burlesque who performed one of the most original routines that I’ve seen for a long while. Their quirky sketch involving a flower with the hots for it’s sexy owner was brilliant. There were stories about how this act had been ripped off by someone who had wrongfully claimed it as her own – well this was the night when Pinchbottom Burlesque claimed it back. This act rightfully went on to claim the ‘Most Innovative Routine’ award."
June 09, 2007
"The next category [in the Miss Exotic World Pageant] was the Best Duo act and the first up was Pinchbottom Burlesque who performed one of the most original routines that I’ve seen for a long while. Their quirky sketch involving a flower with the hots for it’s sexy owner was brilliant. There were stories about how this act had been ripped off by someone who had wrongfully claimed it as her own – well this was the night when Pinchbottom Burlesque claimed it back. This act rightfully went on to claim the ‘Most Innovative Routine’ award."
Elastic Waist
April 27, 2007
"The performers at the Starshine Burlesque are so awesomely confident and astoundingly brave, their brand of fun-filled self-acceptance is infectious. Just watchthis video and you'll feel like a hot number, even if you’re short, round, freckled, pimpled, lumpy, booby, or a willowy wisp of a thing with next to nothing to shake."
April 27, 2007
"The performers at the Starshine Burlesque are so awesomely confident and astoundingly brave, their brand of fun-filled self-acceptance is infectious. Just watchthis video and you'll feel like a hot number, even if you’re short, round, freckled, pimpled, lumpy, booby, or a willowy wisp of a thing with next to nothing to shake."
New York Magazine
March 12, 2007
BEST BURLESQUE: Pinchbottom Burlesque
In its most classic sense, burlesque should incorporate three elements: striptease, dancing, and ribald comedy. Of the many acts that grace New York stages right now —from the deliciously twisted and avant-garde to one-girl-after-another revues—Pinchbottom Burlesque follows the model to a note. It’s sexy, campy fun with just an insinuation of nudity (thanks, in part, to creative costuming). But this is hardly the same old song and fan dance. Each month, co-hosts Jonny Porkpie and Nasty Canasta script a new show featuring many of the city’s top performers, whose betasseled numbers leave enough to the imagination to make for an uproarious evening. (From the 2007 "Best of NY" issue)
March 12, 2007
BEST BURLESQUE: Pinchbottom Burlesque
In its most classic sense, burlesque should incorporate three elements: striptease, dancing, and ribald comedy. Of the many acts that grace New York stages right now —from the deliciously twisted and avant-garde to one-girl-after-another revues—Pinchbottom Burlesque follows the model to a note. It’s sexy, campy fun with just an insinuation of nudity (thanks, in part, to creative costuming). But this is hardly the same old song and fan dance. Each month, co-hosts Jonny Porkpie and Nasty Canasta script a new show featuring many of the city’s top performers, whose betasseled numbers leave enough to the imagination to make for an uproarious evening. (From the 2007 "Best of NY" issue)
BROOKLYN COURIER-LIFE
Joe Maniscalco • January 23, 2007
Big, Bad, Bawdy & Beguiling: Burlesque Blitz hits Brooklyn
So, how much sexy fun can you handle in 48 hours?
Get ready, because Nasty Canasta, Veronika Sweet, Bunny Love, Cherry Bomb and the rest of the 30 risqué performers in the two-day extravaganza known as the Brooklyn Burlesque Blitz are going to test your endurance and tickle your funny bone this weekend.
“Burlesque is everything from classic elements from vaudeville, to folks who bring in a lot of different elements from performance art,” Nasty Canasta told 24/7 this week. The blitz is so big that it took four of the hottest production teams on the neo-burlesque circuit today – Wasabassco, Pinchbottom, Sweet & Nasty and Kissing Cousins – to pull it all off. The action kicks off at Southpaw, at 125 Fifth Avenue in Park Slope on January 26, and then moves to North Six, at 66th North 6th Street in Williamsburg on January 27.
Sexy Scarlet Sinclair calls today’s burlesque “the most incredible blank canvas I’ve ever known. We have absolute control of what we do up there, from the music to the choreography,” she says. No one just gets up on stage and takes off their clothes in burlesque. Each performance is a self-contained story, and mny of the performers have backgrounds in the worlds of theater and comedy.
In a performance piece called “Miracle Grow,” Jonny Porkpie joins wife Canasta on stage as a poor flower who only responds to “proper attention.” “We get to the point where we’re both taking off our clothes,” Jonny laughs.
East Coast neo-burlesque as practiced in hipster venues around Brooklyn is a co-ed affair. “There are a few more guys getting into burlesque,” Nasty confirms. In addition to hubby Jonny, other male performers like Bastard Keith and Tigger have successfully managed to stake out part of the burlesque stage for themselves without totally alienating straight men along the way. “I get a lot of feedback from straight guys,” Jonny admits. “They don’t find me threatening.” Wasabassco producer Bill Morton calls burlesque “welcoming.” “It’s great to see many different points of view,” he says. “That’s the beauty of it.”
Burlesque performers like Dirty Martini and The World Famous BOB helped lead a resurgence of the art form at drag clubs around the city in the 90’s. Always a fan of pin-ups and lingerie, Scarlet says she got hooked on the genre after taking in a show at the Slipper Room a few years ago. “I fell in love with an art form that spoke to me,” she says. “I felt maybe I could do this, too.”
Nasty, who comes from a theater background, says that she often grew frustrated having to constantly perform in someone else’s plays and recite someone else’s lines. “It’s wonderful to say I have this idea and I’m going to make it happen,” she says. Many of Nasty and Jonny’s burlesque performances – “because we’re such big nerds” -- revolve around sci-fi or super-hero themes. They call their James Bond 007 piece “You Only Pinch Twice.” “The Search for Naked Planet,” meanwhile, revolves around a super-villain’s attempts to attain a “strip ray.” “Burlesque appeals to so many different people because the performers bring so much of themselves to the stage,” Jonny says.
According to Scarlet, the women that approach her after shows are just as inspired as she was she was attending burlesque shows. “Most of the responses I get after shows are almost always women,” she says. “They find what we do very empowering to them. Girls identify with stronger women no matter how skinny or how heavy,” they may be. The performers in the Brooklyn Burlesque Blitz do come in all shapes and sizes. “It’s a format that embraces beauty in all its sizes and shapes,” Jonny says. “It doesn’t matter what you look like – you’re beauty is there.”
For Scarlet, beauty runs in the family. Her “Kissing Cousins” go-go partner Gigi La Femme is actually a blood relative. “We grew up going to dance classes and doing those silly girl things,” Scarlet laughs. Nasty says that now is definitely a good time for bawdy burlesque. “It’s definitely more relaxed [nowadays],” she says. “There’s not that terror of the body.”
Even so, burlesque performers don’t actually get naked – they draw the line at pasties and g-strings. Nasty even did a PG-13 rated burlesque show for an all-ages audience in New Jersey a little while back that was full of 14-year-old boys. “It was one of the best audiences I’ve ever had,” she says. Morton, meanwhile, says he “almost never leaves Brooklyn.”This is a place for me to do what I want to do,” he says.
Most of the performers taking part in the Brooklyn Burlesque Blitz are either married or in long-term relationships. “By definition a burlesque performer is an amazing person,” Morton says. “And amazing people don’t say single for long.”
Joe Maniscalco • January 23, 2007
Big, Bad, Bawdy & Beguiling: Burlesque Blitz hits Brooklyn
So, how much sexy fun can you handle in 48 hours?
Get ready, because Nasty Canasta, Veronika Sweet, Bunny Love, Cherry Bomb and the rest of the 30 risqué performers in the two-day extravaganza known as the Brooklyn Burlesque Blitz are going to test your endurance and tickle your funny bone this weekend.
“Burlesque is everything from classic elements from vaudeville, to folks who bring in a lot of different elements from performance art,” Nasty Canasta told 24/7 this week. The blitz is so big that it took four of the hottest production teams on the neo-burlesque circuit today – Wasabassco, Pinchbottom, Sweet & Nasty and Kissing Cousins – to pull it all off. The action kicks off at Southpaw, at 125 Fifth Avenue in Park Slope on January 26, and then moves to North Six, at 66th North 6th Street in Williamsburg on January 27.
Sexy Scarlet Sinclair calls today’s burlesque “the most incredible blank canvas I’ve ever known. We have absolute control of what we do up there, from the music to the choreography,” she says. No one just gets up on stage and takes off their clothes in burlesque. Each performance is a self-contained story, and mny of the performers have backgrounds in the worlds of theater and comedy.
In a performance piece called “Miracle Grow,” Jonny Porkpie joins wife Canasta on stage as a poor flower who only responds to “proper attention.” “We get to the point where we’re both taking off our clothes,” Jonny laughs.
East Coast neo-burlesque as practiced in hipster venues around Brooklyn is a co-ed affair. “There are a few more guys getting into burlesque,” Nasty confirms. In addition to hubby Jonny, other male performers like Bastard Keith and Tigger have successfully managed to stake out part of the burlesque stage for themselves without totally alienating straight men along the way. “I get a lot of feedback from straight guys,” Jonny admits. “They don’t find me threatening.” Wasabassco producer Bill Morton calls burlesque “welcoming.” “It’s great to see many different points of view,” he says. “That’s the beauty of it.”
Burlesque performers like Dirty Martini and The World Famous BOB helped lead a resurgence of the art form at drag clubs around the city in the 90’s. Always a fan of pin-ups and lingerie, Scarlet says she got hooked on the genre after taking in a show at the Slipper Room a few years ago. “I fell in love with an art form that spoke to me,” she says. “I felt maybe I could do this, too.”
Nasty, who comes from a theater background, says that she often grew frustrated having to constantly perform in someone else’s plays and recite someone else’s lines. “It’s wonderful to say I have this idea and I’m going to make it happen,” she says. Many of Nasty and Jonny’s burlesque performances – “because we’re such big nerds” -- revolve around sci-fi or super-hero themes. They call their James Bond 007 piece “You Only Pinch Twice.” “The Search for Naked Planet,” meanwhile, revolves around a super-villain’s attempts to attain a “strip ray.” “Burlesque appeals to so many different people because the performers bring so much of themselves to the stage,” Jonny says.
According to Scarlet, the women that approach her after shows are just as inspired as she was she was attending burlesque shows. “Most of the responses I get after shows are almost always women,” she says. “They find what we do very empowering to them. Girls identify with stronger women no matter how skinny or how heavy,” they may be. The performers in the Brooklyn Burlesque Blitz do come in all shapes and sizes. “It’s a format that embraces beauty in all its sizes and shapes,” Jonny says. “It doesn’t matter what you look like – you’re beauty is there.”
For Scarlet, beauty runs in the family. Her “Kissing Cousins” go-go partner Gigi La Femme is actually a blood relative. “We grew up going to dance classes and doing those silly girl things,” Scarlet laughs. Nasty says that now is definitely a good time for bawdy burlesque. “It’s definitely more relaxed [nowadays],” she says. “There’s not that terror of the body.”
Even so, burlesque performers don’t actually get naked – they draw the line at pasties and g-strings. Nasty even did a PG-13 rated burlesque show for an all-ages audience in New Jersey a little while back that was full of 14-year-old boys. “It was one of the best audiences I’ve ever had,” she says. Morton, meanwhile, says he “almost never leaves Brooklyn.”This is a place for me to do what I want to do,” he says.
Most of the performers taking part in the Brooklyn Burlesque Blitz are either married or in long-term relationships. “By definition a burlesque performer is an amazing person,” Morton says. “And amazing people don’t say single for long.”
The Village Voice
Ashman • November 16, 2006
VOICE CHOICE "Very Special Agents: A show that's licenced to be naughty Daniel Craig may be a fine James Bond, but we have higher hopes for burlesque cutie Nasty Canasta's portrayal of secret agent 007 in Pinchbottom's perverted spoof You Only Pinch Twice, which features the tagline 'No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to strip.' The story follows an evil cartel that plots to take over the world using the twirling of burlesque performers' tassels to hypnotize the masses into submission. The shimmying lineup of undercover spies and henchgals includes Anita Cookie, Jo Boobs, and Tigger."
Ashman • November 16, 2006
VOICE CHOICE "Very Special Agents: A show that's licenced to be naughty Daniel Craig may be a fine James Bond, but we have higher hopes for burlesque cutie Nasty Canasta's portrayal of secret agent 007 in Pinchbottom's perverted spoof You Only Pinch Twice, which features the tagline 'No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to strip.' The story follows an evil cartel that plots to take over the world using the twirling of burlesque performers' tassels to hypnotize the masses into submission. The shimmying lineup of undercover spies and henchgals includes Anita Cookie, Jo Boobs, and Tigger."
Time Out New York
November 16, 2006
"This time, Pinchbottom's themed burlesque gets all shaken and stirred with everyone's favorite secret agent. Nasty Canasta and Jonny Porkpie host some James (light) Bond(age) fun ... "
November 16, 2006
"This time, Pinchbottom's themed burlesque gets all shaken and stirred with everyone's favorite secret agent. Nasty Canasta and Jonny Porkpie host some James (light) Bond(age) fun ... "
EROS NY
November 14, 2006
"If you're looking for the "den of downtown burlesque," it's unquestionably RiFiFi. Each week at this East Village parlor of pleasure, you can see not one but two of the premier burlesque acts in NYC. If Creamy Stevens & Little Brooklyn's Starshine Burlesque doesn't satisfy your ravenous need for beaded delectables, then you'll assuredly find it with Sweet & Nasty Burlesque, brought to you by Veronika Sweet and Nasty Canasta and offering a cavalcade of bad girls, good boys, and questionable taste, featuring a rotating cast of NYC's burlesque luminaries and neophyte nymphets guaranteed to titillate and tantalize!! These chicks ain't kidding -- shows include such cats as Jonny Porkpie, World Famous *BOB*, Scotty the Blue Bunny, Jo Boobs, Clams Casino, and Taylor Mac, and many more."
November 14, 2006
"If you're looking for the "den of downtown burlesque," it's unquestionably RiFiFi. Each week at this East Village parlor of pleasure, you can see not one but two of the premier burlesque acts in NYC. If Creamy Stevens & Little Brooklyn's Starshine Burlesque doesn't satisfy your ravenous need for beaded delectables, then you'll assuredly find it with Sweet & Nasty Burlesque, brought to you by Veronika Sweet and Nasty Canasta and offering a cavalcade of bad girls, good boys, and questionable taste, featuring a rotating cast of NYC's burlesque luminaries and neophyte nymphets guaranteed to titillate and tantalize!! These chicks ain't kidding -- shows include such cats as Jonny Porkpie, World Famous *BOB*, Scotty the Blue Bunny, Jo Boobs, Clams Casino, and Taylor Mac, and many more."
The L Magazine
Pinchbottom presents EAT ME • September 18, 2006
"Honestly, we don't have any idea what a burlesque cooking show entails, and it makes us super uncomfortable. The show is hosted by "Chef" Nasty Canasta."
Pinchbottom presents EAT ME • September 18, 2006
"Honestly, we don't have any idea what a burlesque cooking show entails, and it makes us super uncomfortable. The show is hosted by "Chef" Nasty Canasta."
Time Out New York
"New Dork City" • August 24, 2006
"Thanks to Nasty Canasta, Jonny Porkpie and the Pinchbottom crew, your perverted genre fantasies have come shimmying to life. The dancers served up a sci-fi theme this past spring (boobified Godzilla, we won’t forget you), and Porkpie promises “more geek-tastic burlesque” in the next six months, including nights devoted to superheroes, cooking shows (!) and, coinciding with the release of Casino Royale, James Bond. Here’s looking forward to Octopussy.… "
"New Dork City" • August 24, 2006
"Thanks to Nasty Canasta, Jonny Porkpie and the Pinchbottom crew, your perverted genre fantasies have come shimmying to life. The dancers served up a sci-fi theme this past spring (boobified Godzilla, we won’t forget you), and Porkpie promises “more geek-tastic burlesque” in the next six months, including nights devoted to superheroes, cooking shows (!) and, coinciding with the release of Casino Royale, James Bond. Here’s looking forward to Octopussy.… "
The Village Voice
Ashman • August 22, 2006
VOICE CHOICE "Superman, Batman, and the rest of the Justice League, watch out! A new disturbing breed of superhero has arrived downtown with special X-ray—correction: X-rated—powers. Pinchbottom’s Burlesque presents Pow! Zap! Boob!, a themed burlesque show featuring the ultimate in super-powered striptease and variety acts. Hosts Nasty Canasta and Jonny Porkpie, with their wicked senses of humor, play the evil villains who must be stopped from taking over the world. A lineup of 10 absurdly named performers, including Anita Cookie, Creamy Stevens, Miss Firecracker, Bastard Keith, and Schaffer the Darklord, pay special bump-and-grind tributes to mighty characters such as Batgirl and Wonder Woman. It’s doubtful you’ll ever see these comic-book champs the same way again. Find out what top-secret “ultimate striptease weapon” saves the world."
Ashman • August 22, 2006
VOICE CHOICE "Superman, Batman, and the rest of the Justice League, watch out! A new disturbing breed of superhero has arrived downtown with special X-ray—correction: X-rated—powers. Pinchbottom’s Burlesque presents Pow! Zap! Boob!, a themed burlesque show featuring the ultimate in super-powered striptease and variety acts. Hosts Nasty Canasta and Jonny Porkpie, with their wicked senses of humor, play the evil villains who must be stopped from taking over the world. A lineup of 10 absurdly named performers, including Anita Cookie, Creamy Stevens, Miss Firecracker, Bastard Keith, and Schaffer the Darklord, pay special bump-and-grind tributes to mighty characters such as Batgirl and Wonder Woman. It’s doubtful you’ll ever see these comic-book champs the same way again. Find out what top-secret “ultimate striptease weapon” saves the world."
The Village Voice
Tricia Romano • August 21, 2006
"[At the] second annual Va Va Vroom Car Wash Saturday outside Galapagos in Williamsburg ... a bevy of babes—including Starshine Burlesque's Little Brooklyn, Bunny Love, Dirty Martini (summer goal achievement: "no tan lines!"), Ula the Pain Proof Rubber Girl, Bambi, Nasty Canasta, Leslie Russ, and Leslie's wee young lass Fiona (stealin' the show)—buffed and waxed cars to tunes played by Scott Ewalt. They got all wet for a good cause: raising funds for Safe House, a women's shelter..."
Photo gallery here.
Tricia Romano • August 21, 2006
"[At the] second annual Va Va Vroom Car Wash Saturday outside Galapagos in Williamsburg ... a bevy of babes—including Starshine Burlesque's Little Brooklyn, Bunny Love, Dirty Martini (summer goal achievement: "no tan lines!"), Ula the Pain Proof Rubber Girl, Bambi, Nasty Canasta, Leslie Russ, and Leslie's wee young lass Fiona (stealin' the show)—buffed and waxed cars to tunes played by Scott Ewalt. They got all wet for a good cause: raising funds for Safe House, a women's shelter..."
Photo gallery here.
Next Magazine
Justin Ocean • August 18, 2006
BURLESQUE TO THE RESCUE: Don your cape and flex your superpowers as hosts Nasty Canasta and Jonny Porkpie present a hilarious burlesque send up of comic books featuring an extravaganza of heroes and villains including Anita Cookie, Creamy Stevens, Gigi LaFemme, Harvest Moon, Miss Firecracker, Naughtia Nice and Seth Herzog. With a wine and beer bar nearby, you can be sure Pinchbottom’s newest event will be putting the "action" and "figure" back in "action figure."
Justin Ocean • August 18, 2006
BURLESQUE TO THE RESCUE: Don your cape and flex your superpowers as hosts Nasty Canasta and Jonny Porkpie present a hilarious burlesque send up of comic books featuring an extravaganza of heroes and villains including Anita Cookie, Creamy Stevens, Gigi LaFemme, Harvest Moon, Miss Firecracker, Naughtia Nice and Seth Herzog. With a wine and beer bar nearby, you can be sure Pinchbottom’s newest event will be putting the "action" and "figure" back in "action figure."
Next Magazine
Justin Ocean • July 21, 2006
PEER PRESSURE: Say it ain’t so! Pinchbottom hosts Nasty Canasta and Jonny Porkpie have done the unthinkable: they’ve gotten back on the wagon and have gone liquor-free! Join Anita Cookie, Veronika Sweet, Clams Casino, Scotty the Blue Bunny and the rest of the Pinchbottom gang as they attempt to push Jonny and Nasty back into the warm, wet arms of alcoholism with bawdy burlesque and 100-proof comedy.
Justin Ocean • July 21, 2006
PEER PRESSURE: Say it ain’t so! Pinchbottom hosts Nasty Canasta and Jonny Porkpie have done the unthinkable: they’ve gotten back on the wagon and have gone liquor-free! Join Anita Cookie, Veronika Sweet, Clams Casino, Scotty the Blue Bunny and the rest of the Pinchbottom gang as they attempt to push Jonny and Nasty back into the warm, wet arms of alcoholism with bawdy burlesque and 100-proof comedy.
DCist
Salima Appiah-Kubi • July 07, 2006
" ... Victorian will be joined by several sexy sultresses of the stage, including Bloody Belle, Miss Indigo Blue, and Nasty Canasta ... Winner of a Golden Pastie from the New York Burlesque Festival, Nasty Canasta inserts a little performance art in her striptease ... "
Salima Appiah-Kubi • July 07, 2006
" ... Victorian will be joined by several sexy sultresses of the stage, including Bloody Belle, Miss Indigo Blue, and Nasty Canasta ... Winner of a Golden Pastie from the New York Burlesque Festival, Nasty Canasta inserts a little performance art in her striptease ... "
nytheatre.com
Richard Hinojosa • July 01, 2006
"It's all part of the fun," my companion said to me after I commented that I felt a little weird about getting caught up in the howling and ogling of the stripping women. He was right; it was fun. Pinchbottom's Sub-Conscious: Naked Planet is one of those shows that's pure camp and you'll forget about it the moment you walk out the door but while you're there you are undeniably theirs.
And it's not just girls gettin' semi-naked--it's a cabaret with short comic sketches for segues between acts and a couple of strange yet hilarious stand-up comedians (if you can even call them stand-up comedians). Comedy and partial nudity go remarkably well together. Where else can you hoot, whistle, and bust a gut laughing? I usually feel uncomfortable about being teased by strippers, but in this format I didn't feel so much like I was sitting in a crowd of men with one hand in their pocket. In fact, being in the crowd was half the fun.
This particular installment of the Pinchbottom show is all sci-fi themed. Jonny Porkpie co-hosts as a sparkly-codpiece-wearing Captain Kirk rip-off. The fabulous Nasty Canasta is the other host and plays the beautiful Queen of the Naked Planet. Porkpie's spaceship arrives at the Naked Planet where the official language is "spinning tittie sign language." Luckily they have an interpreter. These are the jokes, folks, and they go on and on, well into ad nauseam, but that's all part of the campy fun. There's a storyline that leads into each act but quite honestly I didn't really follow it and I don't think that I was supposed to. It's loosely based on just about any Star Trek episode where Ensign Nobody is sent down to the planet, but instead of getting killed they strip.
The performers are all extremely entertaining. Miss Firecracker does a Darth Vader strip tease to AC/DC's "Back in Black" where she removes just about everything but her Darth Vader mask. Gigi Lafemme does a Princess Leia where she uses Leia's classic cinnamon bun hairdo to cover her breasts. You get the picture. My absolute favorite strip artist is the cute-as-can-be Anita Cookie. Her music didn't burn to the disk she gave the sound guy so she improvised a tease to Barry Manilow doing the theme song to Buck Rogers. (I never realized that Barry Manilow had done anything sci-fi.) She pulled this strip off...well...much like her clothes--with erotic grace and skill. And she was hilarious on top of that playing a Star Trek Officer that's a little drunk on an away mission.
The comedians, Schaffer the Darklord and Zero Boy, offer a hysterical break from the stripping. Schaffer the Darklord enters wearing a Sith Lord robe and proceeds to bust with a rap about having sex with large groups of his own clones. Schaffer is a scream. Zero Boy is a performance art network staple who does a bit where he uses his extraordinarily versatile vocal cords to produces sounds and noises that tell a story. He uses very few, if any, words and is always funny, naughty and somewhat poignant.
Pinchbottom's Sub-Conscious will not likely return in this format. The theme changes every time. The next installment is Pinchbottom's Drinking Problem: A Burlesque Intervention. I'm sure that one will be as fun and campy as this one, but I for one will miss all the Intergalactic Space Jokes.
Richard Hinojosa • July 01, 2006
"It's all part of the fun," my companion said to me after I commented that I felt a little weird about getting caught up in the howling and ogling of the stripping women. He was right; it was fun. Pinchbottom's Sub-Conscious: Naked Planet is one of those shows that's pure camp and you'll forget about it the moment you walk out the door but while you're there you are undeniably theirs.
And it's not just girls gettin' semi-naked--it's a cabaret with short comic sketches for segues between acts and a couple of strange yet hilarious stand-up comedians (if you can even call them stand-up comedians). Comedy and partial nudity go remarkably well together. Where else can you hoot, whistle, and bust a gut laughing? I usually feel uncomfortable about being teased by strippers, but in this format I didn't feel so much like I was sitting in a crowd of men with one hand in their pocket. In fact, being in the crowd was half the fun.
This particular installment of the Pinchbottom show is all sci-fi themed. Jonny Porkpie co-hosts as a sparkly-codpiece-wearing Captain Kirk rip-off. The fabulous Nasty Canasta is the other host and plays the beautiful Queen of the Naked Planet. Porkpie's spaceship arrives at the Naked Planet where the official language is "spinning tittie sign language." Luckily they have an interpreter. These are the jokes, folks, and they go on and on, well into ad nauseam, but that's all part of the campy fun. There's a storyline that leads into each act but quite honestly I didn't really follow it and I don't think that I was supposed to. It's loosely based on just about any Star Trek episode where Ensign Nobody is sent down to the planet, but instead of getting killed they strip.
The performers are all extremely entertaining. Miss Firecracker does a Darth Vader strip tease to AC/DC's "Back in Black" where she removes just about everything but her Darth Vader mask. Gigi Lafemme does a Princess Leia where she uses Leia's classic cinnamon bun hairdo to cover her breasts. You get the picture. My absolute favorite strip artist is the cute-as-can-be Anita Cookie. Her music didn't burn to the disk she gave the sound guy so she improvised a tease to Barry Manilow doing the theme song to Buck Rogers. (I never realized that Barry Manilow had done anything sci-fi.) She pulled this strip off...well...much like her clothes--with erotic grace and skill. And she was hilarious on top of that playing a Star Trek Officer that's a little drunk on an away mission.
The comedians, Schaffer the Darklord and Zero Boy, offer a hysterical break from the stripping. Schaffer the Darklord enters wearing a Sith Lord robe and proceeds to bust with a rap about having sex with large groups of his own clones. Schaffer is a scream. Zero Boy is a performance art network staple who does a bit where he uses his extraordinarily versatile vocal cords to produces sounds and noises that tell a story. He uses very few, if any, words and is always funny, naughty and somewhat poignant.
Pinchbottom's Sub-Conscious will not likely return in this format. The theme changes every time. The next installment is Pinchbottom's Drinking Problem: A Burlesque Intervention. I'm sure that one will be as fun and campy as this one, but I for one will miss all the Intergalactic Space Jokes.