After 7 years a popular burlesque show is closing due to 10 shows being put on the same
After 7 years a popular burlesque show is closing due to 10 shows being put on the same night at this unique NZ show.
Undieground Burlesque is the worlds only burlesque show set in the 1940’s on a plane with actual New Zealand history
woven through the show. “The show is set near the end of the war, the battle of Manners Street is still fresh in peoples
minds” says Crystal Mischief producer of the show.
I spent hours researching what was happening in New Zealand and Wellington to weave my fictional character into the
story. “It’s a story of mischieviousness and friendship between a fitcitonal character called Air Hotness and the White
Mouse. The sort of friendship that would now be considered ride or die.”
“It’s interesting that through the research I did, it felt like to me that the White Mouse was going to stride through
my front door any moment and pop the kettle on. The access to historical documents and information was incredibly
important. I have immense gratitude for the time it would have taken to catelogue and load this information on to the
various websites.”
When Mischief first started producing Undieground Burlesque 7 years ago there were two shows a month and 150 people in
the industry facebook group. “This has grown to 4 weekly shows a month and over 1500 people in the facebook group. For
an art form that was underground and is now on the fringes that is massive growth” says Mischief from Los Angeles USA.
This growth is only going to continue with Dita von Teese coming to New Zealand for her first tour in December. “It
wasn’t an easy decision to make, I wrestled with it for a while there were tears and sleepless nights. This is afterall
my first-born-show and while some may view this as just entertainment it’s not for me. I created the concept when there
was nothing around like this and poured my heart and soul into it. It’s like saying good bye to an old friend.”
However as one door closes another door opens and there are new international opportunities that Mischief is currently
working on. “I cant say too much yet but there will be a new burlesque competition in town that is part of a world wide
franchise”. There are other regional competitions in 19 US states, Europe and Australia. “The winner of the NZ show will
go on to represent New Zealand in Utah USA in 2020. I’m excited about that becasue I know how much travel can help a
performer level up”
Undieground Burlesque’s final ever show is Saturday 16 November at The Grand on Courtenay. Tickets for the show can be
pre-purchased here http://bit.ly/NovUndie
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