Character Building
Crafting Your Burlesque Identity
Discover your burlesque self! If you’re just beginning to dip a toe in the burlesque waters, you’re probably trying on stage names, too. This class will focus on creating a character/persona, via storytelling and improvisation techniques to help bring out the person you most want to be on the stage. Choosing and registering a stage name will be discussed, along with defining your “brand” as a performer.
What to Bring: A notebook and pen – and your ideas!
Pre-Requisites: None – this session is for beginners.
Production Notes: This class can be 1-3 hours, with 90-120 minutes recommended.
Empowering the Artist Through Burlesque
Designed for artists of other disciplines who want a peek into the world of burlesque, this workshop not only to encourages you to have fun, but also to build self-confidence in a safe, supportive, and sex-positive environment. Following an overview of burlesque history, the current trends in the community, as well as tips on how performers create a burlesque persona and acts, participants will learn the building blocks of burlesque movement: we’ll explore how to strut, bump and grind, chair and floor work, hair-ography, and maybe even peeling it off (without revealing nudity). Open to people of all shapes, sizes and backgrounds.
What to Bring: An open mind and a friend.
Pre-Requisites: None – No prior experience necessary!
Production Notes: This class can be 1-3 hours, with 90-120 minutes recommended.
Going Off Book
Improv When Things Go Awry
No matter how well rehearsed you are, you’re bound to have to deal with an act going off the rails – costuming malfunctions, missing props, sound glitches, an unruly audience, stage complications… That’s when your ability to plan ahead, then think on your feet can really pay off.
This workshop will explore ways that you can prepare for the unexpected, as well as approaches for successfully navigating your performance if and when things actually do go off the rails. Bring an act, and we’ll do a risk assessment!
What to Bring: The technical notes, props and costuming for one of your acts, if possible.
Pre-Requisites: Some stage experience.
Production Notes: This class can be 1-3 hours, with 90-120 minutes recommended.
Supple Showgirls
Burlesque Conditioning Class
Strong is sexy and flexibility is foxy! Lengthen, strengthen, and tone in this physical conditioning class led by Sadie Hawkins.
This session is a full-body workout that includes a warm-up of moderate ground-based cardio followed by a variety of calisthenics, stretches, pilates- and yoga-inspired work that helps build core strength, flexibility and balance. All muscle groups are worked with a focus on the core, upper body, legs, and back.
Class activities are designed to be accessible to all fitness levels, all participants are encouraged to explore strength and flexibility safely by listening to their bodies and adjusting to their own abilities.
What to Bring: Please wear comfortable workout/yoga attire, bring water and a yoga mat.
Pre-Requisites: None.
Production Notes: This class can be 1-2 hours, with 60-90 minutes recommended.
Aerial Workshops
Strong is Sexy
Aerial Conditioning Workshop
Strength training that will kick your ass! This conditioning class is for all fitness levels looking to build upper body/core strength and flexibility. All muscle groups are worked with a focus on those needed for aerial and circus arts, including the core, upper body, legs, and back.
A great class for students at any level, this session is an intense workout that includes traditional ground based cardio, flexibility and yoga-style exercises as well as building core balance and strength in the air through pull-ups, straddles, climbs, crochets, pull-overs and other moves on aerial apparatus. What apparatus? Well, you'll just have to join the class to find out.
What to Bring: Please wear comfortable aerial/yoga attire, bring water and a yoga mat.
Pre-Requisites: No previous aerial experience required, but conditioning is a great complement to an ongoing aerial or general fitness regimen.
Production Notes: This class can be 1-2 hours, with 90 minutes recommended. Ability to rig in teaching space is essential. Depending on number of pre-registered attendees and rigging situation, I can rig multiple apparatus.
Exploring Aerial Burlesque
Explore how your body can dance seductively on aerial apparatus in this intro workshop. We’ll explore the fundamentals of aerial dance, including spinning, ways to mount and get down, simple poses, as well as an overview of form and safety.
Then we’ll sequence basic skills while introducing the element of striptease in the air. In addition to posing, spinning and inverting, focus of the workshop will be on movement quality and stage presence. The workshop also includes a warm-up and flexibility segment, cool down and some aerial conditioning exercises.
What to Bring: Wear comfortable, close-fitting clothes that offer a full range of motion – leggings and a leotard are preferred. Each participant is encouraged to bring a costume element (button-down shirt, corset, bra, fingerless gloves, or thigh-high stockings) to use in the striptease. You can bring shoes for this workshop, if you’d like – you’ll begin without them, but there will be an opportunity to try your moves with heels.
Pre-Requisites: Some burlesque and/or aerial experience is great, but not required.
Production Notes: This class can be 1-2 hours, with 90 minutes recommended. Ability to rig in teaching space is essential. Depending on number of pre-registered attendees and rigging situation, I can rig multiple apparatus.
Exploring the intersection of aerial dance and burlesque as performance art, this workshop addresses strategies for creating and executing an aerial burlesque act. From character creation and storytelling, to the importance of audience engagement, burlesque acts allow the performer an opportunity to push boundaries - or to be downright silly. We’ll consider costume selection and how - and if - you remove bits of it on stage. Lastly, beyond the act, we’ll talk about challenges performers may face rigging and working in burlesque venues (both on and off stage).
What to Bring: An open mind.
Pre-Requisites: None.
Production Notes: This class can be 1-2 hours, with 90 minutes recommended. Ability to rig in teaching space is optional. Host/producer can request specific apparatus, or it can be my choice.
Aerial Ecdysis
Introduction to Aerial Burlesque
It’s an aerial grab-bag! This intro workshop will feature 2-4 different types of apparatus to try. We’ll explore the fundamentals of each, including ways to mount and dismount, simple poses. Then we’ll sequence some basic skills that can be transferred across the various apparatus, so you can get a feel for their similarities and differences. The workshop also includes a warm-up and flexibility segment, cool down and some aerial conditioning exercises, as well as an overview of form and safety.
What to Bring: Wear comfortable, close-fitting clothes that offer a full range of motion – leggings and a leotard are preferred. You’ll probably want something that protects the backs of your knees, such as tights or over-the-knee socks.
Pre-Requisites: Some aerial experience is great, but not required.
Production Notes: This class can be 1-2 hours, with 90 minutes recommended. Ability to rig in teaching space is essential. Host/producer can request specific apparatus, or it can be my choice.
Intro to Aerial
Apparatus Sampler
You’ll begin to dance on the aerial hoop in this intro workshop. We’ll explore the fundamentals of aerial hoop, including spinning, ways to mount and get down from the hoop, simple poses. Then we’ll sequence some basic skills including posing, spinning and inverting. The workshop also includes a warm-up and flexibility segment, cool down and some aerial conditioning exercises, as well as an overview of form and safety.
What to Bring: Wear comfortable, close-fitting clothes that offer a full range of motion – leggings and a leotard are preferred. You’ll probably want something that protects the backs of your knees, such as tights or over-the-knee socks.
Pre-Requisites: Some dance and/or movement arts experience is great, but not required.
Production Notes: This class can be 1-2 hours, with 90 minutes recommended. Ability to rig in teaching space is essential. Depending on number of pre-registered attendees and rigging situation, I can rig multiple apparatus.
Beginning Aerial Dance on the Hoop
You’ll begin to dance on the aerial sling in this intro workshop. We’ll explore the fundamentals of aerial sling, including ways to mount and dismount, simple poses. Then we’ll sequence some basic skills including posing, standing, and inverting. The workshop also includes a warm-up and flexibility segment, cool down and some aerial conditioning exercises, as well as an overview of form and safety.
What to Bring: Wear comfortable, close-fitting clothes that offer a full range of motion – leggings and a leotard are preferred.
Pre-Requisites: Some burlesque and/or aerial experience is great, but not required.
Production Notes: This class can be 1-2 hours, with 90 minutes recommended. Ability to rig in teaching space is essential. Depending on number of pre-registered attendees and rigging situation, I can rig multiple slings.