They already have saucy nicknames, spicy costumes, and sassy moves.
If you're an active burlesque troupe, you're already nine-tenths of the way to the comic-con spirit. It was no stretch - well, maybe a slow, voluptuous one - for the Foxxie Follies to totally geek out at one of their torchy ensemble shows.
The Foxxie Follies invites the Prince George audience to Nerdlesque on Saturday night.
"It's burlesque with a comic book and video game twist," said Shannon Williams, one of the cast members.
"We are gonna get down with our nerdy selves. Phasers replace feather boas and D20s replace pastie tassels in this exciting trend of modern burlesque. As nerd culture merges with the mainstream, Nerdlesque, too, is evolving the art of burlesque. Our nerdy acts are sure to tickle your modern-day geek fantasies."
This group is relatively new to the city. It is an offshoot of the well-known Bottoms Up Baring Burlesque group based in Quesnel and captained by the acclaimed burlesque dance leader Sassparilla Foxx. That troupe has been featured at the Two Rivers Gallery's Menagerie event and at Northern FanCon in the past year.
The response to these appearances was a local hunger to be part of the action. Local people like Williams stepped forward to expand the regional scope of Bottoms Up.
That, too, came from one of the Quesnel-based members of Bottoms Up moving to Fort St. James but all involved refusing to allow that from getting in the way of still being involved with one another.
So, for regional affairs, when the show happens in Prince George or other places around the area with those broadly based cast members, the name also changes to the Foxxie Follies. Each show features soloists doing individual numbers, and some group numbers.
"Burlesque is a celebration of art, dance, music and body positivity," Williams said.
"The Foxxie Follies are inclusive, with men and women of all shapes, ages and sizes taking part in the shows each month. Their members are from Quesnel, Prince George and Fort St. James. They have been doing monthly shows in Quesnel for two years and consistently sell out 200-person venues."
Now, she said, they are slowly building an audience and a cast in Prince George. There are experienced burlesque dancers in this city who are not members of their group, she said, but the Foxxie Follies issues them a standard invitation to come dance if they wish, or even to contribute coaching.
There is also another dance troupe in the city - an offshoot of Zahira Middle Eastern Belly Dancers - that the Foxxie Follies are open to working with.
"We love them. We love new dancers, new classes, building up the audience, so it all works together," Williams said.
"There are tonnes of 'burly' boys, too. It's about having fun with your body, the love of music, the love of comedy, the love of entertaining an audience and pushing the message that you deserve to be in the spotlight, no matter who you are. For me the journey is about finding myself and becoming more comfortable with my body image and my personal growth."
She said the audiences in Prince George have been wildly supportive. Only one time to her knowledge, she said, someone walked out of a show in an offended huff.
She joked that maybe that person was upset it wasn't actually a 'full monty' strip show.
No, like belly dancing or pole dancing, burlesque only has some of the window dressing of a strip show.
It is a teasey, tittery theatrical show that borrows some of the atmosphere of a stripper performance but if stripping is a dirty joke, burlesque is just sarcastic innuendo. It only goes so far, and the crux of all burlesque numbers is fun, not fantasy.
"It's so important to me," Williams said.
"I've had people come up to me after shows telling me how I inspired them and set an example for them and how it helped them think more positively about themselves and their bodies. That's the message in burlesque - that we all have the right to feel sexy and be seen and appreciated for who we are."
The Foxxie Follies group has established a monthly schedule (they hope to also do special events as requested) of performances.
Their show on Saturday has a theme and a proximity to Halloween that the group hopes will inspire cosplay with the audience.
Everyone who attends is encouraged to dress up, just like the performers will be.
The show happens at the Eagles Hall (6742 Dagg Rd.)
The doors open and cocktail hour begins at 7:30 p.m. The show starts at 9 p.m.
Tickets are $25 and available at Bolli Imports in Pine Center Mall (sellouts have occurred before, so buy in advance to avoid disappointment).
Following Saturday, there are more Foxxie Follies dates to pencil into the calendar:
Nov. 19 at Eagles Hall.
Dec .17 Art Space.
Jan. 21 Treasure Cove Show Lounge.
Feb. 10 Treasure Cove Show Lounge.
In April the troupe will hold its Itty Bitty Burlesque Festival.
