Last night's premiere of Gary Beeber's documentary Dirty Martini & The New Burlesque was a spectacular evening, not only for its glamour, but for the setting. The Lower East Side was the birthplace of New York burlesque and the Abrons Arts Center's red-curtained theatre on Grand and Pitt Streets conveyed as much old-school charm as possible without saw dusted floors.
The documentary was shown first and participants in the documentary performed afterwards. Hosted by the hilarious Murray Hill, the show featured all the New York burlesque icons: Julie Atlas Muz, Bunny Love, Bambi the Mermaid, The World Famous *Bob*, Angie Pontani, Peekaboo Pointe, Tigger! and, of course, Dirty Martini herself.
There was a new act debuted by Angie Pontani: a tribute to her Italian heritage, she was the statue of a roman goddess, "the perfect woman", who came alive once a year and danced naked around a town square. Julie Atlas Muz did her classic rope act; The World Famous *Bob* was Marilyn Monroe; Bunny Love covered herself in pie-filling; Bambi the Mermaid performed her outstanding lobster routine, in which she disembowels herself to the dulcet strains of Take All of Me; Peekaboo Pointe, in her cat routine, and Tigger! both electrified the audience with their sheer dynamism. Tigger! dived off the stage naked.
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