The women of the newly formed A.Love.Nouveau burlesque
company have been perfecting their dance steps and lacing their
corsets in preparation for Friday’s debut performance.
Those thinking burlesque is just a strip show may be surprised, as
founder Carla Cordova-Eduave said there will be no frontal nudity at
the performance. But Cordova-Eduave doesn’t blame anyone for
making this mistake. She made it, too, when she was invited to go to a
burlesque show while living in Seattle.
“I had an idea of what I thought burlesque was, too, and I was
like, ‘Eh, I don’t really want to go to a strip show
that’s kind of weird,’” Cordova-Eduave says.
“But it was awesome. You know they really performed. It
wasn’t just like, ‘I’m going to take my clothes off
to this old song.’”
Cordova-Eduave was only interested in the fashion at first, but as
she attended more shows within Seattle’s vibrant burlesque scene,
the more she liked it. She found out burlesque is more about teasing
the audience than stripping for it. Of course, there is a fair amount
of bare flesh and a few pasties, but Cordova-Eduave says the dancing
embodies sensuality along with sexuality.
So when Cordova-Eduave moved back to Reno in July, she wanted to
create her own burlesque troupe. She called her friend
Naythanie’l Tavcar to choreograph the show for her. They
canvassed the area with posters calling for dancers. They held
auditions and picked 16 girls they wanted to work with.
“We had every shape, every size, every color, every
everything,” Tavcar says. “You name it, you could walk
through the room and find it.”
He says one of the company’s strengths its diversity,
including the drag queen MC, Miss Ginger Devine.
Yet whenever a woman gets on stage and takes off her clothes the
question arises as to whether she is being objectified. However,
Cordova-Eduave says the dancing has helped her feel more confident
about her body, and other dancers have noticed that, too.
“I saw it during our first performance,” says dancer
Edeanna Olejniczak. “There was excitement and nervousness
especially with some of the girls that had never done anything. But
there was a confidence—that was the overall feeling, that
everybody was feeling very good about themselves.”
Cordova-Eduave says part of the reason is the troupe portrays beauty
in a variety of ways—not just skinny, ultra-fit women. Also, the
dancers have complete control of what they do on stage. If a performer
isn’t feeling comfortable about a particular part, Tavcar is more
than willing to change it.
Just because the show appreciates women in a classy way
doesn’t mean a burlesque show is a reserved affair. Burlesque
etiquette dictates a lot of hollering and howling during the act, like
when a dancer takes off a piece of clothing or winks at the audience.
Of course, tips are appreciated as well.
With all the work she has put into the show, Cordova-Eduave is
excited for her creation to finally take life. Though they had a
preview show early in November, the company’s debut’s
Friday, Dec. 4, at Studio on 4th.
“Our first show is going to be epic,” says Tavcar.
“We have a girl who is going to be embodying a mob princess to
our classical diva to our debutant. I mean, we have everything,
and it is going to be phenomenal.”