Dita Von Teese and her all star cast of burlesque greats are on the road again this summer with The Art of the Teese. In an interview with 21st Century Burlesque at the end of 2016, Dita called it “a glamorous but riotous two hours of show … with the biggest and most lavish production in the history of burlesque.”
Dita makes a number of appearances throughout the production, reviving her celebrated ‘Lazy’ number, as first seen at The Crazy Horse Paris, reimagined with the assistance of her impossibly suave ‘Vontourage’ – Alek Palinski and Elio Martinez – and featuring her singing. The act features a beautiful, crystallized dressing gown by British designer Jenny Packham.
She also performs as a hot pink cowgirl on a glittering mechanical bull, made all the more impressive by the fact that her eye-watering costume is incredibly heavy. Her turn as a beguiling black swan in a Swan Lake act features pointe shoes by Gaynor Minden, embellished with iconic red Louboutin soles.
Dita makes her final appearance in each show with a chic blonde version of her signature hairstyle, created by Robert Miller-Navarre of Navarre Creations, and styled by Tony Medina (His Vintage Touch). She steps out of her exquisite ‘Canary’ gown, created by the visionary Mr Pearl in 2010, and bathes in a fabulous new Swarovski-studded glass, the creation of which was overseen by legendary performer and designer Catherine D’Lish.
Eddie DeBarr is the ingenious wardrobe master for Dita Von Teese on the tour, and Cali Crawford manages the painstaking Swarovski embellishment.
If a dazzling glass, a pink, beglittered bull and a sumptuous ballet fantasy weren’t enough, two other iconic Dita props appear in the show, entrusted to the skillful hands of her co-stars.
The universally worshipped Dirty Martini is wowing the crowds with a reinterpretation of one of Dita’s classic acts. The glittering carousel horse, which Dirty jokingly christened “Sparkles Wellington Chesterfield the 2nd” on her Instagram page, is a Dita Von Teese original. Dirty has a beautiful new costume made for the occasion by celebrated costumier David Quinn, with a new wig by Severely Mame.
“I love seeing Dirty Martini on my original carousel prop!” Dita remarked on social media. “This was one of my first big burlesque acts from 16 years ago, and it’s truly a pleasure to have Dirty performing her own distinctive version of an act that is so dear to me. I have fond memories of Swarovski crystallizing the horse in my living room with Catherine D’Lish back then. It was one of our earliest, most sparkly projects together, and it probably the first ultra-extravagant crystallized costume and prop we ever did.”
Ginger Valentine, whose heart-stopping striptease has earned millions of views on Youtube, performs a new version of Dita’s ‘My Heart Belongs to Daddy’ act, featuring an eight foot wrought iron heart, with lights and a fetching candy apple red Chevy paint finish. “It is a dream to perform her iconic act,” says Ginger. “I’m so grateful to both Dita and Catherine D’Lish for their guidance and help in bringing this act to the stage.”
Also appearing on the tour are celebrated boylesque giant Jett Adore…
Australian sensation Zelia Rose – who won Best Debut at the Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekend in 2015…
…and dancer, model and RuPaul’s Drag Race superstar Violet Chachki.
Visit www.artoftheteese.com to purchase tickets for the remaining tour stops in San Francisco, Denver, Seattle, Riverside, Los Angeles and Anaheim.
