I’ve been in San Francisco for so long that people often forget that I haven’t been here forever.
In fact, I was born and raised in Springfield, Missouri, which makes this-coming weekend especially sentimental for me.
On Thursday, I’m going to be performing in the Burlesque Ball as part of the Kansas City Burlesque Festival. Kansas City is the first place I moved when I graduated from college, and I’ve often said that if it wasn’t in Missouri I would totally live there. It’s a fantastic town that holds great memories for me, and I am so thrilled to be able to perform there. When I moved away in 2000, burlesque was not yet a twinkle in my eye, so you can bet I never imagined that this is how I’d return.
For personal reasons, I’ll be cutting my time at the festival short and traveling down to Springfield to see my family, which I haven’t seen in an embarrassing number of years. (Seriously, I’m a terrible daughter/granddaughter who never goes home, and is terrible about picking up the phone.) It’s likely to be a bittersweet reunion, but…
On a whim yesterday I checked out Springfield’s own troupe Cherry Bomb Burlesque to see if they had a show this weekend, and in fact they do. But it’s not just any show. This Saturday they’ll be hosting Dangerous Curves Ahead, which just passed through San Francisco this past weekend as part of Tease-O-Rama. These ladies are absolutely phenomenal, and it’s kind of mind-blowing to think about them in Springfield. When I was growing up there, I was one of the weird, punkish, on-the-fringes kids. I couldn’t wait to get out of there, because Springfieldians JUST DIDN’T UNDERSTAND ME. Now they’ve got a burlesque troupe, and performers like Clams Casino and Anita Cookie are going to be there. Weird. And kind of amazing.
Know what’s MORE amazing? Cherry Bomb Burlesque is going to include me in Saturday’s line-up! I don’t even know how to convey how excited I am to perform burlesque in my hometown for the first time. When I moved away to Kansas City in 1997, I was crewing for a revival of Cabaret at the Springfield Little Theater. I’ve been back, maybe, five times since then. I’m guessing this will be the most memorable!
Wish me luck, kiddos. I’m sure the nerves will kick in any minute now.



