Above: Selene in her Varla outfit. Photo by Mark Berry.
Do you travel to perform?
Yes and this ties in with memorable burlesque experiences. Because of burlesque I have been able to travel a lot, which is something I never considered would be a part of this little burlesque career. I’ve performed on international stages wicih has been a dream come true. I never imagined I would have that opportunity in my life. It’s pretty amazing how it has caught on internationally—like, you actually want to see what WE do? Cool!
Who inspires you most, and why?
I’ve met so many people who inspire me. This is a little bit out there but an inspiration that really stands out in my mind is Vaginal Davis. Vag is absolutely one of the early performers in my life who really inspired me to be clever and entertaining and generous onstage, and really taught me about stage presence and letting go and being as wrong as I want to be, to have an artistic experience. Whenever Vag comes to the stage it’s unlike what anyone else can do, totally outside the box.
What is your favorite aspect of burlesque as it is now?
Tough question, but I can say one aspect I like is the awareness in people appreciating such an old art form and bringing it to life again. Really, it’s been sweet watching people come together globally. The best part about it is the new generation of people being exposed to this old art form that was really edgy and racy in its day and, the women who did are finally getting their props, better late than never. They’re getting a second wave of celebrity.
What would you like to do or see next in burlesque?
I actually am semi-retired. If some incredible show comes up of course I’ll go for it, but I’ve moved on in a way. I’ve had the great fortune to see just about every show possible; I can’t think of what hasn’t been done. I’d love to see more consistent attention to production quality and lots of innovation. There’s a core group of gals who can do that “having a case of the fuck-its turn out to be entertaining.”
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Can you tell me a bit about your best-known act?
My most well-known act is one I really do like to share the story behind. It’s my baby number where I come out of a vintage baby pram. One of the reasons I have so much fun with burlesque is that the flip side of my life is that I pursue a conventional acting career and burlesque allowed me to really express myself and experiment and make little statement without shoving stuff down their throats in a way you never can with conventional acting. I was inspired by silent movies. I was doing a lot of research for my one-woman show focusing on the history of little people in show biz. During the silent movie era little people were employed in films a lot more than they are now because you could be more politically incorrect. In some films they’d have a little person dressed as a baby tportraying a burglar or jewel thief in a wacky Keystone Cop type of thing. The ongoing theme in these movies, which were cranked out like crazy, was that a little person would team up with an average size lady, they’d pretend he was her baby and he’d be smoking a cigar. Those bits cracked me up. So that burlesque numer was my play on that. I come out of the carriage with the cigar. I really wanted to tap into that aesthetic. It’s my tribute to little people’s contribution to films. It still can be fun for people who don’t get the reference. It really tickles me when people are offended. I just thought it was cute and enchanting, but there’s always someone in the audience that doesn’t know how to react to me and I kind of get a rise out of it like I’m punking them. The first time I did that number an entire table of people walked out. Did they think I was tricked into doing it or something? isn’t that more much insulting than anything about the number could be? As far as I’m concerned we’re making lemonade! I feel lucky to be doing what I do. I’ve had more positive reactions than negative and that’s what matters.