Tickets are flying out faster than Santa’s reindeer for Bellahdi Dance Troupe’s latest showcase, Christmas Chaotica, as they prepare to put Cooktown on Santa’s naughty list this Christmas in July. Photo: Supplied.
A sizzling performance by Cooktown’s beloved burlesque dancers this Christmas in July is set to put community members on Santa’s naughty list.
The Bellahdi Dance Troupe will return to the Cooktown Shire Hall stage for their second self-produced show on 11-12 July after a sold out Valentine’s Day showcase earlier this year.
Troupe leader Jasmine “Madam Maeham” Sieverding said after an overwhelming response to their first show, they would be performing their newest cheeky production, Christmas Chaotica, for two nights.
“It (the Valentine’s Day show) sold out so quickly; we had people harassing us for tickets for days,” she said.
“We thought we’d give it a big swing and see if we could fill the hall twice, and hopefully have people not miss out this time.”
Ms Sieverding said the show, for which tickets were already selling fast, would deviate from the usual sleigh bells and Christmas carols.
“We’re taking the wholesome family fun out of Christmas,” she laughed.
“I wanted to have a little bit of fun with the Christmas theme, and lean away from the Christmas carols and all that sort of thing, and just get a little bit silly and a little bit sexy.”
For the first time, there will be a student performance included in the showcase, the product of a six-week burlesque dance workshop series.
Ms Sieverding said many of the students were shy about performing at first, but now, halfway through the series, their confidence had grown exponentially.
“Some people were keen, but most people were a bit cautious, a bit shy about it,” she said.
“I checked in with them this morning, and pretty much every single student is keen to perform now, so they’re all getting up on stage and just having an amazing time, and they’re all doing an incredible job with the workshop, so I cannot wait to see them up there.”
Ms Sieverding said she did not know how the workshops would be received at first, but was incredibly proud of the participants’ growth and the connections they had made with each other.
“I just said to everyone, ‘my only goal is to help leave you with a little bit more confidence than you came in here with’,” she said.
“It’s awesome to see such a diverse group connecting with and dancing together and having fun.
“We’ve got people in their 20s to their 60s in the group, so it’s really cool to see women from all age groups and all walks of life getting up and improving their confidence, improving their skills and expanding their horizons a little bit.”
Tickets for the event can be purchased here.
