Jenni “Svetlana DeMure” James (right) said Saturday’s Valentine’s Day burlesque show in Cooktown could not have gone any better. Photo: Steph Hook.
The red lace and feather fans may be back in their costume boxes for now, but Cooktown’s burlesque scene is just getting started after a ragingly successful production by the Bellahdi Dance Troupe on Saturday night.
The sold-out performance, Cupids Chaotica, was the group’s first self-produced show, bringing together 90 locals for a fun and sexy Valentine’s Day celebration.
Dancer Jenni James, known as Svetlana DeMure on the stage, said the show went better than any of the performers could have imagined, adding tickets sold out two weeks prior to the show, with more having to be offered due to staggering demand.
“The show was an absolute riot and a huge success; I’m so proud of everyone who helped us make our crazy dream a reality,” she said.
“We could’ve sold many more, as people were trying to get tickets on social media and asking the crew if they could get tickets right up until the show started.
“The crowd’s encouragement and participation was better than we’d expected it to be, and that just made us want to perform at our absolute best for them.”
Ms James said it was an incredibly empowering night, with an audience full of fellow women cheering them on.
“Our group is all different ages, all different body types and all different personalities, and we all just come together and it’s really empowering,” she said.
“That’s really what it’s about for me – that feeling good in your body and in your skin, because we all know how hard that is these days with all the social media pressures and stuff.”
After the performance, she said it was great to see other women wanting to get involved and put their dancing shoes on as well.
“We had so many ladies saying before the show, you know, ‘I couldn’t do that, you’re so brave’, but then after the show, ladies were already talking about perhaps being able to do some workshops and some classes,” Ms James said.
“I definitely think the ladies saw that we’re just normal Cooktown people who live and work in the community, and they could perhaps do something like that, too.
“I guess there was that side of thinking people are going to judge me, because I’m up there doing something that’s a bit different, a bit risky, but everywhere I’ve gone around town in the lead-up to it, people have just been really supportive and saying they can’t wait for the show.”
After an overwhelmingly positive response to their first production, Ms James said the troupe was keen to add another performance to the Cooktown social calendar.
“I’m so incredibly proud of the Bellahdi Babes and our crew for all the effort everyone has put in to create a show that was so polished and professional,” she said.
“Most people probably don’t realise just how much work goes into a show like ours; we’ve been practicing two to three times a week since the start of the year, making costumes to the small hours of the morning, and agonising over the finer details for weeks.
“We’ve decided we need to do it again so everyone who missed out can have a chance to see us perform, but people will have to get in quick, as most people who attended [Saturday] night said they’d love to see more.”
After an overwhelmingly positive response from the community, the Bellahdi dancers say another show is on the agenda for the Cooktown calendar. Photo: Steph Hook.
