Get Thee to Lili's! - Sex~Kitten.net

The room is small & dark, decadence is in the air... A cocktail waitress, Amy, scurries about, getting drink orders delivered. Colleen works the door, collecting money & answering questions about burlesque as best she can in the noisy & fast environment. Eyes avert to the stage as the three piece bandstrikes up a bluesy rendition of "Ice Cream Man."

The crowd quiets down, politely listening to the band, anticipating the start of the show. Once MC Nadine Dubois takes to the stage, it becomes clear that this show isn't one you are expected to politely sit through. Shouting, applause, whistling, and vacating your seat to stand on the tables are encouraged here.

All this will encourage the performers, we are told ~ if you don't do this "they may not take it off!" Nadine instructs us, "So have a good time!" Oh yes, and don't forget the Tip Purse!

Nadine in her 1920's vamp garb, is dressed as if entertaining her lover in her parlor. She winks, flirts & jokes; with grace, plenty of eyebrow raising & enough eye contact with the audience to make you think it's all for you...

The crowd is awake, more than that, we are interested ~ and the show begins.

Coco Dupree enters, dressed all in black including her majestic black feather boa. She teases, she plays with a shoulder strap, the crowd applauded, she let's it slide... She dances, she tortures us with more hints, and with our applause encouraging her, little by little she dances herself down to her corsette & stockings. The crowd applauds & shouts, trying to coax more off of her, but like the burlesque dance itself, we are left wanting more...

Nadine returns to the stage, fanning herself, nodding in agreement with us, "Is it hot in here?" Oh yes, Nadine, it sure is!

Then it's time for Sweet Pea to give us a thrill. Sweet Pea is a powerhouse of a dancer. Her signature move is The Paint Shaker, which leaves all fascinated... But it was her dance with the hula hoop which had me on my feet! As one who can't do the darn thing, I was mesmerized as she danced, undressed, did The Paint Shaker, & even left stage while working that hoop! She makes it look so easy, I do believe hula hoop sales must increase by 10% after each performance.

Next, Karen Vieno Paurus, the sultry chanteause, approaches the microphone. All legs & wicked expression, she begins to sing "I Want a Little Sugar in my Bowl". Did we say sing? It's more like a shared joke between lovers ~ both intimate & naughty.

As each performer takes to the stage, the show becomes wilder & wilder. Each act teases the audience, who in turn responds with hoots & hollars, in kind the dancers remove more, stopping at pasties & 'full' panties (think rhumba, corsette, girdle ~ any vintage panty, but no thongs g-string or piece of floss).

Since it was DeeDee's first wedding anniversary, and the wicked Jewel told the performers of the occasion, there was a moment when Nadine turned to our table ~ or is that she turned on our table? With her come hither fingertips, she directed the uncomfortable couple to sit at the table & chairs on stage...

There the lovely Vica

played a drunken waitress. DeeDee said "Travis offered me a cigarette, and man, I never wanted one more, but I was too afraid this would become a prop for some fire trick, and I was not ready for that! Vica wasn't just a waitress, she was a wine slut! I'm sure the audience enjoyed her show, but frankly, her bending over before us gave us advantages most didn't see! *wink*"

Each performance is titillating. Tame by most exotic dancer standards both in terms of nudity and explicit acts, but they arouse. These girls flirt shamelessly, leave you wanting more, but always in that good way where you feel almost sated... almost...

You are not merely entertained, but engaged. You feel as if you are a part of the show ~ You are being played with, and you love it!

When they announce intermission, you're thinking "Holy crap! There's more?!" I don't want to screw you & have them increase the current doorprice, but damn then not only perform their asses off, but yours as well!

Along with the dance & seductive songbirds, there is hot music, manic Mad Libs, rowdy sing-alongs, and other treats. The band, Travis Merchant, Tom Lewandowski

& Frenchie not only play straight men for many of the jokes, but play damn fine rockabilly music. Travis can play his guitar on his back, and his wicked grin makes a girl wonder how well he could play her own 'front.' *wink*

One of the most outstanding & unexpected performances was Nadine's singing to the solo accompaniment of Frenchy on drums. Exquisite & delicious.

Shows include fire artists, whip performances, juggling, and just about anything you can imagine being in a great vaudeville or burlesque show of days gone by. Included in this evening's performance was a magician, Kristoffer Olson. A fun mix of magic & humor, he offered well needed punctuation to the sexual energy.

Unlike strip clubs where belligerent drunks attempt to paw, threaten worse, none of this ugliness touches the evening. Perhaps it's the fact that those so

easily frustrated & willing to humiliate themselves do not show up here, but I believe it has more to do with the romance, the tease & the lady like status of the performers themselves. Sure, they are naughty, naughty girls up there on stage. But there is never a moment where you do not feel they are in control, they are the puppeteers with the strings on us ~ they shimmy, we hollar; they toss thier hair & look over thier shoulder, we swoon; they twirl their tassles, we scream. And at each turn, they laugh & tease. As Sweet Pea says "We sell Sizzle, not the Steak," and the audience not only sees this difference from a strip joint, but respects it.

Overall, Lili's Burlesque Revue is a treat not to be missed. It's not just purr-fect for Sex Kittens, we all have plans to come back with friends & family.

So again, we repeat:

"If you do one thing in Minneapolis, get thee to Lili's!"

Stay tuned for interviews & more with the charming cast of Lili's Burlesque Revue!

(Tip: Even if you don't smoke, go outside at the intermission. There you'll mingle with the performers, the fabulous doorgirl Colleen & the wonderful Billy Fisk, sound & stage manager. We assume that in bad weather, the performers mingle inside, but this smoking ban means there will likely still be someone outside too!)