Today might be the Hallmark-inspired Valentine's Day, but Saturday at the Bubble belonged to Janette Valentine and more than 20 other women (and some men who pretended to be) who transformed the venue into a veritable showcase of talent and entertainment.
Trouble With Girls, in its second year, is the Bubble's only woman-centric event. Curated by Shroud Eater bassist and pin-up photographer Janette Valentine, this year's show was a success both in attendence and in artistic scope. Burlesque dancers teased and grrrl bands Angry Pudding and Prettie Please entertained the sizable crowd outside, while vendors and crafty types sold jewelery and artwork inside.
| Photo by Erica K. Landau |
| Bubble entrance reads, "Tonight's event is an "All Girl Artist" venue. Some of our performers tonight will be wearing burlesque and risque outfits. Enter at your own risk...tonight's event is intended for mature audiences. All persons 18 and under must be accompanied by an adult." |
Attendees were greeted with a warning. The show was intended for mature audiences. But there was nothing mature about gallery co-owner Garo Gallo's makeup and outfit as he and his bandmates crashed the stage as the man-girl incarnation of Dooms de Pop. Hilariously outfitted in a dress that looked like ice-skating competition garb from the '80s, Gallo played a set of the band's newest material, part of an album which is slated for release soon.
Aurora Natrix and Morgan La Rue put on solo and duo performances, which were great distractions to spend time between the bands' sets. The perfect mixture of tease-sleaze and humor, both women elicited laughs and howls from the crowd, which was fronted by a line of photographers snapping and flashing the whole way through the performance.
What ultimately worked about the event was that each part of the gallery was well-utilized, from a corner spot where body-painter Keegan transformed her bombshell of a model into a burlesque-meets-garden-fairy performance/live art show to the soft, whimsical drawings and paintings by Jennifer Di Terlirri Basing in the main room. In another corner, Wendi Lederman sold her jewelry and Bubble regular Rachel DeJohn answered questions about her Peace Owl art. The genuine variety allowed for new experiences with almost every step. If an artist didn't impress you, there was something different to the right and left. Kudos to the Bubble staff/volunteers for the set-up, layout, and range of entertainment.
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