ACT OUT: Gorilla Tango Burlesque Round Up & Donna Madonna

Now that it's October, Halloween is in the air.   We'll be doing a Gorilla Tango late night double feature October 6th and we'll have a review up for you shortly.   We'll be checking out both Fellowship of the Boobs & Boobs of the Dead.

For now here's a mini GT round up:

Photos courtesy of John Paul Karliak

Donna Madonna

finding acceptance, told through stories, songs 

DONNA/MADONNA WRITTEN AND PERFORMED BY JOHN PAUL KARLIAK

*SET FOR ONE PERFORMANCE ONLY OCTOBER 16 AT 
GORILLA TANGO THEATRE IN BUCKTOWN 

Rizzo 39 Productions has announced a one night only 
engagement of DONNA/MADONNA at the Gorilla Tango 
Theatre Bucktown (1919 N Milwaukee Ave. Chicago, 
IL 60647) on October 16 at 7:30pm. Written and 
performed by John Paul Karliak, DONNA/MADONNA is 
directed by Tiger Reel and Matthew Craig. Tickets 
are $20 and available at www.gorillatango.com or 
773-598-4549. 
 

In this hilarious and poignant autobiographical 
one-act, writer/performer John Paul Karliak wants 
desperately to be the perfect son for his adopted 
mother, a doting Catholic housewife from Scranton, 
PA. But realizing he will never be the ideal local 
boy, he seeks answers from a very different 
source: his fashion journalist, 
married-to-a-British-pop-star birth mother. 

Donna/Madonna is a tale of motherly love and and characters like Darth Vader, Carol Channing and John Paul's unforgettable mothers. 
 

Donna/Madonna was the winner of the Best One Man 

Show Award (2010 United Solo Theatre Festival in 
New York), Best of Fringe Award (2011 New York 
International Fringe Festival), Overall Excellence 
in Solo Performance Award (2011 San Francisco 
Fringe Festival), and Best Solo Performance (2011 
StageSceneLA.com Awards). Last year, the show 
enjoyed a successful run at Hollywood’s Lounge 
Theatre. 

John Paul Karliak’s LA theatre credits include The Mistakes Madeline Made, The Girl, the Grouch & the Goat, Into the Woods, Inherit the Wind, Women and Wallace, Whatever, and Sexual Perversity in Chicago. A graduate of the USC School of Theatre, iO West and Second City Training Center, John Paul has written numerous short films and plays which have been produced in various locales around the country, including Donna/Madonna, which is his first full-length solo production. 

Tickets for Donna/Madonna at the Gorilla Tango 
Theatre are available now, online at 
 www.gorillatango.com or by calling (773) 598-4549. 
All seats are $20. Gorilla Tango is located at 
1919 N. Milwaukee Avenue in Chicago, 60647. For 

more info, visit www.donnamadonnashow.com. 

GT Burlesque

BOOBS OF THE DEAD: A WALKING DEAD BURLESQUE
Hottest. Apocalypse. Ever.



"The Cast of BOOBS OF THE DEAD: A WALKING DEAD BURLESQUE."
L-R: Paly Flames as the CDC Official, Helena Handbasket as Best Friend, Slightly Spitfire as Southern Guy, Honey Cha-Cha as Burlesque Zombie Beta, Alexis Rex as the Sheriff, Duchess Daffnie as a Burlesque Zombie Alpha, Devyn DeViante as Wife Lady, and Roxi La Rue as Old Dude  All photos by K Leo (www.mirthandbeauty.com)

Soft, eerie moans. The relentless approach of shuffling footsteps. And glitter. So. Much. Glitter. 

Just in time for Halloween, Gorilla Tango Burlesque presents BOOBS OF THE DEAD: A WALKING DEAD BURLESQUE, the latest in a long line of unique and immensely popular scripted burlesque parodies. On stage in October ONLY, this silly, sexy Zombie-filled romp comes to life Fridays at 9pm and Saturdays at 11:59pm, October 5-27, 2012, with a special final performance on Wednesday, October 31st at 9pm (1919 N. Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago IL 60647). Tickets are $20; *18 and over only. Advance purchase highly recommended (tickets are already selling strong!) at www.gorillatango.com/zombies or by phone at 773-598-4549.

You may have encountered their viral (pun intended) marketing in the form of Facebook updates from the fictional Chicago CDC which have been charting the spread of “virus B1Z3” since early August with warnings that “virus-carriers have been observed performing elaborate dance routines while removing sequined corsetry before committing heinous assaults on confused onlookers,” and, “One of the greatest dangers is that the infected show no visible signs of boas, pasties or high heels for the first 6 hours of infection... while they appear perfectly normal and super sexy they remain dangerous, and citizens should watch for these subtle signs and remain at a safe distance.”

Featuring such familiar zombie-genre archetypes as Sheriff, Wife Lady, Old Dude, Best Friend and Southern Guy, this slyly satirical exhibition of reanimated flesh will appeal to any audience seeking some glittery gore for the spooky season. One doesn’t have to be a fan of the television series to recognize the sexual tension between Wife Lady and Best Friend or enjoy Sheriff’s encounter with an attractively anthropomorphic horse.

Written and directed by internationally renowned fine art photographer K Leo, and with choreography by Erica Gerdes (the creative force behind burlesque numbers performed by some of Chicago’s most well known “classic” troupes such as Kiss Kiss Cabaret and the Belmont Burlesque Revue) this show promises to be one of the hottest tickets of Chicago’s October offerings—so take our advice and get them now (before they get you!)

Written and Directed by K Leo
Choreographed by Erica ReidCostumes by Rafaela Valderrama 
Featuring: Paly Flames as the CDC Official, Alexis Rex as the Sheriff, Slightly Spitfire as Southern Guy, Roxi La Rue as Old Dude, Devyn DeViante as Wife Lady, Helena Handbasket as Best Friend, Duchess Daffnie as a Burlesque Zombie Alpha and Honey Cha-Cha as Burlesque Zombie Beta.

BOOBS OF THE DEAD: The apocalypse has never been hotter. 

FELLOWSHIP OF THE BOOBS: A LOTR, D&D, WoW, RPG BURLESQUE ADVENTURE returns to the GT Stage for limited Engagement: Saturdays at 10:30pm, September 22 - October 27, 2012 ONLY

Click here to check out our prior feature on Fellowship of the Boobs

MORE ABOUT GORILLA TANGO BURLESQUE

Over the past almost three years (!!!), Gorilla Tango Burlesque has gone from the debut of the surprise hit “Boobs & Goombas: A Super Mario Burlesque” in October 2010 to a local burlesque/comedy powerhouse with literally thousands of audience members through the door to see unique burlesque parodies of everything from Star Wars to Indiana Jones, from superheroes to 1990s pop-culture phenomena -- and that's just a small selection of what they have available for-- as their slogan states-- "the Discerning Nerd." 

GTB will debut its first Halloween-themed show, BOOBS OF THE DEAD: A WALKING DEAD BURLESQUE which runs in October only, and look for THE EMPIRE BRINGS SEXY BACK: A STAR WARS SEQUEL this November!

Gorilla Tango Theatre (GTT) provides year-round theatrical venues where audiences of all ages can consistently go to see a wide variety of talented artists. GTT exists to provide artists with an opportunity to produce their work in professional environment. GTT was created by Dan Abbate and boasts two venues: an 80-seat performance space in Bucktown and a 150-seat performance space in Skokie. GTT Bucktown is conveniently located at the intersection of Western and Milwaukee in Chicago's Bucktown neighborhood. Easily accessible by public transportation, GTT is steps away from the Western Blue Line stop and the #49 Western, #73 Armitage and #56 Milwaukee buses. Street parking is readily available.  Gorilla Tango’s Skokie Theatre is located in the heart of Downtown Skokie; street and lot parking available. With shows for all ages, all GTT performances are on a rating system, similar to the one used in movie theatres. GTT offers a variety of affordable beer and wine for purchase. Consult the website for show details, rating information, tickets, and more.

www.gorillatango.com – 773.598.4549

1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL 60647

7924 Lincoln Ave. Skokie, IL 60077

FELLOWSHIP OF THE BOOBS: A LOTR, D&D, WoW, RPG BURLESQUE ADVENTURE returns to the GT Stage for limited Engagement: Saturdays at 10:30pm, September 22 - October 27, 2012 ONLY

The FELLOWSHIP, Dinah Dentata as The Elf, Diva la Vida as The Mysterious Zemrat, London Derriere as The Warrior, and Hazel Hellbender as The Dwarf

Photo by K Leo, www.mirthandbeauty.com

End of summer got you down? Well Gorilla Tango Burlesque has a sure-fire pick up me, ready to send you THERE AND BACK AGAIN!

FELLOWSHIP OF THE BOOBS: A LOTR, D&D, WoW, RPG BURLESQUE ADVENTURE is returning for a limited run engagement: Saturdays at 10:30pm, September 22 - October 27, 2012 ONLY at Gorilla Tango Theatre Bucktown (1919 N. Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago 60647). Tickets are $20; to purchase tickets visit www.gorillatango.com or call 773-598-4549. 18 and over only.

Juicy Lucy as your friendly Dungeon Master

Photo by Greg Inda

With inspirations drawn from Lord of the Rings, World of Warcraft, and Dungeons and Dragons (as the title suggests), FELLOWSHIP OF THE BOOBS entwines classic burlesque gimmicks with iconic fantasy moments in an upbeat adventure plot that also pays homage to fantasy greats such as H.P. Lovecraft, J.K. Rowling, T.H. White, and “other brilliant authors with two first initials,” quips creator/director MsPixy, thumbing through a battered C.S. Lewis novel as she speaks.

From the start of the show the audience is welcomed as a fellow (chair-bound) adventurer and provided with training to fulfill their role as “Healer” on the journey. Endowed with the powers of Encouraging Woot (to give energy to the mighty bosoms of their fellow travelers) and Generous Tipping (to help restore Tip Points lost in battles with sexy beasties), both audience members with deep pockets and those saving their pennies for a post-show beverage can aide the forward progress of the Quest (and earn appreciative winks and shimmies from their on-stage companions).

Why yes, those ARE Merlocs.

Photo by Greg Inda

Though the script is chock-full of references for the die-hard nerd crowd, creator/director MsPixy reassures us that you don’t need a game manual to play along. “These are strong, sexy, satisfyingly silly characters that have become part of the cultural consciousness. You don’t need to have memorized a map of Middle Earth to enjoy the journey... but if you have, there are many landmarks you’ll recognize along the way.”

“We've put together an exceptionally fun group of girls for this limited run - Geek Girl (as the GTB troupe is known) regulars and newbies alike - and I really hope you’ll come out and support their boobs.”

She pauses...

“You know what I mean.”

Be wary of Shelobs lair...

Photo by Greg Inda

MORE ABOUT GORILLA TANGO BURLESQUE

Over the past almost three years (!!!), Gorilla Tango Burlesque has gone from the debut of the surprise hit “Boobs & Goombas: A Super Mario Burlesque” in October 2010 to a local burlesque/comedy powerhouse with literally thousands of audience members through the door to see unique burlesque parodies of everything from Star Wars to Indiana Jones, from superheroes to 1990s pop-culture phenomena -- and that's just a small selection of what they have available for-- as their slogan states-- "the Discerning Nerd." 

GTB will debut its first Halloween-themed show, BOOBS OF THE DEAD: A WALKING DEAD BURLESQUE which runs in October only, and look for THE EMPIRE BRINGS SEXY BACK: A STAR WARS SEQUEL this November!

Gorilla Tango Theatre (GTT) provides year-round theatrical venues where audiences of all ages can consistently go to see a wide variety of talented artists. GTT exists to provide artists with an opportunity to produce their work in professional environment. GTT was created by Dan Abbate and boasts two venues: an 80-seat performance space in Bucktown and a 150-seat performance space in Skokie. GTT Bucktown is conveniently located at the intersection of Western and Milwaukee in Chicago's Bucktown neighborhood. Easily accessible by public transportation, GTT is steps away from the Western Blue Line stop and the #49 Western, #73 Armitage and #56 Milwaukee buses. Street parking is readily available.  Gorilla Tango’s Skokie Theatre is located in the heart of Downtown Skokie; street and lot parking available. With shows for all ages, all GTT performances are on a rating system, similar to the one used in movie theatres. GTT offers a variety of affordable beer and wine for purchase. Consult the website for show details, rating information, tickets, and more.

www.gorillatango.com – 773.598.4549

1919 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL 60647

7924 Lincoln Ave. Skokie, IL 60077