Miss Mina Murray

Dear Constant Reader,

You have probably hear me talk at length about our sour cherry tree. We planted it not long after moving into The Manor and over the years it grew from a tiny tree, producing maybe a pound of cherries, to a two-story beauty, giving us more cherries than we could pick.

For three or four weeks every June and July, everything would be cherries at The Manor. I would spend all my free time baking and preserving and trying new recipes. I know plenty of people who looked forward to…

Dear Constant Reader,

Happy Friday! It’s lovely out today and we are just over one week away from Isle of Tease at Deacon Giles! Do you have your tickets? We’ve got some great new acts for you!

This week’s tip is for audience members and I’m sorry I’ve got to give it.

Stay off the stage.

I know that seems obvious, but you’d be surprised.

I have definitely been in shows where security has had to keep patrons from joining the show. I’m glad you’re inspired, but the performers are the ones here to entertain…

Dear Constant Reader,

Whilst I was swooning on my invalid’s couch I might as well watch a movie and write a review. I should have picked a different movie because I had so many questions from this one

Striporama, 1953, directed by Jerald Intrator (Something Weird Video release)

Unlike most burlesque movies of the time, Striporama tries to have a plot or at least a frame story. The New York Council of Culture is choosing the forms of entertainment to put into a time capsule and they are all agreed that…

Dear Constant Reader,

Happy Friday! I was just out for a walk and the trees are covered with blossoms. Spring is such a brief and lovely thing in New England! This week’s tip is:

There is no set order in which to remove your costume pieces.

Sure, sometimes you have to remove one garment to get to another, like shoes before stockings, or it will be easier for you to manipulate a fastening if you’re not wearing your gloves at that point. However, there is absolutely no reason to follow the “canonical”…

Dear Constant Reader,

Your Faithful Correspondent is laid up in bed with some sort of bug (I’m doing better, just very tired) and since I can’t seem to bring myself to do any of the active things had planned for the day, how about a book review.

Punk Rock Aerobics by Maura Jasper and Hilken Mancini, 2004.

Wait, you say, is this our refined Miss Mina writing of punk rock? You many not believe this, but as a dainty young thing I could be found in the mosh pit at an all-ages hardcore club. I still retain a…

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s Friday again! I try to makes these tips practical or uplifting — more “do”s than “don’t”s, but that’s not the case this week.

Sometimes people just suck.

There are people in the burlesque scene who seem to derive pleasure from attacking others and rallying others to do similar. Sometimes those who do not join in or speak in opposition become targets themselves.

I don’t have any solutions. Just that if you have been the victim of one of these campaigns, you have my sympathies. If…

Dear Constant Reader,

Happy Friday! Here’s your tip:

Make sure your jewelry and your act are compatible.

I don’t just mean that the jewelry coordinates with your costume. Rhinestone jewelry is notoriously catchy; check that you aren’t going to snag delicate fabrics on the settings (I have a tip that can help!). Can you wear bracelets with your gloves and still do a smooth peel? Does your necklace look good with the different necklines of your costume layers? Do your earrings get tangled in your hair after…

Dear Constant Reader,

I’ve briefly left Fannie Farmer to cook with Mrs. Crocombe. The latest Victorian Way video from English Heritage has her cooking furmenty. I immediately perked up because we have a lot of wheat berries left over from Christmas Eve dinner when I made kutya. Kutya is a traditional Ukrainian Christmas Eve dessert made from wheat berries cooked in almond milk, then baked with dried fruit, nuts, ground poppy seeds, and honey. As we could only find the wheat berries in a five pound bag, I’ve…

Dear Constant Reader,

Last week I saw the documentary Carol Doda Topless at the Condor. By the way, what a pleasure it is to see a movie in a theatre! I found out the movie was playing near us at about the last minute and I’m glad the timing worked out so that we were able to see it. It’s not about burlesque per se, but the transitional period of adult entertainment between burlesque and the neo-burlesque revival.

Carol Doda was a cocktail waitress at the San Francisco night spot the Condor Club in North…

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s a very blustery day here in Boston. I hope everyone is snug inside, or having better weather than we are!

Here’s a tip to brighten up the day:

When removing, keep moving.

I don’t mean that you have to be in constant motion while stripping. In fact, there are time when you want to be still to highlight a garment peel. But make it a deliberate choice. Just stopping dead to remove something and then starting up again can look like it’s hard to do two things at once. And we want the…