Event organizer Miriam Genestier in last year's vaudeville play, photo by Sasha Brunelle. LE BOUDOIR Dykes Put on a Bawdy Night of Lesbian Talent Montreal BY EUAN BEAR at’s bawdy, bilingual, and the best benefit for a Pride event north of the border? Le Boudoir, certaine- ment! Or at least so said co-pro- ducer Miriam Ginestier. Le Boudoir was her brainchild in a quest to meld her “mainstream” dance/cabaret work with an enter- tainment showcase for lesbian tal- ent. It’s a benefit for Divers/Cite, ‘lie huge Montreal Pride celebra- tion. Le Boudoir is cabaret and dance, burlesque and vaudeville- style theatre all rolled into a single event that runs from 9 pm (doors Open at 7:30) to midnight at Montreal’s magnificent art deco cabaret hall, le Lion D’Or. It cele- brates “original burlesque, provid- mg an Opportunity ripe for the reversal of normal social order and uncensored expression," according to the event’s press release. Ginestier has produced many other cabarets at the same venue - a space that is more stage- friendly than your average bar. “At first, I didn’t know enough lesbian performers, so I used straight girls in some acts,” Ginestier said in a phone interview. “But now it has become so well-known and even generates an occasion to create new work” for lesbian performers. One group, the Mambo Drag Kings, formed expressly for this event, Ginestier said, and has now gone on to perform internationally. The show comes in three parts, with generous interrnissions between, and involves 30 acts. In the 35-minute first part, there will be a dozen short acts, including a silent movie, a drag troupe, a pan- tomime, and a monologist interact- ing with a projection of her butch self, with whom she makes love. Did I mention bawdy? Part 2 is a 45-minute play, written especially for le Boudoir. Part 3 is more typical (if anything about le Boudoir can be called “typical”) cabaret fare. At the intermissions, audience mem- bers can wander around, visit a dream interpreter or have their palms read, get a temporary tattoo. eat, drink, check out the “peep show,” and be very merry. Ginestier produces eight cabarets a year. “Queer culture is not as rich as its potential. There’s a lot of talent out there.” But because the shows are often risque’, Ginestiere says, they don’t trans- late to mainstream venues. “I refuse to admit mainstream media. I don’t want our shows to become some kind of titillating entertain- ment for straight people.” Its roots lie in early forms of burlesque, vaudeville and tum-of-the-century music hall. It was a time and a venue in which artists celebrated themselves and their common triumphs and hopes. Burlesque and vaudeville punc- tured the pretensions of ponderous artistic traditions and celebrated the joie de vivre of the community. Performances were often seduc- tive, scandalous, and subversive. Among other creations showcased will be writer-director Nathalie Claude’s naughty vaude- ville version of “The Four (cross- dressing) Muskateers,” including 2 dueling queens, full of double- entendres, asides, and mistaken identities. Then too, watch for La Flor de la Canela, or The Cinnamon Flower, a pantomime / group-dance act put in motion by Ginestier herself. Somewhere along the line you’ll see the Tap Rockettes and Damsels in Dress (though they may or may not stay that way). The thirty pieces of golden talent will be held together by marvelous mistress of cere- monies Johanne Cadorette. Le Boudoir has been very well received in its past 10 years. Even the puritanical set who have campaigned against the sexual objectification of women (by men), she said, “are seduced by the good quality. This is not spo- ken word, not folk, it’s fun. We get a very mixed crowd ranging in age from 18 to 60. I consider myself a feminist, and most of my perform- ers do too, it’s just expressed a bit differently.” One year, Ginestier recalled, she discovered that the Francophone lesbian community members who attended were “hor- rified by dildoes” onstage. Last year there was an incident of lan- guage tension when a piece prima- rily in English drew a catcalled critique from a Francophone activist. But those were minor bumps compared to the raucus — and positive — response drawn by bumps — and grinds — onstage. Audiences are invited to come in fancy dress, and be warned: gentlemen seeking admis- sion must be escorted by a lady. So, for a wickedly fun evening’s entertainment in the big city to the north, it might be well worth a trip to le Boudoir. Just please remember to designate a sober driver for the trip back or to make arrangements to stay in the city. 7 LeBoudoir will be performed on Thursday ($15) and Friday ($20), June 10-11 at le Lion D’Or, locat- ed at 1676 Ontario Street East in Montreal. Tickets available online at www.ticketpro.ca and in Montreal at Cafe’ Esperanza (5490 St-Laurent). A limited number of tickets will be on sale at the door. Editor Euan Bear lives less than 20 miles from the Canadian border.