Here at Boing Boing, back in 2018, Rusty Blazenhoff shared news about "The Empire Strips Back"—no, that's not a typo—a Star Wars-themed burlesque show that was touring California at the time. Well, I'm back to let you know that if you missed it then, you can still catch the show in one of the last few cities of its current tour. It's currently playing in Seattle through August 27, then heads to Phoenix (starting September 6), Vancouver (starting September 20), Paris (starting October 6), and Portland (starting November 1).
The Phoenix New Times describes the show and its history:
Launched in 2011 by veteran Australian burlesque promoter Russall S. Beattie, "The Empire Strips Back" has sold out venues around the world during multiple tours.
While geek-themed burlesque shows featuring "Star Wars" characters have been a thing for more than a decade, Beattie aimed to do something different with this production.
"What most people know as burlesque is a very classic style — fans, feathers, big-band music, you know, vintage aesthetics," Beattie told the Arizona Republic in 2019. "I wanted to evolve the way the audience perceives burlesque and do something a bit different, and just as a joke we did a 'Star Wars' burlesque show as a one-off, just as a joke between our more serious shows. Little did I know that would be the most popular show I've ever created."
"The Empire Strips Back" also features some big-time production values and elaborate elements. "The Empire Strips Back" features a total of seven dancers who portray dozens of "Star Wars" characters during the two-hour-long show. It's full-sized Jabba the Hutt puppet also cost more than $50,000 to build and requires four people to operate.
To learn more, see tour dates, and buy tickets, head to The Empire Strips Back website.
