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| Little Miss Nasty @ Jolene's (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
I wasn’t sure what to expect when I went to cover Little Miss Nasty on the final date of their US 21 city “Bad Girls Romance” tour Sunday in San Francisco. LMN’s unique brand of “heavy metal burlesque” was a blend of dance, theater, contortion, live music and advocating for the rights of women. Started over a decade ago, LMN has toured the world and maintained residencies in cities like Las Vegas and New York.
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| Gina Katon (center) of Little Miss Nasty @ Jolene's (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
While their performances are normally staged in theaters with full stages, Jolene’s Bar & Grill has been the San Francisco venue of choice since their first touring days. The performance was immersive throughout the bar with the pool table converted to a small stage on the bar floor, a free-standing contortionist bar positioned near the front entrance and the bar top itself converted into the main stage for the various performance scenes. “This is a different show because of the venue size, but Jolene’s has always been great to us and we love coming here” manager Marc Jordan told me before the show.
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| Little Miss Nasty @ Jolene's (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
The audience was energetic and impassioned. Jolene’s is self-described as “San Francisco’s queer destination” and while the lesbian community was heavily represented, there was diversity among the audience and a welcoming and open spirit. While it appeared obvious that I was the only 50+ male in the crowd, crowd members were graciously friendly and I was asked many times before the show how many times I had seen or photographed LMN previously. Though it was my first time, every attendee I spoke with had seen their show before and one by one, they smiled knowingly and told me that the show would be wild and I would love it – and they were right!
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| Little Miss Nasty @ Jolene's (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
There is nothing that brings people together more than the joy of shared experiences and LMN’s performance demonstrated that once again. The first set was filled with rapid-fire short performance dance numbers with most set to the pounding heavy metal. Routines alternated between the stages and even out into the audience on occasion. The crowd roared with approval for every one of them. Several times I heard audience members recognizing the next scene with an “Oh, I love this one!”
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| Little Miss Nasty @ Jolene's (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Throughout the night, the six female performers onstage moved between various costumes and states of dress (in line with the traditions of burlesque, there was no “nudity” as each of the women wore black tape to cover their nipples). Routines poked at organized religion, authoritarianism and traditional sexual roles.
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| Little Miss Nasty @ Jolene's (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
The second set took the act to the next level - musically and politically. LMN introduced their live musical element. While most of the members took to the mic at some point, LMN leader Gina Katon stood out as their musical leader. Katon serves as lead singer of the band Gina and the Eastern Block and much of the second act centered around performance pieces focused on songs such as “Bad Girls Romance”, “Me and You” and “Freak on a Leash.” Meanwhile, LMN were stressing messages of female empowerment and freedoms that resonated universally with the crowd on hand. Video boards behind the act sent multiple messages including one extended segment that leaned heavily into video around the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement in Iran. The performances stressed women taking back power over their own bodies and sexual experiences or preferences.
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| Little Miss Nasty @ Jolene's (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
The audience stayed throughout the entire two-set two-hour performance and seemed to gain strength in appreciating and enjoying the routines. As the night went on, they got louder and more boisterous and the performers reciprocated and continually taking the energy higher. At the finish, Katon took the microphone to issue thanks to the audience for their contribution to the night’s success. While I didn’t know what to expect going in, I knew coming out that I had been lucky enough to see a powerful and unique spectacle. I would wholeheartedly recommend the LMN to anyone open to liberal (and liberating) entertainment experiences.
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