First, a review of The Book of Lost Things. I enjoyed it, mostly for its take on a few classic tales, and the fairy tale format of the main story itself. That said, if you're not already a fan of fairy tales and, especially, alternative fairy tales, then this is perhaps not the book for you. The link above will take you to a full review with more details (and some spoilers), but if I wasn't already in love with the source material, I seriously doubt I would have enjoyed this book half as much as I did.

On a related note, I'll be in Oxford, CT this weekend, telling tall tales to children. And hopefully a few adults. Because children are notoriously bad tippers. ;) Seriously, though, if you're even remotely in the area, you should come check out The Midsummer Magick Faire.

I'm going to be staying in NYC and will be arriving around 1 or 2 Thursday afternoon. My sister/hostess will still be at work, and I--having been trapped on a bus all day--will probably be bored and/or hungry. You should come hang out with me.

You should also do me a huge favor and fill out this survey for my sister's marketing class. How is this a favor to me, you ask? Well, the sooner she makes significant headway on this project, the more time and attention she can spend on me while I'm visiting! So go! Click.

Well, I didn't get the part with RTP. I'm not entirely surprised about this, really. My audition was good but not great, and the only role appropriate for my age range wasn't my usual type. I'm sure I'd be perfectly capable of playing it, but I'm unsurprised that someone meeting me for the first time and seeing that audition didn't immediately peg me for it.

My fingers are still crossed for Henley Street. I felt really good about the work I did at my callback, but the longer I wait without hearing anything, the more anxious I get about it. It's only been 6 days, so I'm not assuming the worst yet... but it sure would be nice to hear back.

All that said, I really need to get cracking and figure out what stories I want to prep for the Midsummer Magick Faire. I can't believe it's just two weeks away!

Anyone in NYC or North Jersey planning on coming out to see me that Saturday? Jeff's working on some way to get folks in from the city, but--having just realized how very close it is--I wouldn't mind a back-up plan for getting my sister, her boyfriend and his two kids out there.

--Wonder Woman creator, William Moulton Marston

While poking around the internet I ran across this article about all the ways in which Wonder Woman fails to be a great superhero. It points to a similar article which is only worth reading if you really have it out for Wonder Woman--most of its examples of why Wonder Woman sucks are from the Golden Age, and for my money that's sort of like saying, "Look at this dog. It's not as good as other dogs because it used to be a puppy." I've yet to find a Golden Age comic that wasn't painful to read.

That said, the author of the linked article makes some of the same basic points, but without frustrating me to an ungodly extent. Wonder Woman lacks the well-defined and recognizable cast of supporting characters and villains that make heroes like Batman and Spiderman so compelling. Her skimpy costume once said, "I don't play by your patriarchal rules," but now says something a bit more like, "I'd rather be a Victoria's Secret model." And then there's her origin story...

Probably, her Themyscirian origins are no more ridiculous than Superman's escape from Krypton... but somehow I just can't imagine a movie opening on a scene of beautiful Amazons discovering Steve Trevor's crashed plane or bestowing the blessings of the gods upon an infant Diana. Or rather, I can imagine these opening scenes and they're not good. Which, okay, fine. Let's assume that an actual director and scriptwriter could make those scenes work, and they get adult Diana--decked out in stars and stripes--into the world of men... Why does she care? I mean, she cares because she's Wonder Woman and she's a good person with super powers, so she does the right thing. And that's great, really. But not very compelling.

Batman has the trauma of his parents' deaths to send him hurtling into vigilantism. Even Superman (who I personally feel to be the dullest superhero in the popular consciousness) has a sense of debt and duty to mankind, instilled in him by his adoptive, human parents. Wonder Woman has... a school-girl crush on the first man she ever saw? Sure, that's a good reason to save the world. I guess.

These are addressable issues. Her costume--although iconic--could use a revamp. I'm not even saying a huge change here, but maybe we could take a step back from the ridiculous thong and see a cute pair of boyshorts or even go really retro and put her back in some kind of miniskirt. Anything that doesn't leave her fishing her costume out of her vag every time she kicks, is what I'm suggesting here. Maybe even take a cue from the Catwoman revamp and put her in some (red, knee-high) combat boots instead of three-inch stilettos.

A movie (or new television series)* could do a lot toward creating/maintaining a cast of supporting characters and villains that would exist in popular awareness, not just the minds of geeks like me. Honestly. Show of hands, how many of you have any idea who Steve Trevor is? (Which is not to say that ditching ol' Trevor was necessarily a bad move). Potentially, a movie (or season 1 of a series) could also shore up her reasons for staying in and fighting for "Patriarch's world." Off the top of my head I'm not sure exactly how, but it seems to me once you get her in America as Themyscira's ambassador it's only but so hard to create a scenario that compels her to stay and become one of America's champions. I'm not a writer, but I feel like this is the sort of thing some writer, somewhere must be able to handle.

All that being said, I love Wonder Woman. She's a pagan, superhero with a bent toward bondage and is constantly upheld as the very picture of virtue. I approve. I approve so hard it hurts. I'd just love to really see her properly utilized, is all.

*A comic run could, potentially, do these things as well, but I think movies/tv reach a wider audience and would go further in cementing these things in the group mind of American culture.

--Connor/Sean Patrick Flanery, The Boondock Saints

My callback was at 8:00. I thought it was at 8:30. Luckily I realized my mistake early enough that I was only about 10 minutes late. (And many, many thanks to maezr_rackham and peglegpogostick for getting me there so quickly.)

I was paired up with a very nice gentleman named Larry, and we got to read through the side together a couple of times before being called upstairs to perform it for the company's artistic director (who I auditioned for initially) and the show's director. We ran the scene once, and it was good, but not great. My concerns about my accent melted away almost immediately, as I got into the role and into the moment.

When we were done, the director gave me a fairly large note, which I feel I took very well. We did the scene a second time and, keeping his note in mind, I think it played much better. I also think I demonstrated the fact that I take direction well, which seems like it must be a selling point--right?

They both thanked us, and asked Larry to go team up with another woman (apparently they called back more women for this role than men for that role). The artistic director shook my hand again when we said good bye, and--I'm sure it's just the kind of guy he is. I'm sure he's just the sort of person who naturally puts people at their ease, and the kind of director that makes you feel like you're the most talented person in the world... but something about his voice or his facial expression or his body language--something about the way he said good bye made me feel like he wasn't saying good bye, so much as, "That was amazing, and we're so lucky to have someone with your talent interested in our production."

Now, as I said, I'm sure that every other woman they're auditioning tonight will leave with the same impression... but it's still an awfully good feeling. I genuinely believe that I'm still in the running for this role, and I'd love to have it. If you've got it to spare, send some positive energy my way for this!

--Connor/Sean Patrick Flanery, The Boondock Saints

I had another audition last night--this one for Richmond Triangle Player's production of A New Century. My monologue went reasonably well, although I only just found it a week or so ago, and have not had a chance to get (let alone read) the full script yet. Embarrassingly, the show it's from turned out to be one of the director's favorites and I had nothing very intelligent to say about it. Still, I think the performance itself went well.

I was also asked to read from a side which was unexpected and a bit strange. The audition notice said nothing about sides and the side they had me read from wasn't even for the role they'd be considering me for. It's also the only side I've ever been given that was a monologue rather than dialogue. I got a paragraph or two in and he asked me to try it in a midwestern accent. I embarrassingly admitted that I wasn't really sure what that sounded like, and he directed me to Fargo.

I'm good at accents. I really am. But a little bit of notice can really make a world of difference. I haven't done a midwestern accent in ever, so it would have been nice to have a chance to, for instance, rewatch Fargo before this audition. Still, for an off-the-cuff accent it wasn't too awful. I should be hearing from them, one way or the other, some time this week.

And speaking of accents, I have a call back tonight for Shining City, which is set entirely in Dublin. baronmind and I watched Boondock Saints Monday night, but there are really only 3 characters with Irish accents in it, and not nearly as much dialogue between them as I would have liked for this purpose. Sadly my VHS copy of Circle of Friends got ditched when I stopped owning a VCR, and I've never gotten around to replacing it on DVD.

At the moment, I feel my Irish accent is passable. I'm sure there are flaws in it, but I'm hoping they'll realize that the accent quality achieved on two days notice is a lot less than what I can achieve during a full rehearsal process.

The director sent me two sides to look at for this call back. A primary side, and a sort of back up side if they feel they need to see more from me. Frustratingly, the secondary side is the one I'm having an easier time connecting with. Even so, I think I have a good shot at this. Everyone cross your fingers for me!

From this point forward all things Lilith Lore will be posted in alluringlore. This includes not just the promotional updates that I'm sure you're all sick of, but also accounts of performances and similar. In case it's not obvious, this is part of a continued effort to separate my legitimate theater and children's storytelling endeavors from things like Carnal Carnival and Poison Appples & Pretty Witches.

I'm very proud of both of these things, but people can get bugs up their butts, and it seems safer--career wise--to make it slightly less obvious to the casual observer that the nice lady telling their children fairy tales also dances burlesque and reads erotica at fetish events.

• 09:03 Took awesome photos last night with Run Around Sue, Eerie Twilight & another girl whose name I've forgotten. Can't wait to see the fliers! #
• 10:06 posted a long over-due update at www.ShannonEFullard.com #
• 11:21 Looking at NEPF pics & being sad not to be a pirate. Hey! Who's the not-me in Killigrew's coat?! #
• 13:10 Boo. Anyone feel like taking me to Tribal Jam this Saturday? I'm currently without a way to get there. #
• 16:06 @redukt I just added you to the facebook invite. #
• 17:31 I'm amazingly bored at work today. No appointments means not much to do. :-( #
• 18:14 Just remembered my phone has AIM, & logged on out of desperate boredom. Don't remember who half those people are. #
• 18:38 There's a squirrel near my office that's missing most of its tail. Someday there will be a photo. #

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Specifically it is full of legit-theater win.

After confirming my time off at work, I hammered out plans to stay with Tori in Manhattan, the weekend of The Midsummer Magick Renaissance Faire. I'm waiting for info from transversecity about transportation--both my own and for people possibly wanting to come out from the City to see the Faire--but I've bought my bus tickets and have already started thinking about what stories I want to tell.

When I got out of the shower a few minutes ago there was a voice mail waiting for me from the Artistic Director at Henley Street Theater. I haven't been granted one of the ensemble roles, but I do have a call-back Tuesday night for their first show of the season! He's supposed to be emailing me an copy of the script, and eventually a copy of the sides for me to familiarize myself with.

We're talking about professional theater work here, people. Like professional where they pay me and I don't even have to take off my clothes or use the word "schlong." This is a good day.

• 11:31 Just made a huge update to the links page at www.LilithLore.com #

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• 12:29 Our internet connection refuses to actually connect. Awesome. I wasn't in the middle of anything, really. #
• 12:37 Ah. I seem to have fixed the problem by moving the Clearwire box away from the window. Counter intuitive. #

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--Le Disko by Shiny Toy Guns

Burlesque Night at Fallout was a smashing success!

My first experience producing/directing was a little bit stressful, but entirely worth it. My emcee-ing absolutely needs some work, but primarily my issue there was nerves. Once I've done this a few more times I think that will get a lot smoother.

Deanna Danger, the performer who went on a bit before us was amazing, and hopefully will be contacting me soon. I'm told that she's a trained ballet dancer, and based on that number I absolutely believe it. Interestingly, she did Bjork's Oh So Quiet, which I will always associate with Femme Fea La Butche (sadly you can't see her awesome facial expressions very well in this video). Deanna's take on the number was very different and also very good, but it's always a little weird to see a song I so strongly associate with one performer danced by someone else entirely.

The crowd went absolutely bat shit over misseeriesays. Besides being a regular at Fallout, Miss Eerie's numbers were both absolutely fantastic, and I'm thrilled that Carnal Carnival can call her our own. She claims to have blanked out on her choreography, but you'd never have known it. Both numbers were sexy and lively and--I think I've said--absolutely fantastic.

Bambi Galore, of course, not only put on two stellar numbers, but, was an absolute professional all evening long and as a veteran producer herself really helped calm my nerves simply by being there. In addition to her really fun, clown number, this woman twirled fire tassels. Seriously. She's one of only 8 performers in the world certified to perform this act, and holy crow was it amazing. I can't tell you how sad to be losing her to NYC.

And before I get to my own numbers, let me sing the praises of Carnal Carnival's Head Rigger, doktor_jess. There were a few communication issues due, no doubt, to trying to hear each other over the club's music, but everything was always where it needed to be when it needed to be there. And really? You can't ask for too much more.

My own numbers I will discuss at length because I am horribly self-absorbed:

This weekend was the third time I've performed Dance While the Sky Crashes Down by Jason Webley (both previous performances with WEBS). The piece was choreographed for Candyland Brothel and requires a "Boy" seated center stage. As it was originally written, the boy doesn't really need to do much but react and let me lead him. However, there's this one bit where I beckon him to stand up and he's supposed to stay seated until I come and get him a bit more forcefully. If you watch the video from that premier performance, you'll note that Brian Viglione does nothing of the sort. So whatever. What I learned there was that I can improv that bit and make it work. The upside of that being that I can do this number with a random volunteer from the audience.

Now I admit that my "random volunteer" was, in fact, my good friend suzy_hendrix. However, contrary to popular rumor she was not a plant and did not know the choreography. I'd been planning on choosing a stranger, but frankly no one else who grabbed my eye seemed very likely to a) be able to support me during that final move or b) be trusted not to grope me more than I was comfortable with. So suzy_hendrix it was, and the number went absurdly smoothly.

The same cannot be said for my second number, Red & Black by Kagero. I don't think the audience knew how badly this piece went for me, and as long as I can say that, I think it's a win. But from my perspective, the number was one costume malfunction after another. I'd made... I don't know what they're called, actually. Basically it's a little belt with fringe or other dangley trim draped from it. The point is to accentuate hip movements, and since I do a lot of my dancing from my hips I've been wanting to incorporate pieces like this for some time. In any case, I made one for this number, out of an absolutely gorgeous beaded trim... and I couldn't get it to stay on; the snap just wouldn't hold. Bambi tied it on for me at one point, but the knot came undone before I was even out on stage, and I gave it up as a lost cause.

The snaps on my faux-bustier also decided not to hold. I'd realized during my run-throughs that this was going to be an issue, but during my rehearsals the snaps stayed together as long as I kept my back straight (or arched). This was not the case Saturday night. I ended up having to hook the bra-section of the bustier, which I can't undo one-handed (I needed my other hand for my fans). During the number I ultimately headed into the audience and got suzy_hedrix to do it for me. She's a fashion (and costume) designer and had hooked it together for me in the first place. I was relieved to see her standing near the front, since I knew she'd figure out what I needed pretty quickly.

The audience didn't know about the missing belt-thingy, and I managed to get the bustier off at the appropriate time anyway, so I think that mostly went unnoticed. Of course, the bit where I failed to entirely untie the bikini bra top I had on... I bet a few people noticed that. I think the number itself is still solid, but I'll definitely need to spend some time retooling the costume before I perform it again.

Despite my own frustrations with Red & Black, I think the evening as a whole was a huge success. We had a decent take in tips* and I think there's a good chance that we'll be invited back to perform again.

*Which is a damned good thing after doktor_jess and I spent the three days prior creating carnival-themed tip buckets.

Join Carnal Carnival at Richmond's premier goth and fetish club, Fallout, for a few dance numbers and an evening of Burlesque-themed fun! Fallout is a private club with limited entry.

When: Saturday, June 20th, 11:00 to Sunday June 21, 3:00 and on

Where: Fallout, 117 N 18th St, Richmond, VA 23223

Cost: Free for members; $5.00 for non-members.

Fallout is a private club with limited entry. Please see their website for more details, including information about their dress code:

http://www.subcultserver.com/fallout/
http://www.CarnalCarnival.webs.com



For those of you who are unfamiliar with the club, YES, you can get in without a member as long as you are appropriately dressed. Their dress code is spelled out more specifically on their webpage, but basically we're talking goth/fetish wear here. If you're at all uncertain, stick with all black and you'll do just fine.

doktor_jess and I met with my contact there on Monday night and I'm feeling really good about this show. The space isn't ideal, but that's not really anyone's fault, and the club has agreed to set up a small "backstage" area for the dancers to enter from. We're going to be doing two, short sets an hour apart from each other--really I think the whole night is going to be fantastic.

Also! On June 27th, join myself, Miss Kitty Monroe and a number of other local, burlesque beauties to Go-Go the night away at Cous Cous. The dance party starts at 10:00 at 900 W Franklin Street. Be there or be square, Daddy-O.

• 07:57 Had an awesomely productive meeting at Fallout last night. Can't wait for Burlesque night! #
• 10:26 twitpic.com/7jjvd - Since there were so many requests... #
• 10:57 @polyphonist We all have those days. The important thing is getting back on the wagon before you do any real damage. #
• 13:57 Left my bike lock at home. Fail. #
• 20:51 Kyle Cassidy writes, 'Amanda [Palmer] & Neil [Gaiman] are now officially alt.cute.couple.nom.nom.nom.' #

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• 16:49 Unexpectedly found an awesome & cheap dress for Vegas Night on the 27th. Win! #

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liquiddatura sent this link over twitter the other day. It's an interesting photo series, and well worth a look... but I find the artist's claim that she was never exposed to fairy tales as a child deeply suspicious. She grew up abroad and the photo series is clearly reacting primarily to Disney's interpretations of fairy tales... but I just find it hard to believe she never heard any fairy tales growing up. Maybe she didn't hear/see Disney-fied versions. Maybe she didn't even hear/see the stories we think of as standards. But either she has a very narrow definition of "fairy tale" or she was extremely poorly socialized.

Human beings are storytellers. It's what we do, it's how we teach and socialize. It's an instinctual activity that we all engage in on some level. So the idea that no one during her entire childhood ever once told her a fairy tale is something I find very hard to believe.

Either way it's a really awesome photo series, and you really should check it out. My personal favorites are Rapunzel and Beauty.

• 15:17 Audition for Henley Street's season/ensemble went well. Now I sit tight & hope the phone rings. #
• 17:59 Turns out that Carytown kind of blows after 5:00 on Sundays. This was a poorly planned trip. #

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• 10:03 This is going to be a long, busy day at work. #
• 13:22 Surprisingly, wealre out on time. I thought for sure we'd be here late. #

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• 13:24 twitpic.com/74m0a - Rupert looks so chubby in this photo! #

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I'm trying to schedule an audition for this weekend (still waiting for them to call me back), and in addition to the standard monologue requirement (which I've got covered), they're asking that we each prepares a "narrative joke" as part of the audition. The only such joke I know that is not wildly offensive is the old "try the soup" joke. It's a pretty well known joke, though, and I don't want to go into an audition with a piece they've already heard a dozen times that weekend.

What I'm asking here is for each of you to tell me your favorite, safe-for-mixed-company, narrative joke.

In other theater related news, I went to go see Legacy of Light with baronmind and his folks last weekend. I have to be honest and say that the way it was described to me gave me flashbacks to some of my least favorite required viewing in my days as a college student (For Colored Girls Who've Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Not Enuf, for instance).

"The growing light (baby) inside Millie connects the three women across the generations as they learn to balance domestic maternity, insatiable intellectual curiosity and the quest to have it all. This enlightening adventure, with unexpected twists, invites us not only to explore the realm of possibility, but to embrace love, laughter and life to the fullest."

Happily this description is a bit misleading. I mean, it's true... but it made me think we were in for the stage version of some kind of Lifetime movie, you know? In fact, the show is a comedy and the action takes place alternately during the age of Enlightenment in France (Emilie du Châtelet and Voltaire being the two main characters here) and in modern-day New Jersey. In the second act characters from the different time periods start interacting and things get a little surreal... but in a good way.

Some sections (particularly the monologues) need a bit of work, and I didn't entirely believe the chemistry between Emilie and her young lover, but all in all it was an excellent show.

Okay. There's just so much going on with me right now, performance-wise (a statement I love being able to make, btw) that I do think some sort of organized system for contacting all my lovelies is called for. I'm sure I'll still blog about shows I'm working on, and whatnot because, frankly, that's a big part of my life right now. But those will be personal accounts, not ads. Okay, you might still get the odd flier as a show approaches, but nothing like the frequent flier-posting I've been doing.

To make a long story short, I've decided to start a mailing list. There would be no set mailing schedule, although I'll try to keep it between 1 and 4 emails a month--preferably closer to 1. Each email would include information about my alter ego, Lilith Lore's performances (both burlesque and storytelling), as well as information about local (RVA) events. If something particularly note-worthy is going on somewhere else, that might get a mention too, but mostly I'd be talking up local shows.

If you think that's a list you'd like to be on, do me a huge favor and either leave me a comment here with your email address (even if you think I already have it) or email me at LilithLore [at] gmail [dot] com.