Around Town
Hit
* Al. Kennedy l-lour Scottish author AL Kennedy doing what she does best: fretting about the state of things while being eloquent and bitineg funny. All proceeds go to the Glasgow Green Party. Tron, Glasgow, Thu 75 Feb.
* Jolly Toper Tastings Long—running bi—monthly whisky tasting session at one of the best-stocked bars in town, typically including five malt whiskies at cask strength. Tickets must be booked in advance: call 0131 556 5864 or email chws@wmcadenhead.com to reserve. To/booth Tavern, Edinburgh. Wed 21 Feb.
* Antoine Guard Were you aware that the Romans are still among us? Scotland’s last Roman legion, Legio VI Victoria, line up for an impressive display of weaponry and armour. Royal Museum, Hawthornden Court, Edinburgh, Sun 25 Feb.
* Club Nolr: Advanced Burlesque Workshop ls simply sitting and drawing (see right) not exhibitionist enough for you? If you’re beset by an urge to shake your pasties, Club Noir’s advanced workshops will help you polish your act until you can tease like Dita (pictured) Email tina@clubnoir.co.uk for more details. The Arches, Glasgow, Sun 25 Feb.
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THE BEST EVENTS, TALKS AND SPORT '
Wht SOn
Gothic horror picture Show
Suzanne Black turns to the dark side at Dr Sketchy’s Anti—Art School where burlesque erotica meets life drawing.
t‘s Saturday afternoon and I‘m loitering outside the entrance to Edinburgh's newest art class trying not to look too much like a pervert. Some passing
tourists catch sight of the Dr Sketchy"s poster
advertising ‘Drawing & Drinks & Dames & Dudes‘ and I explain that it's a life drawing class with a difference. promising sex. glamour and titillation. and that the models are all burlesque acts. Their ears prick up at the nudity but the participatory aspect is too much. and they move on in search of a less strenuous beer. Feeling seedier than ever. I brace myself for some sort of strip club experience where lonely people gawp at less than enticing naked bodies.
I couldn‘t have been more wrong. The hostess. Miss Sarah Slaughter-Merchant. elegant in a slinky black dress and tail coat. extends a gloved hand and ushers me into a parallel universe. Amid candles. incense and the atmospheric strains of Bjork a semi-circle of tables is set up for the eclectic mix of art students. complete beginners and the just plain curious who have come to draw. All look onto something akin to a scene from a horror film.
This week‘s subject is the Ministry of Burlesque‘s Karney Doll. a gothic vision in a medical themed fetish outfit. Mutilated dolls and teddy bears lie strewn at her feet and a saw dripping blood hangs nonchalantly from her hand. The outfit and scene were created by the model herself. heightening the difference between the anonymity of traditional life models (think middle-aged men with saggy parts and a glazed expression) and the individuality of a performer.
The website for the New York branch of Dr
Sketchy's. where it all started. describes the experience as ‘what happens when cabaret meets art school'. Something close to live art. but far less pretentious. the blurring of the line between participation and spectating is a large part of the appeal — in fact. the remarkable resurgence in popularity of neo-bur|esque club nights over the last ten years is no doubt down to the special quality of an individualistic performer putting on a one-off. idiosyncratic live show. The fact that the acts are usually glamorous and erotic doesn‘t hurt. either. With the Ministry of Burlesque and (‘lub Noir both operating in Scotland. whetting the public‘s appetite for good old fashioned fun. and the initial success of Dr Sketchy‘s in lidinburgh. dates have already been confirmed for a Glasgow branch and plans for an expansion into Dundee are afoot.
Despite the spectacular model. close proximity of the bar and advice on hand for beginners. the muse has failed me. and l decline to enter any of the ad hoc competitions that happen throughout the session. Sketchees are invited to line up their masterpieces for
judging and chance of winning a small pri/e. There are
some stunningly accomplished pieces. but the popular vote goes to a wacky work of imagination featuring Karney surrounded by grotesque horror imagery in a kitschy cartoon style. While it wouldn‘t pass muster down at lidinburgh College of Art. in Dr Sketchy's Anti-Art School. it gets an A.
Counting House, Edinburgh, Sat 17 Feb, 3, 17 Mar; Tron Theatre, Glasgow 20 Feb, 6, 20 Mar, www.myspace.com/drsketchyscotland.
11') let) 1 Mill 9001' THE LIST 25