Cabaret Red Light. A Night of Vaudeville, Burlesque, and Puppet Theater

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1 EVENT ANNOUNCEMENT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PHILADELPHIA, (December 8, 2009) On Friday, January 8th, returns to Plays and Players Main Stage with a cast of 20 dancers, musicians, and comedians for a one-night only performance of THE OCCUPATION, an original musical that embraces everything big in small time (vaudeville) theater. The Devil and his minions will be dishing out equal doses of Brechtian agitprop and good old-fashioned burlesque, all to the original music of The Blazing Cherries Gypsy-Funk Orchestra. THE OCCUPATION is s second show at Plays and Players Theatre, following THE TAKEOVER, which was performed to a sold-out audience on November 13th, It will be part of the Contemporary Performance Weekend at Plays and Players Theater ( THE OCCUPATION tells the story of a variety show on the make. Having settled in at Plays and Players (after taking it by force), the cast must now take stock of their situation. The same serious theater folks who once greeted them with open arms are beginning to show signs of unrest. Now Cabaret Red Light has to pull out all the stops, putting on a one-night-only spectacular of song and dance (with a little bare naked flesh on the side) with the aim of intimidating the enemy and galvanizing the troupe. But will the locals go for this kind of stuff? Can a counter-insurgency in big-time theater be won? debuted last November at L Etage (upstairs from Crêperie Beau Monde) with VANITY, the first installment in their series The Seven Deadly Sins: A Veritable How-To on the Weaknesses of the Flesh. Now, after nine original musicals in twelve sell-out performances, they have come to be known as the hardest working act in Philadelphia cabaret, seemlessly combining Busby Berkeley spectacle with the harsh reality of Gitmo and The Bomb.... For free downloads, complimentary press tickets, and the new album LIVE AT L ETAGE please go to the PRESS ROOM at WHAT: The Occupation by (Part II of The Seven Deadly Sins ) WHEN: Friday, January 8. Doors at 9:30pm / Show at 10:30pm. WHERE: Plays and Players Theatre, 1714 Delancey Street, Philadelphia. TICKETS: $15. $10 each for blocks of ten. Tickets may be purchased online at or at the door on a first-come-first-serve basis.. (215)

2 For immediate release PHILADELPHIA, (November 2, 2009) On Friday, November 13th, will be staging The Takeover, an original musical that embraces everything big in small time (vaudevillian) theater, with the Devil and his minions dishing out equal doses of Brechtian agitprop and good old-fashioned burlesque. The theme of the show (the takeover of legitimate theatre by its lesser cousins) may be tongue-in-cheek, but it also serves as a reminder that small time theatre has undergone a serious revival in recent years, and is arguably the most vital new contender on the live entertainment scene. And why not? Cabaret is much faster-paced than your average indie music concert or singer song-writer (and far less self-indulgent). It appeals to a diverse audience, making no claim to the cultural capital of so-called intellectual theater. Most importantly for the Red Light crew, it provides the perfect medium for political themes that are strictly off-limits to most other kinds of stage performance. In the same way that the Kit Kat Klub reflects the moral ambiguity of life in Weimar Germany, the rise of neo-cabaret and vaudeville theatre in Philadelphia, New York and many other cities speaks to the growing need to haul everything unsettling about contemporary life in America onto the small stage. That is just what did in its first season with the series The Seven Deadly Sins: A Veritable How-To on the Weaknesses of the Flesh. With eight original musicals in twelve sell-out performances (at L Etage and Chaplin s Music Café), the group earned itself the title of The Best Marxist Girlie Show in Hell. Now it is taking its most scandalous acts and sexiest dancers to the big stage, with a cast of 18, and help from Philadelphia s funniest comedy troupes (The Waitstaff, Sidetracked Theater, Philly Improv, and Madcap Theater), not to mention funk legend Jay Davidson of BuddaDadda and numerous other veterans of Philadelphia theatre. The Takeover is just what you might expect: a vast military operation gone wrong, saved in the end by song and dance. But it is also a meditation on how legitimate theater is defined and who defines it. On the implicit rules that guide the culture industry, and what it means to break them. On the irreversible consequences of crossing Busby Berkeley s decadent choreography with the harsh reality of Gitmo and the bomb. WHAT: The Takeover by (Part I of The Seven Deadly Sins ) WHEN: Friday, November 13. Doors at 10pm / Show at 10:30pm. WHERE: Plays and Players Theatre, 1714 Delancey Street, Philadelphia. TICKETS: $15. Tickets may be purchased at the door on a first-come-first-serve basis. Advance tickets can be purchased online at.

3 (for immediate release) PHILADELPHIA, (June 9, 2009) presents LUST!, the Sin You ve All Been Waiting For. It is the seventh show in their series, The Seven Deadly Sins: A Veritable How-To on the Weaknesses of the Flesh, which has enjoyed a successful, 7-month run of sell-out performances at L Etage, Philadelphia s premiere cabaret venue. LUST! features all-new and original gypsy-funk music by The Blazing Cherries, as well as revival burlesque by Annie A-Bomb and Satangela, in the spirit of the decadent 1920s. It will also include guest performances by Jay Davidson (of Philadelphia funk ensemble BuddaDadda), cabaret-noir starlet Nicki Jaine, and Kimberlie Cruse of Sidetracked Theater. Plays and Players Theater and announce the co-production of a three-month run of The Seven Deadly Sins at Plays and Players Theater in Philadelphia, starting in November Details will soon be available at the Plays and Players website ( and website ( is the brainchild of and who write, direct and original music and rotating guest talent and seek to recreate the inviting and intimate atmosphere of WHAT: LUST! by WHEN: Thursday, June 25. Early Show: doors at 6pm, show at 7pm Late Show: doors at 9pm, show at 10pm WHERE: L Etage, upstairs from the Beaumonde Creperie on 6th and Bainbridge. TICKETS: $15. Tickets may be purchased at the door on a first-come-first-serve basis. Advance tickets can be purchased online at DETAILS: LUST! is the seventh in a series of shows that explore the Seven Deadly Sins in song and dance. The cast of characters includes the Silver-Tongued Devil (a.k.a. Jay The Funk Detective Davidson), his familiar (sly devil Nicki Jaine), the Devil s Advocate and the Marquise de Sade, as well as Anastasia, the Amnesiac Princess of Old Mother Russia, and a most motley crew of rockstars, vampyres and white-collar thieves.

4 PHILADELPHIA, (January18, 2009) presents ENVY!, the second show in their 2008 to 2009 series, The Seven Deadly Sins. ENVY! is a unique one-time performance featuring original music, sketch comedy and revival burlesque in the spirit of the decadent 1920s. It is also the debut of Red Light Puppet Theater, presenting Little Greta and the C@%k Ring, a shadow puppet play in the style of Brecht with narration by and original music by Rolf Lakaemper. ENVY! features guest performances by Shoshana Hill and Kimberlie Cruse of Sidetracked! (a.k.a. Bag Lady Theater), choreography by Annie A-Bomb (Revival Burlesque) and an all-new, original line-up of gypsy funk and chamber music by resident band The Blazing Cherries. is the brainchild of and who write, direct and original music and rotating guest talent. The shows recreate the inviting and intimate atmosphere of WHAT: ENVY! by, The best Marxist girlie show in Hell! WHEN: Thursday, January 29. Doors at 8pm / show at 9pm. WHERE: L Etage, upstairs from the Beaumonde Creperie on 6th and Bainbridge. TICKETS: $10. Tickets may be purchased at the door on a first-come-first-serve basis. Advance tickets can be purchased online at. DETAILS: ENVY! is the second in a series of shows that explore the Seven Deadly Sins in song and dance. The cast of characters includes the Devil, his lawyer, and the Marquise de Sade, as well as Anastasia, the Amnesiac Princess of Old Mother Russia, and a most motley crew of rockstars, vampyres and white-collar thieves.

5 Burlesque, and the Devil in the Flesh PHILADELPHIA, (November 18, 2008) presents VANITY, the first in a series of shows on The Seven Deadly Sins. Each performance features a mix of original music, dark comedy, and revival burlesque in the spirit of the decadent 1920s. With performances by Annie A-Bomb (Revival Burlesque) and Joe Martin (Peek-a-boo Revue), and backed by resident band The Blazing Cherries, each show offers a unique entertainment experience that runs the gamut from Art-Haus to agitprop, Vaudeville to street theater. is the brainchild of and who write, direct and original music and rotating guest talent. The shows recreate the inviting and intimate atmosphere of WHAT: VANITY! by WHEN: Thursday, November 20. Doors at 8pm / show at 9pm. WHERE: L'Etage, upstairs from the Beaumonde Creperie on 6th and Bainbridge. TICKETS: $10. Tickets may be purchased at the door on a first-come-first-serve basis. DETAILS: VANITY is the first in a series of shows that explore the Seven Deadly Sins in song and dance. The cast of characters includes the Devil, his lawyer, and the Marquise de Sade, as well as the real authentic Anastasia, and a motley crew of rockstars, vampyres and assorted other scoundrels & thieves.