Bottom’s Up Burlesque invites you to join them for HOLIDAY DRAMA, an all-new show on Nov. 20. This is also Bottoms Up’s annual toy fundraiser for Toys for Tots! “This is always a very special show for all of us involved” said Brett Hitchcock, Speakeasy director of audience development.  “Over the last 10 years, the community has always been so generous with their giving.” Hitchcock said.  “We’ve filled up trucks and cars with toys year after year.  It’s always such a great feeling to take all those toys to the Marines knowing they are going... Read More

Bottom’s Up Burlesque invites you to join them for HOLIDAY DRAMA, an all-new show on Nov. 20. This is also Bottoms Up’s annual toy fundraiser for Toys for Tots! “This is always a very special show for all of us involved” said Brett Hitchcock, Speakeasy director of audience development.  “Over the last 10 years, the community has always been so generous with their giving.” Hitchcock said.  “We’ve filled up trucks and cars with toys year after year.  It’s always such a great feeling to take all those toys to the Marines knowing they are going... Read More

Everything about Mary Francis is big and boisterous – her brassy, unpretentious personality, her infectious laugh, her sense of fun, her voluptuous figure, and her passion for burlesque and the Quad-Cities. The founder and leader of Mary Quite Contrary’s House of Burlesque (launched in late 2019), Mary is celebrating all things Q-C in a new “Stay Classy Quad-Cities” show Saturday, Aug. 28, at 8 p.m., at the Spotlight Theatre, 1800 7th Ave., Moline. In addition to the flaming-red-haired Mary, performers are Sassy LaShay, Wicked Jezebel, Moira Mayhemm, Randi Sinclare, Lola Lament, Nova Foxglove,... Read More

Karen Westmoreland and Andrea Stueve are super-friendly moms, who have regular jobs and kids, but when they get on stage, they literally become someone else – uninhibited, unpretentious, fun-loving burlesque dancers. Westmoreland, 45, who performs as Kinky Taboo, and Stueve, 40, who is Kitty Bardot, are burlesque veterans who are leading a brand-new troupe – Taboo Burlesque. They make their debut Saturday, June 12 at 8 p.m. at the Village Theatre, Village of East Davenport. The 100-capacity in-person show is sold out, but you can livestream it for just $5 – reserve your ticket HERE. “There’s... Read More

The Ghost of Vaudeville is fading away, at least for now. After a decade as the emcee and co-leader of the Bottoms Up Burlesque Troupe, Joshua Kahn, “The Ghost of Vaudeville,” is doing his last shows this weekend, before taking an extended sabbatical to celebrate the birth of his child and to spend time with his wife and family. Bottoms Up announced the move about a month ago on social media, after Kahn had announced it live at their late March shows. They posted: “Well the cat is out of the bag, and the Ghost of Vaudeville is leaving the building. After dedicating 10 years of... Read More

Join Bottom’s Up Burlesque as they present their MASQUERADE show Friday and Saturday at the Circa ’21 Speakeasy, 1828 3rd Ave., Rock Island! This show will include your favorite BU members and special guest performers! Join them for a fun filled night with masks they actually want to wear! Your favorite QC burlesque troupe will keep you on the edge of your seat while they tantalize and entertain you! Tickets are $15 in advance and $18 the day of the show. Doors open at 7 and the show begins at 8 both nights. You can order tickets online at www.thecirca21speakeasy.com. Due to COVID regulations... Read More

Rein Razer participated as a guest performer at the last burlesque show at the Village Theatre – a March 14 gig from the new Crystal Crown Cabaret – and the Rock Islander is back organizing a special return, Friday, July 24 at 8 p.m. The theater is at 2113 E. 11th St., Village of East Davenport. Rein Razer’s Court of Royalty was originally intended to be an online-only show, to help out her community performers, as most shows and events have been canceled due to Covid. Now that things are beginning to open back up, Razer has teamed up with the Village Theatre to produce a showcase that can... Read More

Even though it’s been closed nearly three months, Circa ’21 Dinner Playhouse got a pretty great 43rd birthday present Thursday, June 11. Within a day of announcing it, the theater sold out all tables (totaling about 140 people) for its unique “Music on the Marquee” cabaret on Sunday, June 21. “The public is hungry to see activity in the arts,” Ron May, music director of Circa’s not-yet-produced “Saturday Night Fever,” said Thursday – which also happens to be the 43rd anniversary of his marriage to wife Cindy. Ironically, they wed (at Davenport’s Trinity Cathedral) the same... Read More

Despite its title, there’s not a ton of burlesque in “Burlesque River,” a new romance novel set in the Quad-Cities, penned by veteran burlesque performer Kitty Bardot. There are key club scenes — at the start and near the end of this beautifully written book (part of a planned series) — that reflect the raunch, playfulness, camaraderie, the yearning to be someone different and glamorous, and the ecstatic high you get on stage with an appreciative audience. But the bulk of the 173-page debut novel, released in April by Boroughs Publishing (which specializes in romance fiction),... Read More

For the last eight years, The Speakeasy in downtown Rock Island has been the diverse entertainment venue in the Quad Cities!  From Bottom’s Up Quad City Burlesque and Manscape (the area’s only male burlesque revue) to Windy City Dueling Pianos, Viva La Divas Drag Show, The Manny Lopez Big Band, countless stand up comedy and improv comedy shows and monthly trivia contests, there is truly something for everyone at The Speakeasy! The theater is thrilled to announce its newest show THE (NOT SO) NEWLYWED GAME SHOW. The first performance will be on Saturday, June 29. This will be similar... Read More