Nightlife: White Lightnin' Burlesque group keeps its engine revving

Special to Knoxville.com White Lightnin' Burlesque creator Laura Mullaney has changed her stage name from Miz Kitty to Hellcat Harlowe.

Special to Knoxville.com White Lightnin' Burlesque creator Laura Mullaney has changed her stage name from Miz Kitty to Hellcat Harlowe.

KNOXVILLE — Saying that White Lightnin' Burlesque has had a hot year would be an understatement.

The Knoxville-based troupe explained to me in June of 2009 that burlesque, an old art form involving striptease and flashy costumes, takes off during a recession. “It’s a form of escapism,” creator Laura Mullaney says. “People don’t want to see all the complicated stuff in the world; they want to be entertained, to go see something fun and sexy.”

They’ve proven their point in the past year.

Shows at numerous local venues (4620 Reinvented, Toots Little Honky Tonk, The Shed), regular out-of-town gigs in neighboring states (mostly the Carolinas), hot rod shows, conventions (including a fetish convention), and even opening up for Southern Culture on the Skids — White Lightnin' is taking off in a time when many are struggling to get off the ground.

White Lightnin' features several new faces: The current group has six women, Hellcat Harlowe, Cherry Delight, Dixie D' Vil, Molly Mischief, Strawberry Tallcake and Sassy Frass. Although the lineup has changed, Laura says that, “everybody left on good terms and is welcome back anytime.”

Because of the current popularity of the art form Laura changed her stage name to Hellcat Harlow, with derivations of her former name (Miz Kitty) popping up in troupes around the world, including a well-known performer by the same name in England.

The group ended up doing several car shows on the periphery of Knoxville. Although their shows often have themes, in the recent past they’ve been heavy on hot rods and motorcycles.

“The culture seems to be very receptive to what we’re doing,” Laura says of car shows. They’ve performed at Rat Rod in Seymour, a Harley-Davidson shop in Morristown, and at the biker bar The Shed in Maryville. And they recently performed at the Heavy Rebel Weekend in Winston-Salem, N.C.

White Lightning has also been performing at conventions throughout the Southeast. “We’re not necessarily focusing on conventions but we’ve had a lot of requests for it.” It started with Chattacon in Chattanooga early in the year, which led to their invitation to Frolicon in Atlanta: a fetish convention.

“It’s a pretty different audience than we usually have,” Laura said of the show, with “a lot of people geared towards alternative lifestyles.” She added, “it was definitely one of the most interesting shows we’ve done,” including a spank-able posterior contest, a “no pants dance contest,” and a dungeon. The group mentioned at this particular show they spent a lot of time explaining “what we do and what we don’t.”

The Visualite — a Charlotte, N.C.-based old theater with a five-foot high stage comparable to the Bijou but a bit smaller — has brought the group in several times. The ladies have performed at numerous venues in the Carolinas, where they’ve had much success. “People out of town are apt to pay more of a cover charge,” Sassy Frass says.

While they’ve expanded their performance base, they’ve also expanded other aspects. “We don’t really subscribe to anyone else’s idea of what burlesque is going to be,” Mullaney says. New member Strawberry Tallcake is helping the group incorporate tap dance into their show. Molly Mischief is teaching everyone to sew (the group makes all their own costumes), which has led to several new items, such as an entire pair of underwear constructed from silk flowers.

Cherry Delight has delved into set making, creating a giant half moon that lights up and a big Alice-in-Wonderland-esque mushroom.

White Lightnin' has performed at venues all across the Knoxville area the past year, including a birthday party at Toots Little Honky Tonk, the biscuit festival at Square Room, Southbound Bar and Grill, and even on the Strip at Tin Roof.

For a while, the group had a regular show at 4620. When the bar changed their format to a drag show on Saturday nights, White Lightnin' continued to perform but eventually moved on. “We weren’t what the crowd was looking for,” Laura says. “We love the gay community, but gay men don’t want to see half-naked women dancing around on stage.”

This month White Lightnin' begins a regular monthly gig at Patrick Sullivan’s.

“We’re being careful not to overexpose ourselves,” Mullaney cleverly states, not wanting to perform locally too often, so that fans are left with the occasional treat.

White Lightnin' Burlesque performs Friday, July 30, at 8 p.m. at Patrick Sullivan’s in the Old City performing with musical act Axis of Evil. Cover charge is $10.

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