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All words: Robert Winship
At Friday night’s Whedonism II event, the Evil League of Ecdysiasts commanded not one, but two sold out shows. Black Cat backstage was stuffed generously with fans who were tantalized with irresponsible amounts of T&A.
Each of the many performers tapped the keg of Joss Whedon’s creative universe with soon-to-be-disrobed outfits from Firefly, Serenity, Buffy, Angel, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog, and Cabin In The Woods. The fan participation in the form of a costume contest was not heavily stacked, but a girl in a particularly stunning Captain America costume took home the win over a drunk Tony Stark and a slighted Willow.
The best Whedon callback and oft-canonized genius was “I’ll Never Tell.” The song originally appeared in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode, “Once More with Feeling,” and was performed Friday by musical guest Harry Como and Cherokee Rose. Harry, as Xander, kicked up the weird a few notches along with Cherokee as Anya.
Though, for all the pasties and panache, the show was held together by its hosts and dancers Cherie Sweetbottom and GiGi Holliday, who never skipped a beat in jokes or performance. And to that end, this show was a bittersweet reminder of the loss of Red Palace/Palace of Wonders, once home to D.C.’s greatest variety work. If we can’t keep a permanent home to the marriage of burlesque and fanboy cultures, truly we have abandoned the America our founding fathers intended.
