A Really Big Shew

As a variety show, Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In reveled in that brief go-going-gone moment between the girdled rigidity of the American Dream and the ribald debauchery of the rock 'n' roll suicide. Earlier variety shows such as Shindig! and Hullabaloo had already set the stage, with go-go dancers and the likes of the Rolling Stones and Paul Anka, but Laugh-In gave us Lily Tomlin, Goldie Hawn, Arte Johnson, and Ruth Buzzi. The show was a fast-paced kaleidoscope of long legs, short skirts, psychedelic swirls, cheesy one-liners, playful non sequiturs, groovy tunes, and lighthearted innuendo, making it popular enough to give Tiny Tim a Top 40 hit and help Richard Nixon win an election. Sock it to me!

For more than ten years, the Devil-Ettes’ dance routines have evoked this effervescent spirit, but this will be the first time they have set their formidable talents on re-creating the entire variety show experience. The Devil-Ettes’ Go Go Spectacular promises rapid-fire comedic skits, live music by the Barbary Coasters, special appearances by Deke Dickerson’s All Star Frat Band and Alotta Boutté, historical tributes from Lynn Peril and Domenic Priore, and enough shimmy-shaking from the Devil-Ettes and Mini Skirt Mob to give the Shindiggers and Hullabaloo dancers a serious run for their money.
Nov. 13-14, 8 p.m., 2009