Nasty Canasta Press Clippings

Twenty-First Century Pinups - January 2010
The 21st Century Burlesque Top 50 Performers
# 22. Nasty Canasta
It is widely agreed that Nasty is one of the most innovative and frankly ingenious neo-burlesque performers of today. Thanks to her 'Unknown Stripper' routine, we can safely say we will never think of Groucho Marx in the same way ever again. Ever. She is bold, she is unique, and thoroughly deserves her place on this list... full article here

The New York Times - by Neil Genzlinger, December 2009
Even Mr. Durang doesn't dismember Dickens as much as the clothing-optional folks at Pinchbottom do in "Filthy Lucre: A Burlesque Christmas Carol" at Walkerspace in TriBeCa. The burlesque queen Nasty Canasta ... makes perhaps the loveliest and certainly the nudest Scrooge in history as, aided by the ghosts of burlesque past, present and future, she considers whether she has a higher calling than running a mere strip club ... full article here

Tor.com - by Liz Gorinsky, May 2009
... "Surely,"--you must be thinking--"beautiful people who take their clothes off in public are awesome enough. How could I dare hope that those rare creatures could also be nerds like me?" ... full article here

www.enjoypatrickresponsibly.com - by Patrick Bennett, March 2009
Nasty Canasta is a Genius
I suppose I've known this for a long time - ever since she did a strip tease to the tune of the Car Alarms Greatest Hits. But last night at Wassabasco's first steady monthly show at Union Hall, Nasty Canasta managed to drive this point home with a number I hadn't seen her do before ... full article here

The Brooklyn Paper - by Mike McLaughlin, February 2009
Nasty is Nice - Editors' Pick
Nasty Canasta will lead a randy tribute to the borough's other show biz legend, singer Neil Diamond, on Monday, Feb. 23. Come join Brooklyn's greatest burlesque star, Nasty Canasta, as she celebrates her birthday - and pays homage to Neil Diamond. Canasta, along with several other randy pals, will dance a tribute to one of Kings County's other prodigal performers, the "Jewish Elvis" himself, in a show they call "The Jazz Stripper." And yes, there will be nudity.

The Brooklyn Paper - by The Arbiter, December 2008
If 2008 is remembered for anything, it should be enshrined as the year that burlesque took Brooklyn by storm. There was the Pinchbottom Burlesque in Park Slope, Gigi LaFemme's "G Spot Burlesque" in Williamsburg, and, of course, our favorite Sweet and Nasty Burlesque, which set up shop at Public Assembly in Williamsburg on Monday nights. full article here

The New York Times - by Erik Piepenburg, December 2008
A grumpy grandma, Twinkle the Christmas Fairy and an evening of burlesque round out our coverage of warped holiday shows.

Nasty Canasta, left, and Jonny Porkpie in "The Pinchbottom Primetime Holiday Special." (Photo: Ted D'Ottavio) full article here

Culturalcapitol.com - by J.D. Oxblood, September 2008
Nasty Canasta in a black sparkle dress, boa, heels, gloves, smoking ... So classy. Oh, and the Groucho Marx nose/glasses. My that Groucho has a hot ass. The big payoff was the reveal--pasties and panties are, indeed, Groucho noses. And the cigarette went right in the crotch. Nasty continues to be one the most creative voices on the New York scene. full article here

Time Out New York - September 2008
Those insoucient scamps Jonny Porkpie and Nasty Canasta take their themed burlesque into the lion's den of high-concept clown shows and stuff those haute-cirque's pretensions where the soleil don't shine.

NeXT Magazine - September 2008
Cirque du Burlesque: Enter a world of mystery, imagination and sexy un-sophistication as Pinchbottom gets in bed with Spiegelworld for a circus of loony lustiness. Erotic acrobats, randy ringmasters and uncouth clowns join burlesque darlings Jonny Porkpie and Nasty Canasta for a spankingly delicious night of dazzle and dare.

Club Planet.com - September 2008
It does not happen often that a burlesque performer risks curbing the flock of nude bodies, lingerie and naughty accessories, and pushes them towards an upper artistic conscious by imposing a plot. But that is what happens in Pinchbottom shows. The two extravagant savants of the burlesque world-- Jonny Porkpie and Nasty Canasta--undertake the barely-doable task of coordinating a bunch of amazing performers (including such legends of NYC burlesque scene as Bastard Keith, Naughtia Nice, and Tigger!) ... and impose an original theme for each session. full article here

Edge Boston - by Matthew Robinson, August 2008
"With its velvet curtains and ropes, Absinthe cocktails, succulent victuals and sharply-dressed, sexy crowd, The Beehive in Boston's South End was made for burlesque! And with the help of New York's famed Pinchbottom Burlesque, they brought it!

Hosted by Jonny Porkpie, the would-be Burlesque President of the World, the lovely ladies of Pinchbottom boldly went where few (if any) in Boston had gone (or come) before- armed (and legged) with only some very well placed cover-ups and their mad seductive skills. To a soundtrack that ranged from Neil Diamond to Stephen Sondheim and Carly Simon to Digital Underground (interspersed with some stacks of wax from the 70s during the intermissions), the PB crew paid tribute to our military, put the "love" back in tennis, demonstrated world champion tit-twirling techniques, and generally showed off in a way that allowed the standing-room crowd to get to know them...intimately.

The crowd got so into the show, in fact, that many could not help but dance and gyrate along. Unfortunately, there were only so many patriotic pasties to go around...this time." full article here

Time Out New York - by Alana Salvatore, August 2008
The Home for Wayward Girls and Fallen Women

"**** (four stars) If the likes of Rubie Fizz, Legs Malone and Cherry Pitz tickle your fancy, this Fringe show is for you. Cyndi Freeman has cleverly put together a night of fun, featuring different acts every night. A virgin to burlesque, I was especially impressed by Nasty Canasta's raunchiness and RunAround Sue's preshow go-go. The Jewish jokes were flowin', and everyone in the audience seemed to be having a grand time--including my roommate and I, who were chugging wine and eventually shouting, "Take it off!" with the rest of the crowd. I left thinking that no one should lick swords like the host did, but as for the girls...hey, if you got it, flaunt it." full article here

Bizarre Magazine (UK) - by Denise Stanborough, August 2008
Grotesque Burlesque:The Geeky One

To describe yourself as a "schizophrenic performer" means you must have something pretty special in your bag of tricks - and Nasty Canasta certainly has. "I do a classic ostrich feather fan dance to a loop of car alarms, a tiki idol dance where I wear a gigantic mask and a grass skirt and an act to the scene in 2001: A Space Odyssey where Dave is destroying HAL the computer," she says.

Inspired by pop culture and film, Nasty takes well-known characters and brings them to life. "I do numbers as Doctor Who and Flash Gordon," she says. "I'm a tremendous geek, so I make a lot of references to science fiction." She also plays with the traditional format by dancing with a large electric fan instead of the pretty handheld one. "I'm simply drawn to humour and the stranger side of things. Any art form has to change to grow."

Asbury Park Press - by Alex Biese, July 2008
Baggy Pants Optional

"Nudity and art have had a curious relationship for years, something Pinchbottom Burlesque's Jonny Porkpie is very much aware of. 'In theater, of course, often nudity is looked down upon as a cheap gimmick,' Porkpie said. 'In (burlesque), it's the lifeblood of the industry, so it's integrated into the act, and it allows you more freedom, to my mind.' Porkpie, who along with Nasty Canasta has been performing under the Pinchbottom banner for about four years, explained his move from the New York theater scene to burlesque ..." full article here

New York Press - by Anna King, June 2008
Would You Like 'Okoge' With That? 'Revealed' is the Thinking Man's Nudie Show

" ... Revealed is the brainchild of one Doc Wasabassco (aka Bill Morton), and burlesque performer GiGi La Femme ... As well as all-American girls Creamy Stevens and Ruby Valentine, an international contingent was present in the form of the British Ms. Tickle ... and Kobayashi Maru from Japan. According to Keith's introduction, she was born in a little place called Okoge, located in the Okayama prefecture on the island of Honsu. A quick Internet search reveals that Okoge is also the Japanese word used to describe the crust of burned rice left at the bottom of a rice-cooker, and is the slang term for a fag hag.

If that wasn't enough wordplay, "Kobayashi Maru" is the name of the spacecraft that appears in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn, and is the term used by Trekkies to describe a no-win situation. Given her lexical origins, it was no surprise to find that Maru's performance was more than a sci-fi spoof. Without spoiling the surprise, suffice to say that Maru's act involves a pair of scissors and the final conversation from 2001: A Space Odyssey. Spookier than The Ring, but a whole lot sexier." full article here

The Village Voice - by Eudie Pak, June 2008
"If the new Indiana Jones installment left you limp, burlesque will put the snap back in your bullwhip with Pinchbottom and the Raiders of the Temple of the Kingdom of the Golden Boobs of Doom Crusade. Set in the late 1930's on the eve of war, archaeologist of erotic artifacts Nastyana Jones is on a mission to find the ancient Golden Boobs of Doom using a pornographic map. But wait! An evil baron is also on the hunt to grab hold of these powerful spiritual jugs, so she must keep them from falling into the wrong hands and casting "a shadow across the breasts of everyone on the planet." If you like the idea of seeing a bunch of gorgeous gals running around in jungle terrain amid "multidollar special effects," then this show will get you salivating. We give it a Double-D."

angrywhofan.blogspot.com - by Angry Who Fan, March 2008
We feel it's important, nay, our duty to make you aware of the burlesque show Naked Planet. It's basically 'Doctor Nude' and sounds great fun... Nasty Canasta for the next Doctor! full article here

io9.com - by Charlie Jane Anders, March 2008
Doctor Who and the Naked Breasts of Doom
"We're pretty sure there was never an episode of Doctor Who in the 1970s where Leela, the barbarian warrior, pulls out her giant knife and slices the Doctor's clothes off... and the Doctor turns out to be a woman. And then Leela loses her jungle bikini and they both end up wearing nothing but panties and the Doctor's scarf. The only place you can see that scenario play out is at a burlesque show like the Pinchbottom Burlesque, which is taking the love of science fiction to a whole new level ...

The demented Doctor/Leela scene is just one of the scenarios that plays out in Naked Planet, the science fiction burlesque show from New York troupe Pinchbottom Review. In another scene, Anita Cookie dresses as a hot Vulcan ensign on Star Trek, before stripping down to just two Starfleet insignias (covering her nipples) and a G-string. There's a super complicated plot about an evil galactic empire and rebels searching for an exiled burlesque queen on the Naked Planet, but really the set pieces are what make it awesome." full article here

Telegraph (UK) - by Rodney Bolt, February 2008
The Big Apple with sauce on the side
"Vaudeville's naughty cousin is back - and nowhere is it more popular than in New York. Rodney Bolt enjoys an evening of irony and titillation.

...A dancer drops the last stitch of clothing to reveal, not what one might expect, but a moustachioed Groucho Marx mask. In New York burlesque is back - but with a difference....

My friend Dora - about as deep a denizen of Manhattan as you can get - took me along to two of the best nights in town. Pinchbottom Burlesque offers shows that change monthly, at Collective: Unconscious in Tribeca on the Lower West Side. Tribeca (the Triangle Below Canal Street), once derelict and neglected, has over the past few years become a hotbed of restaurants and hip clubs. "This part of town is just so transformed," said Dora, as our taxi deposited us at the hole-in-a-wall entrance to Collective: Unconscious...

The lights dimmed, manic movie music began, and we were off. Jonny Porkpie and Nasty Canasta stepped on stage to host the show - a Marx Brothers send-up, loosely following a storyline about saving an ailing theatre by turning it into a bawdy-house. Along the way came risqué magic tricks, a peek-a-boo performance by a tattooed lady, many a cheeky flash from male and female performers alike, the odd nostalgic burlesque routine, and the hint of a lesbian sub-plot.

It was daring, funny, imaginative and titillating to all tastes - and, at $15 a ticket, about as good entertainment value as you can get in New York City ... " full article here

nytheatre.com - December 2007
"Episode # 180 - Burlesque Roundtable
In this episode, Trav S.D. moderates a roundtable about contemporary burlesque. (Trav S.D. says the table is not only round but curvaceous.)
Our guests are three of NYC's burlesque scene's biggest stars: Bonnie Dunn, Julie Atlas Muz, and Nasty Canasta. Each of these ladies shares insights about her own career and her views of how burlesque has evolved into a sophisticated live entertainment form."

Download the podcast full article here

The Village Voice - September 2007
VOICE CHOICE "Charlie's Angels, Starsky & Hutch, and Police Woman were all classic cop shows of the '70s, but to the creators of Pinchbottom Burlesque, they all lacked one vital detail: nudity. Now the best burlesque show in town seeks to ratify that with its new crime-fighting caper P.I.N.C.H. Squad (Police Investigative Narcotics, Counter-feiting, and Hootchy-kootch). Set in Disco City, the story follows the funkadelic policeman Jonny Porkpie and his team of sexy detectives on a mission to stop the roller-skating crime boss Nasty Canasta and her illicit burlesque and counterfeiting ring. The lineup includes cuties Little Brooklyn, Darlinda Just Darlinda, and Anita Cookie. Undoubtedly, strip searches will be a recurrent theme." full article here

Metromix - August 2007
"... The most imaginative (and funniest) burlesque troupe in the city is Pinchbottom, a collective led by Nasty Canasta and Jonny Porkpie. Their shows take oddball themes (sci-fi, superhero, cowboy) and put on a show that's equal parts sexy and funny (usually tilting more on the latter side of things) ..." full article here

Ministry of Burlesque Magazine - June 2007
"The next category [in the Miss Exotic World Pageant] was the Best Duo act and the first up was Pinchbottom Burlesque who performed one of the most original routines that I've seen for a long while. Their quirky sketch involving a flower with the hots for it's sexy owner was brilliant. There were stories about how this act had been ripped off by someone who had wrongfully claimed it as her own - well this was the night when Pinchbottom Burlesque claimed it back. This act rightfully went on to claim the 'Most Innovative Routine' award." full article here

New York Magazine - March 2007
BEST BURLESQUE: Pinchbottom Burlesque
In its most classic sense, burlesque should incorporate three elements: striptease, dancing, and ribald comedy. Of the many acts that grace New York stages right now --from the deliciously twisted and avant-garde to one-girl-after-another revues--Pinchbottom Burlesque follows the model to a note. It's sexy, campy fun with just an insinuation of nudity (thanks, in part, to creative costuming). But this is hardly the same old song and fan dance. Each month, co-hosts Jonny Porkpie and Nasty Canasta script a new show featuring many of the city's top performers, whose betasseled numbers leave enough to the imagination to make for an uproarious evening. (From the 2007 "Best of NY" issue) full article here

Brooklyn Courier-Life - by Joe Maniscalco, January 2007
Big, Bad, Bawdy & Beguiling: Burlesque Blitz hits Brooklyn

So, how much sexy fun can you handle in 48 hours?

Get ready, because Nasty Canasta, Veronika Sweet, Bunny Love, Cherry Bomb and the rest of the 30 risqué performers in the two-day extravaganza known as the Brooklyn Burlesque Blitz are going to test your endurance and tickle your funny bone this weekend.

"Burlesque is everything from classic elements from vaudeville, to folks who bring in a lot of different elements from performance art," Nasty Canasta told 24/7 this week. The blitz is so big that it took four of the hottest production teams on the neo-burlesque circuit today - Wasabassco, Pinchbottom, Sweet & Nasty and Kissing Cousins - to pull it all off. The action kicks off at Southpaw, at 125 Fifth Avenue in Park Slope on January 26, and then moves to North Six, at 66th North 6th Street in Williamsburg on January 27.

Sexy Scarlet Sinclair calls today's burlesque "the most incredible blank canvas I've ever known. We have absolute control of what we do up there, from the music to the choreography," she says. No one just gets up on stage and takes off their clothes in burlesque. Each performance is a self-contained story, and mny of the performers have backgrounds in the worlds of theater and comedy.

In a performance piece called "Miracle Grow," Jonny Porkpie joins wife Canasta on stage as a poor flower who only responds to "proper attention." "We get to the point where we're both taking off our clothes," Jonny laughs.

East Coast neo-burlesque as practiced in hipster venues around Brooklyn is a co-ed affair. "There are a few more guys getting into burlesque," Nasty confirms. In addition to hubby Jonny, other male performers like Bastard Keith and Tigger have successfully managed to stake out part of the burlesque stage for themselves without totally alienating straight men along the way. "I get a lot of feedback from straight guys," Jonny admits. "They don't find me threatening." Wasabassco producer Bill Morton calls burlesque "welcoming." "It's great to see many different points of view," he says. "That's the beauty of it."

Burlesque performers like Dirty Martini and The World Famous BOB helped lead a resurgence of the art form at drag clubs around the city in the 90's. Always a fan of pin-ups and lingerie, Scarlet says she got hooked on the genre after taking in a show at the Slipper Room a few years ago. "I fell in love with an art form that spoke to me," she says. "I felt maybe I could do this, too."

Nasty, who comes from a theater background, says that she often grew frustrated having to constantly perform in someone else's plays and recite someone else's lines. "It's wonderful to say I have this idea and I'm going to make it happen," she says. Many of Nasty and Jonny's burlesque performances - "because we're such big nerds" -- revolve around sci-fi or super-hero themes. They call their James Bond 007 piece "You Only Pinch Twice." "The Search for Naked Planet," meanwhile, revolves around a super-villain's attempts to attain a "strip ray." "Burlesque appeals to so many different people because the performers bring so much of themselves to the stage," Jonny says.

According to Scarlet, the women that approach her after shows are just as inspired as she was she was attending burlesque shows. "Most of the responses I get after shows are almost always women," she says. "They find what we do very empowering to them. Girls identify with stronger women no matter how skinny or how heavy," they may be. The performers in the Brooklyn Burlesque Blitz do come in all shapes and sizes. "It's a format that embraces beauty in all its sizes and shapes," Jonny says. "It doesn't matter what you look like - you're beauty is there."

For Scarlet, beauty runs in the family. Her "Kissing Cousins" go-go partner Gigi La Femme is actually a blood relative. "We grew up going to dance classes and doing those silly girl things," Scarlet laughs. Nasty says that now is definitely a good time for bawdy burlesque. "It's definitely more relaxed [nowadays]," she says. "There's not that terror of the body."

Even so, burlesque performers don't actually get naked - they draw the line at pasties and g-strings. Nasty even did a PG-13 rated burlesque show for an all-ages audience in New Jersey a little while back that was full of 14-year-old boys. "It was one of the best audiences I've ever had," she says. Morton, meanwhile, says he "almost never leaves Brooklyn."This is a place for me to do what I want to do," he says.

Most of the performers taking part in the Brooklyn Burlesque Blitz are either married or in long-term relationships. "By definition a burlesque performer is an amazing person," Morton says. "And amazing people don't say single for long." full article here

The Village Voice - by Ashman, November 2006
VOICE CHOICE "Very Special Agents: A show that's licensed to be naughty Daniel Craig may be a fine James Bond, but we have higher hopes for burlesque cutie Nasty Canasta's portrayal of secret agent 007 in Pinchbottom's perverted spoof You Only Pinch Twice, which features the tagline 'No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to strip.' The story follows an evil cartel that plots to take over the world using the twirling of burlesque performers' tassels to hypnotize the masses into submission. The shimmying lineup of undercover spies and henchgals includes Anita Cookie, Jo Boobs, and Tigger."

Time Out New York - by "New Dork City", August 2006
"Thanks to Nasty Canasta, Jonny Porkpie and the Pinchbottom crew, your perverted genre fantasies have come shimmying to life. The dancers served up a sci-fi theme this past spring (boobified Godzilla, we won't forget you), and Porkpie promises "more geek-tastic burlesque" in the next six months, including nights devoted to superheroes, cooking shows (!) and, coinciding with the release of Casino Royale, James Bond. Here's looking forward to Octopussy.... "

The Village Voice - by Ashman, August 2006
VOICE CHOICE "Superman, Batman, and the rest of the Justice League, watch out! A new disturbing breed of superhero has arrived downtown with special X-ray--correction: X-rated--powers. Pinchbottom's Burlesque presents Pow! Zap! Boob!, a themed burlesque show featuring the ultimate in super-powered striptease and variety acts. Hosts Nasty Canasta and Jonny Porkpie, with their wicked senses of humor, play the evil villains who must be stopped from taking over the world. A lineup of 10 absurdly named performers, including Anita Cookie, Creamy Stevens, Miss Firecracker, Bastard Keith, and Schaffer the Darklord, pay special bump-and-grind tributes to mighty characters such as Batgirl and Wonder Woman. It's doubtful you'll ever see these comic-book champs the same way again. Find out what top-secret "ultimate striptease weapon" saves the world."

The Village Voice - by Tricia Romano, August 2006
"[At the] second annual Va Va Vroom Car Wash Saturday outside Galapagos in Williamsburg ... a bevy of babes--including Starshine Burlesque's Little Brooklyn, Bunny Love, Dirty Martini (summer goal achievement: "no tan lines!"), Ula the Pain Proof Rubber Girl, Bambi, Nasty Canasta, Leslie Russ, and Leslie's wee young lass Fiona (stealin' the show)--buffed and waxed cars to tunes played by Scott Ewalt. They got all wet for a good cause: raising funds for Safe House, a women's shelter..."
Photo gallery here. full article here