Spotlight on Black House Cabaret; Adult Entertainment- Vapor Paragorn Reporting… ~ The SL Enquirer

Black house is a newly opened cabaret venue, where they claim to portray darker Side of burlesque. It was opened on February 22, 2013 with their first burlesque show.

It is located in an adult region featuring up beat music and burlesque events throughout the week. Upon entering the place you will land in middle of roadway surrounded by Gothic atmosphere. While walking towards the theater building you will find few vendors and ad boards on old rusted walls. On the ad boards you can advertise your own venue or other services. The main theater building is designed in an old fashioned 70's western structure. It has a mysterious feel. At the theater's entrance you will be welcomed by classic movies posters, feathered on gallery wall. They also have their DJ's and staff member’s posters outside main hall's entrance. In the front lobby you will find a surprising kinky showcase, with different kinds of adult content. That will give you a hint about the surprise factor in black house burlesque shows.

Black House Theater has two levels. At the ground level they have a big stage area surrounded by dance poles. There is a bar on one side and many fine dining in front and side of stage area for settling in and enjoying the show. There are dining tables and chairs on second level as well with a terrace view of stage area down below.

Black House Theater's whole interior is pleasantly dim, which gives it a cozy feel. They have fancy lighting effects and they design creative sets for each performance. Performers act and dance to rocking musical tracks, dressed in specially designed costumes.

If you are tired of regular clubs and theme events and you are more into the Adult scene then Black House cabaret is recommended for you. They claim to provide unique kinds of entertainment that you won't find elsewhere in SL.

I talked to co-owner Shayia Resident to know more about this fascinating venue.

Vapor: Firstly thanks for giving us your time. And secondly please tell SLE, How you conceived the idea of this place?

Shayia: Thank you for taking the time with us, it's much appreciated. The Black house wasn't just one person, RogueJames Resident and MythRaven are also Co- Founders of the club. Rogue and I originally discussed doing something different in SL, rather than another run of the mill dance club. During one of our brain storming sessions we started discussing burlesque. But not ordinary burlesque ours is more hard rocking. And we took the idea to Myth with her knowledge of stage sets and pyrotechnics and it all kind of fell into place from there

Vapor: I would like to know, what was your main inspiration and goals you and your team had in mind while designing this place?

Shayia: We knew that SL had burlesque clubs, and we've even visited a few. And the shows didn't seem to be all that entertaining, so we tried to bring the showmanship of the old show theater into the 21st century. A show house to provide performers a place to exercise their creativity in set design, lighting and effects, combining the visual show with music to give an audience a complete package in regard to entertainment, which I don't know if anyone else does in SL at this time

Vapor: Please briefly tell SLE about burlesque shows and all the other entertainment your place provide?

Shayia: Right now the Black House Cabaret has one live burlesque show a week. This is on Friday nights at 6pm SLT. We run a two hour set during which at this time there are 3 performances. First Myth Raven with her choice of set and music track, then me and Munchkin with ours and thirdly our finale song of ACDC and Thunderstruck with the three of us performing together. On other nights during the week as well as later on Fridays we have various DJ's that run two hour sets and operate as a dance club. We welcome rezzday parties anniversaries, birthdays, and in general want people to be entertained and to have a good time

Vapor: What is the usual subject of your burlesque shows? Tell us about their storyline.

Shayia: Our burlesque shows differ from the norm in that we have the darker side of burlesque. I can't speak for the others but one for the sets that Munchkin and I do is called Dante's Inferno. We have complete burlesque costumes wings, horns and all. Our set is exactly that a raging inferno, or hell, and the story line of our songs are how it's easy to be taken in by temptation. Appearances can be deceiving, only to find you have sold you soul to the devil in the end. Each set is designed by the performer with their own vision in mind

Vapor: Have you thought about performing on your own songs, written and sung by you and your team?

Shayia: I'm sure that's something we will consider in the future. We have discussed bringing live performers into the show to sing and perhaps collaborate with them to bring a set to life.

Vapor: Why is the theater designed in a dark mysterious settings, and what kind of feel do you want to give to your visitors through it?

Shayia: Think of it as Old West burlesque show house meets Gothic We want our VIP's to come to be entertained and to have a good time with us. Give them a show with surprises that they won't expect. Put that WOW factor into the show for them. Rather than the normal "stripper without a pole" normal burlesque routines that are often seen on SL.

Vapor: What inspires you to run a burlesque entertainment venue? How do you think it can attract people?

Shayia: Normal dance clubs come and go on SL. Here one day gone the next. Rogue, Myth, Munchkin and I wanted to give our patrons something different. Something unique. We attract VIP's because of the effort we put into our shows. Our live burlesque performances are entertaining and fun. Not only for the performers but for our patrons too. We've set the bar high, our standard of excellence. And we keep going until the set is good enough to run in the club. By keeping things fresh and exciting we keep people returning

Vapor: Black House Theater has a contest board, do you do contest events regularly and do they have different themes?

Shayia: Yes, at the Black House Cabaret we do run contests if it's what the DJ's would like to do during their sets. They set the themes, put up prize money and if they want a sponsored event then the DJ or Host for that set comes to me and we work with one of our sponsors to make it happen for them.

Vapor: Do you feel you have competitors in this business of providing people burlesque entertainment?

Shayia: We know that there are other burlesque clubs on SL; however our shows are unique in their quality and thematic ideas. So, I would have to say that for our type of burlesque no we do not have competition.

Vapor: In your opinion what brings people to your place and why its better?

Shayia: The Black House Cabaret has set a high standard of excellence. By holding to that standard we are able to entertain. If one person sees something they enjoy they are going to tell another person and another and another and so on. If we have a DJ that is entraining, plays upbeat music or slow music or whatever the VIP requests then they are more likely to return again and again. Our Dj's interact with the crowd. Our Hostesses interact with the crowd and our performers interact with the crowd. It's all about entertaining.

Vapor: What challenges have you and your team faced so far while running the venue?

Shayia: The hardest thing that we've run across, I believe, is finding someone who is the right fit for us as we are for them. If their heart isn't into the performance or dance set, you can tell. Anyone seems to think 'oh I can do that...' without realizing the behind the scenes effort and dedication that goes into each set before we bring it to our VIP's

Vapor: Personally do you feel competition within your team and with other performers?

Shayia: Myself personally? No, not at all. Rogue, Myth, Munchkin and I are exactly that, a team. We aren't here to compete with each other but to provide quality entertainment for our Patrons

Vapor: Tell us about your staff and/or someone else you would like to name, who help keep your place up and running?

Shayia: Our staff consists of Rogue who is our main DJ/MC, Co-founder and Owner of The Black House Cabaret. Myth Raven, our lead performer, Co-founder and Owner, Munchkin, our Assistant Manager and performer and myself, I am the General Manager and performer. We also have our DJ's and Hosts during the week Lord Arimond & Cim, Firewillow & Ivey, and The Rogue & Myth Roadshow. They are all an integral part of our team and we couldn't do it without their help

Vapor: What are your future plans for Black House Theater?

Shayia: we intend on bringing the burlesque show to our patrons twice a week, with perhaps a different show each time. We will be bringing in more awesome Dj's and great Hosts and continuing to discuss bringing in live performers as well as the tribute band Phoenix to perform concerts at The Black House Cabaret. We are always open to ideas and suggestions from our VIP's and other staff members. We will continue to bring them what they want to see and hear

Vapor: Any message for SLE readers?

Shayia: We'd like to invite each and every one of your readers to join us for a Friday night cabaret show or a dance club set. We're all about having a good time here in SL, and would welcome them anytime anyone would like to join us

I also briefly talked with Black House Cabaret's other team members and co-owners

Vapor: Please tell SLE about your experience working with black house cabaret and a little about your performances?

Mytholus: Black House Cabaret will ROCK you! 60+ to 80+ Crowds aren't unusual at our shows. On the way to being one of the top clubs in SL. The VIPS know that original entertainment is only a TP away and we do notices. Open the flood gates! Gothic Rock showgirl performances. The Dark Side of Burlesque. Cabaret with a twist.

Roguejames: Well, the black House Cabaret grew out of the Myth and Rogue Roadshow from Bound Addictions, we ran there for, I think 6 months twice a week, and then at Desperado's Roadhouse, for another 3 or four, and when Desperado's closed, Myth, myself and Shayia decided to try and make a go of it here. Myth has been and remains the creative driving force that keeps us moving, I really cannot give her enough credit for making the shows and the Black House what it is. Shayia has been and remains a manager at the Dockside, and the Full Throttle Saloon, and so brought a good amount of management experience. As for the shows, they are festivals of light, music and effects along with dance and performances by the performers, each performer chooses their own and then builds the sets, chooses the costumes and their own music, so... it creates quite a variety