Look, Listen, Dance

Happy Autumn! The harvest is coming in, and I am happy to report that you'll have lots of chances for Kai-time this season. Did you catch my first innerspace webcast last month? It was so much fun I am going to do it again on Saturday, November 13th at 6:40 PM (EST) You can watch a recording of the last webcast here to relive the magick. I do hope to see you in inner & outerspace sometime while the leaves are falling....



Next week (Wednesday, October 6th) you should be sure to come by Public Assembly to see me play at Dead Till Tuesday's launch of their new record "What's That Sound?" produced by Mark Saunders (The Cure, Depeche Mode, Erasure, Shiny Toy Guns.) I'll be joining DTT onstage for a few songs that I helped to co-write, and there will be a $5 open bar from 8-9PM. All proceeds from the show will benefit Right Rides NYC, who offers women, LGBTQ and gender queer individuals a free, safe, late night ride home on Friday and Saturday nights.

The following week, be sure to come down to see my showcase at Arlene's Grocery on October 14th at 7PM for the AMCON 2010 Management Conference. Help me show perspective managers what a beautiful family of New Yorkers I have supporting me in my art.

Finally, starting today, my song "Long Ago & Far Away" will begin airing on here on Women of Substance Radio for the next 3 months. Listen from 8-9PM(EST) everyday, and give me a 'thumbs up' when you hear the song played.

OOOh, and we're days away from announcing the release of the short film/music video for my new single, "Shine." Can you stand the excitement? I do love the fall. AAAAOOOOwwwww...what will you be for Halloween this year? :)

the last whisps....

the season turns on its head. tumbling down the hill we roll into fall, and you will get a chance to come see me many times here in NYC (and the interwebs) as the leaves fall and dance together in the darkness. come celebrate autumn with me at Rockwood Music Hall on September 22nd at 10:30 PM for an intimate evening of song and dance. wear fall colors, bring skeletons, bats, baby gourds, and get there early for a spot as the venue is small. you can also catch me on October 6th at Public Assembly, and October 14th an AMCON 2010 Management Conference showcase at Arlene's Grocery. expect another webcast concert on Ustream.tv to be announced soon as well. Below you will find the last whisps of summer waiting for you...

remember mermaid lagoon? here's a beautiful review from Rena Finkel at Auxilliary Magazine to take you back to dreamland:

in attendance : The Mermaid Lagoon at House of Yes

Brooklyn NY, Saturday, July 21 – The Mermaid Lagoon, a benefit party for the Oceanic Preservation Society and the Gulf Coast cleanup efforts took place at the House of Yes in Williamsburg. The House is a school of aerial arts so full of personalities and stories that is deserves its own book, but on Saturday night it served to host a gathering of angry mermaids. The conceit of the evening was that the ocean home of these mermaids had been gravely threatened by the BP oil spill and they want it fixed. The decor worked with what it was given, an air conditioning-less warehouse crowded with trapeze artist junk. Blue fabrics were draped and twined, lights strung, and a local sculptor contributed large-scale UV reactive foam sea creatures that had an ethereal, if day-glo, effect. The bar was serving alcoholic fruit smoothies, which were reported to be perfect for the temperature indoors.

The “mermaids” of the lagoon, that is, the performers and staff, presented a broad spectrum of entertainment. The night’s opening act was Desert Sin, a non-traditional bellydance group in elaborate costume. The performance seemed to interpret the darker power of the sea, intense stares and rippling arms abounded. Then came a fire-palm dance by burlesque performer Veronica Varlow. Kai Altair, Varlow’s sister and the MC for the night explained that mermaids are famous for seductive dance and song that lures men to their doom and that this particular one was intended for the BP executives. Altair herself performed her mystical/tropical music with great warmth and enthusiasm later on that night. Other entertainment included Cassandra of Lady Circus in a breathtaking glass-walking performance inspired by the Little Mermaid, and Ali Luminescent (Coney Island’s Mermaid of the Year in 2009) on trapeze. To tickle more academic fancies, a doctor of oceanography gave a lecture both on the ramifications of the oil spill and Japanese dolphin fishing in full mermaid attire. Among other prizes, love letters from Ms. Varlow and prints of the resident oceanographer’s photography were raffled off as further fundraising.

All this was well-executed, well-planned, and interspersed with a DJ and dance floor. In terms of value, a science lecture, a dance performance, a dance club, and a concert in one night was more than worth it. But the real culmination of the event came at perhaps 1:30 AM, after all the performances were over. Most attendees were on the sidewalk outside of the club, which is situated in the middle of an industrial park, virtually empty on a Saturday night. While no one seemed quite ready to go home, it was simply too hot to stay indoors. Then, within a minute of the first rumble of lightning, the skies opened up to gave us a flash flood. Everyone indoors, performers included, poured out onto the street and gave up to those screaming laughing, dancing moments summer storms bring. About ten minutes into the storm, Kai Altair came out and ran to her sister who was already reveling in the downpour with her fans. She pointed to the sudden river of rainwater running down the gutter of Maujer St. and said, “Look! She heard us! It’s her, Mama Ocean!”

- Rena Finkel