Purim, the Jewish holiday celebrated a month before Passover, features revelers in costume — often cross-dressing — drinking and performing comedy. And this year, on March 9, the Gershman Y is having a fabulous Purim Party featuring the Schlep Sisters, Minnie Tonka and Darlinda Just Darlinda, who will perform their unique brand of Jewish burlesque. Philadelphia’s own DJ Robert Drake spins ’80s songs as part of the evening’s dance party.
PGN caught up with both the Schlep Sisters and Drake to get a sense of what to expect on this wild night.
Darlinda Just Darlinda and Minnie Tonka got their start 13 years ago after they met at a party after a flash-mob event in the Lower East Side. “It was a very serendipitous experience,” recalled Tonka. “We talked about finding creative outlets for performing, and it was Darlinda’s idea to do burlesque.”
The “showbiz sisters,” both of whom are Jewish, continue the tradition of Minsky’s with a dose of Borscht Belt humor by exploring the art form of burlesque and comedy from a Jewish perspective.
Darlinda Just Darlinda explained, “We do Jewish-themed acts, so we have many Hanukkah-themed acts, an Exodus number we do for Passover. The theme of our performance is Jewish. Burlesque has a long history of being Jewish, and the comedy is a big part of our Jewish heritage. We enjoy that. We have the only Hanukkah burlesque show that’s been going on for 10 years.”
“I think that also, some of our acts [hark back] to the Barry Sisters, who sung half in Yiddish and half in English,” Tonka added. “That’s another nod to our heritage. We bring it back in the 21st century.”
The pair will perform a Barry Sisters song at the Gershman Y Purim party, but they won’t reveal which one. Tonka urged folks to “come to the show and see!”
While burlesque suggests naughty and ribald acts, the Sisters insist their act is “really playful and funny and wholesome … with a little irony and a lot of Jewish pride,” as they finish each other’s sentences.
Tonka continued, “People can expect to laugh and be entertained and inspired. We veer more towards comedic and neo-burlesque, not the classic showgirls or fan dances. We love that, but our style is more contemporary and has more overt humor.”
As for what the Schlep Sisters will wear, Tonka previewed: “All of our costumes are custom-designed. They are colorful and fun. And we’re always identical. As burlesque performers, we’re always in costume. That’s our natural state. If we went to a party without a wig, that would be in costume! We’re in our Schlep Sisters glitz and glam attire!” n
DJ Robert Drake will spin hits from the 1980s to add to the evening’s retro vibe. The out music maven met with PGN to talk about what folks can expect from his part of the party.
PGN: Do you feel you’ve gone up or come down in this world to play musical host to a Jewish burlesque act?
RD: Wow. I think that I’ve come up in this world. Out of all the bizarre and unusual things I’ve aligned myself with in the city over the past 30 years, I still haven’t checked off a Jewish burlesque act on my bucket list, so that’s definitely something I haven’t done yet. It’s a step up to legitimacy.
PGN: How are you co-conspiring with the Schlep Sisters?
RD: Initially, they were coming on board to perform and the Gershman Y reached out to me to ask if I would build something around their event. My wheelhouse is retro, throwback music, so I decided to focus on what I do, and they are adapting to me more than I’m adapting to them. They have their performances and their acts and I’ll be excited to see them, but something tells me their performance will connect with the ’80s vibe because looking at them, it looks perfect for retro style. It will be collaborative.
PGN: What do you bring to it as a DJ? Are there any particularly Jewish ’80s acts?
RD: Not being Jewish, I asked, “What is a Purim party?” and Bill [Chenevert] at the Gershman Y said, “Consider it like Halloween, a celebration with costumes.” And that’s all my parties, everything I’ve done: people getting dressed up and weird themes and costumes to dance. It was easy to figure out. I don’t have any specific songs to play. I’m going to be the seasoning to the steak, the steak being the girls. So it’s Kosher steak.
PGN: A good DJ creates a mood and gets people moving. How do you encourage folks who are less inclined to dance to get up off their tuchas?
RD: [Laughs] There are “fish in a barrel songs” as I like to call them: songs that, being a DJ for 30 years, I personally would not listen to because I’ve heard them a lot, but the minute I play them, everyone gets on the floor, songs like “Mickey” by Toni Basil, anything from the Go-Go’s, as those tend to make everybody stand up, and Madonna, her hits especially.
PGN: Madonna’s real Jewish!
RD: Yeah, depending on what decade you talk about. The Kabbalah phase! [Laughs] I think that what I’ve known over time is that the music I started playing in the ’80s was new music; when I began Sex Dwarf in 2003, it was a celebration of music I grew up with, and I didn’t realize that there were people who also wanted it. What’s neat about it is today’s current music, pop artists like Lady Gaga, are so inspired by ’80s music that I can attract the 50-plus crowd with the music of their youth [and] at the same time I can get someone who is 24-25 years old who also connects to the songs because they recognize the same beats, the same rhythms. It’s a multi-generational genre of music, you don’t get in ’90s music or ’70s music.
PGN: What can folks expect to hear on your playlist?
RD: Eighties hits with an extra dose of ’80s schmaltz. See, I’m embracing the Jewish culture! Kosher cheese.
PGN: Purim is a wild party, a kind of masquerade, with comedy, cross-dressing and drunkenness. How do/would you celebrate?
RD: My celebration is that I’m a Svengali of sorts, and people who are there are the centerpiece, the stars of the night, if they’re coming in costume. I want to make sure they are part of the event. I’m toying with some costumes myself. I actually have a Mummers outfit I might pull out of storage, depending on how glittery it is.
PGN: There are going to be contests crowning a Queen Esther and Mordecai. Are you going to be emceeing that?
RD: I told them I would do whatever they want me to do. I don’t regret that, but I’m a little anxious because I don’t quite know. Hopefully, I’m not the judge of that [contest], because I don’t know what the criteria would be. But I think they will handle that and I will handle the policing of it all. I think the themes and costumes will provide a good prizewinning king and queen. We’ll see a lot of ’80s-inspired outfits, which everyone has in the back of their closets. It gives people a chance to clean out their closets and do some spring cleaning.
PGN: Will you perform a burlesque act?
RD: [Laughs] I’ve hosted many a burlesque act. I don’t know if there’s enough money to pay to see me. I’m not one to be in front, unless they bring back the fans. They will need a lot of feathers to cover this body. I have a feeling it’s best for me not to do the burlesque act myself, and actually just be the inspiration behind it.
PGN: How do you find the right tone for burlesque?
RD: You have to be outgoing and interact with the crowd. You’re a carny of sorts, constantly moving things along. But at the same time, you have to deflect the fear the audience has — people have apprehension when they sit in a burlesque house or in front of a burlesque show — so I think you have to distract them enough so they relax and enjoy the performance, and don’t get embarrassed by seeing burlesque. It’s just another form of dancing, really, and when it’s done properly, it’s very artistic and creative, and comedic, depending on the act. I’m sure the Schlep Sisters will be comedic — if not they have the wrong name.
Purim Party takes place 7-9 p.m. March 9 at The Gershman Y, 401 S. Broad St. Purchase tickets at http://bit.ly/2mFxcgT.