Hands of Kali

Greetings! 

We ladies of Hands of Kali are SO EFFING STOKED about Tin Can Studio!  Last week we visited it as a troupe for the first time, *man* is it SUH-WEEEET!  It’s huge, and there’s hooks for aerial stuff, and a bar, and a shower, and a kitchen, and across from the studio under the freeway is a perfect place to play with fire toys!  I can’t wait for our big opening night show on Saturday, August 13th!  For our first get together at the studio we brewed beer that should be ready just in time for the show.  Woo-hoo! 

We’ve been brainstorming ideas for shows and events, and out came the idea of a Bustle Tussle… what is a Bustle Tussle, you ask?  We’re still working out the particulars, but the basic premise is a burlesque dancer throwdown.  We’re thinking we can get a bunch of burlesque dancers & randomly select pairs to go at it in a kiddie pool filled with Jello.  Whoever gets the other down to her knickers and pasties first is the winner of that bout.  We’re also thinking of holding an auction (proceeds going to charity) for the opportunity to sponge the Jello off of the dancer of your choice. 

As I said, we’re still working out the particulars… is the Tin Can Bustle Tussle something you guys would want to see happen?  Any thoughts/ideas/suggestions? 

Love always,
Death Ann

So we’re back from Tribal Fest.  What an experience!  It was much different than I expected, but delightful nonetheless.  The drive down with Seraphina & Sibyl was craziness- we left sunny Seattle (yeah, it was actually sunny that day) for a sleety, snowy California (no joke, it was effing SNOWING as we entered into California).  Our pilgrimage to Weed, California was denied because we couldn’t find the right exit (ironic, isn’t it?).   

The hotel, as well as the festival itself, was different than I had imagined.  The Sebastapol Inn is a small, quaint hotel.  For some reason I had envisioned it as a swanky resort.  I also had the impression that the workshops and performances happened AT the hotel- not so.  The community center is about a 15 minute walk from the Inn.  The surrounding area is totally cute.  Apparently there’s a town or area nearby called Analy, so there’s stuff all over about the Analy Tigers, and we saw a kid wearing an Analy Intramural shirt (if I have to explain why this is noteworthy then you wouldn’t get it anyway). 

I was gun-shy about spending any money at any of the vendors, despite (or as a result of?) having saved up some dough specifically to blow on new dance stuff.  I ended up buying a couple of sets of arm-warmers (is that what you call them?) from Geisha Moth (ooh, look at me name-droppin’!) and a sweet reversible belt (goofy glittery skeletons on one side, red & black stripes on the other) with washers on it that I can clip shit onto. 

The workshops positively KICKED MY ASS.  Seriously, I was a whimpering little sissy girl by the end of each day.  Getting into the hot tub after was more about physical therapy than it was about luxury.  Seriously!  KICKED MY ASS (in the best way possible).  Like, I felt like a 90 year old getting out of bed each day. 

As a reaction to our Seattleite sunlight deprivation, Seraphina and I called down the thunder by not wearing sunscreen the first couple of days.  We looked to the sky and yelled “BRING IT ON, SUN!!!”  …oh did the sun bring it.  On top of being sore from ass-kicking workshops, we had sunburn.  But, it burned *so good.* - I don’t know about Seraphina, but I totally don’t regret it. 

While we were there, I didn’t watch many performances as a personal choice.  While I’m totally aware I missed out on a TON of amazing performers, it was the right decision for me at the time.  First of all, I’d never been to Tribal Fest, and was going to be performing. Not just a solo, but with a group.  The pressure was IMMENSE.  What if I forgot something?  I’d ruin the whole thing for everyone!  Watching the other performers intimidated the shit outta me, so I kept it to a minimum for that reason.  Secondly, I was frickin’ exhausted by the time the performances started on Friday- between the sunburn and the thorough daily ass-kickings, going and standing in a crowded audience (there were no seats by the time I dragged my sorry ass to the performance hall) was really hard to pull myself together to go do.  So, for those reasons, I opted to skip a lot of the performances.  Next year I will definitely make it a point to go watch more, but I maintain that I made the right decision for me this year.  I did catch Unmata (moved me to tears, literally) and Frank Farinaro (blew my frickin’ mind), though. 

 Sunday was the big day.  HoK was going to perform at Tribal Fest, and I was going to be performing IN Hands of Kali.  I started to get a bit nervous while we were waiting at the side of the stage to go on, but I really fought to keep in mind that it’s really just another show, we’ve done this routine many times, you got this shit, etc etc etc.  I was pretty much OK throughout the 1^st two songs of our set (http://youtu.be/55qGm6kLP9w).  At the beginning of After Dark (the sword piece, at 6:50), I started to unravel.  Seriously you guys, I was about to poop my pants.  The reality of being up there set in, and I was a quivering mess of gut instinct and muscle memory.  With Kendracula maintaining eye contact with me to keep me (as much as possible) centered & calm, I made it  through, and doggone it, I think we all did a fucking splendiferous job, if I can toot my own HoK horn here for a moment.   

The drive home was much more pleasant than the drive down- no snow, and we took a scenic route.  Kendra, Seraphina, and I took 101 through the redwoods (which I’ve never seen), stopped to prance through the forest,



drove through a tree (http://www.panoramio.com/photo/2638102), stopped for some bad-ass Mexican food from the Riverwood Inn, saw a couple huge tribes of elk (what’s a group of elk called anyway?), saw the ocean, rented a “Kabin” from a KoA, grilled some dinner (some of which was sacrificed due to a grilling mishap), survived an attack from a vicious blood-sucking spider from Hell, and made it home safely. 

 So that was Tribal Fest.  :) 

Last weekend, we had the privilege of performing with Nae Regrets (check ‘em out!  http://naeregrets.com/index.html), a bagpipe & drum band, at Folklife.  Holy cow, what great energy!  I’ve never performed (well, formally… you know what I mean…) to live music, and it was SO MUCH FUN!  Apparently the bagpipe is Middle Eastern in origin- who knew?  Turns out belly-dance and bagpipes is a marriage made in Heaven, and we had an amazing time. 



I really hope we dance with them again. 

So that’s what’s up with me and HoK these days.  Watch out for more shenanigans- we’ve got Mechanismus and Pride Parade coming up. 

 TUNE IN NEXT TIME... SAME BAT-TIME, SAME BAT-CHANNEL.

 XOXOXXX, 

Death Annabanana

Wow!  The day after tomorrow we leave for Tribal Fest!  This is my first year going to Tribal Fest, and I have the honor of performing with Hands of Kali!   

I’ve heard so much about Tribal Fest since I started taking lessons with Kendra 3 years ago, and now I finally get to go!  I’m really excited to take workshops, spend time with my troupemates and with my former troupemates from Adderstone, meet other dancers, shop, & soak in the experience. 

Kendra & Tiphany are leaving first Monday, followed by Sibyl, Seraphina, & I, and we’re all meeting at a KoA in Medford, Oregon to camp out for the night.  We’ll get up on Tuesday and finish the drive into Sebastopol, California where we’ll meet up with Juliet, Carolyn, and Deidra, who are flying in. 

Wednesday our fearless leader Kendra will be teaching a double-sword workshop with Deidra’s assistance!  How *COOL* is that?!  I’m so proud that she was invited to teach.  AND (squee!) we’ll have copies of SHARP, Hands of Kali’s first double-sword instructional video for sale for $20!  Produced by Kendra, Michael Hayes, and John Mitchell, it features teaching by Kendra and Deidra plus performance segments. 

On Saturday, Seraphina has a solo spot to perform at 1:40pm (I’m so proud of her!  Her piece is gonna ROCK the HOUSE!).  On Sunday, Hands of Kali will perform at 4:12pm.  I’m so excited!  I’ve heard that the stage is huge, & I know I’m going to be nervous performing for a huge crowd of fellow dancers, but I also know that our routine is bomb-ass (BIG thanks to Kendra & Deidra for their choreographing genius), and we’ve really worked our tushies off, so I am confident that we’re going to knock their socks off. 

Monday we’ll all head back to Seattle, making a pit stop along the way to camp out Monday night.  Wednesday it’s back to the daily grind, after an amazing experience.  Can’t wait!  We’ll be sure to post updates and pictures from our adventure. 

XOXOXXX,

Death Ann

In less than one week, we ladies of Hands of Kali will be on the road to Tribal Fest!  We have been busy little bees getting ready for such an exciting event! 

Friday, Deidra, Kendra, and Seraphina got together (I had to work :(  <insert sad trombone sound here>) to make handmade Hands of Kali tank tops.

Per the talented Ms. Seraphina Fiero, here’s the basic process they used: 

“You carve out a 'relief' of the design you want on the woodblocks with the tools. After that I made a register on newsprint with the outlines of each size shirt size on it and an outline of where the blocks will be placed for printing. We rolled some special ink on top of the blocks and set them up in their place on the register and gently placed the shirts over it. Then we applied a little bit of pressure with a specialty hand tool made just for this purpose, pulled away the shirt and viola. Badass HoK apparel.” 

Want your own handmade HoK tank top?  Contact us!  We’ve got them AVAILABLE IN RED & SKY BLUE for ONLY $15!   

Fellas, want a Hands of Kali shirt, but not sure how you’ll look in a sky-blue or red spaghetti strap tank top?  Never fear!  We also have mens black Hands of Kali t-shirts available for purchase.  Contact us! 

After the shirt-printing extravaganza, the ladies & I got cleaned up to perform at Spin the Bottle at The Annex Theater.  Can I just gush for a second about how much I *love* performing at Spin the Bottle?  Such good energy, amazing talent, and such a variety of performances.  May’s Spin the Bottle had us sharing the stage with Marissa Niederhauser, Anita Goodman, & Gude/Laurance amongst other most excellent performers.  As was expected, we had a blast!

On a side note, our talented Ms. Seraphina Fiero worked her last day at her day job yesterday, to devote her time to dance & art.  Hell yeah, sister, get it!

What’s that you say?  You *still* haven’t seen us perform our Tribal Fest set?  Or, you want to see it again?  Come to The Vogue tomorrow night for Welcome to the Dollhouse.  Just $6 gets you in the door for $4.00 Double Well Drinks, Hands of Kali, and DJ LightRay taking your requests all night long. 1509 Broadway (Use Front Door Entrance On Broadway).  See you there, yeah?

XOXOXXX,

Death Ann Kinkle

 

Friends --
Please join us at the Funhouse tonight for Beltane Cabaret. Just $6 gets you bellydance by Hands of Kali and Muna Rain, butoh fusion by Mer Sedna, live music by the Nasty Habits, the burlesque and comedy of Scandal from Bohemia, kooky-dark performance art by the Fog People, and maybe even a few fun surprises! 10pm at the Funhouse, near Seattle Center.
Thanks,
Kendra and the rest of HoK

There's so much great stuff in this show -- I can't wait to see new material from the Fog People and Mer Sedna and Muna Rain. They're all doing such interesting creative work these days. We recently added Scandal from Bohemia to the bill, and I'm stoked about that cuz she's pretty much the most hilarious burlesque performer around. And who doesn't love to jam out to the Nasty Habits at the end of a long week? This show is gonna be funny, naughty and dark -- helluva lot of entertainment for just $6. Hope to see lots of you good people there this coming Sat., 4/30. At the Funhouse. Show starts at 10:30.
Thanks so much!
xoxo,
Kendra  :)

Greetings dance enthusiasts and all-around awesome people!

 

We had such a great time at Alauda this week, big thank yous to the lovely ladies that run the show (who are also kick-ass performers btw) for having us and thank you to those who came to see the show! A video of our performance is available for your viewing pleasure a few posts down on our wall. Yee haw!

 

Are you a sad panda because you didn't see it in the flesh? You are in luck. We're doing this saucy little number and other new and exciting things in upcoming shows.

 

First up is DANTE'S! Tomorrow night April 24, 2011 at 9:00pm. Ages 21+ $5 Cover. We always have a blast performing here, come join us! 5300 Roosevelt Way NE Seattle, WA.

 

After that we have our Beltane Cabaret on April 30, 2011 at 10pm. Ages 21+ and $6 cover. Dance and music ensues.....at the Funhouse 206 5th Ave N Seattle.

 

 

Kisses,

 

Seraphina

Take your protein pill and put your helmet on. HoK was up to some extraterrestrial antics this week at the Out of This World show at Dante's.

 

We were joined by the lovelies of Adderstone and other talented acts including some galactic burlesque. Being a true bonafide geek and all, I have to say the level of creativity in the acts and costuming was really stellar. Don't take my word for it though. I happen to have some video transmissions from the show sent to us from outer space!! So put on your tinfoil hats and enjoy (in order of performance):

 

 

 

Deidra as Diva Plavalaguna

 

www.youtube.com/watch

 

You look beautiful in Blue.

 

 

Juliet from Adderstone plugging into the Matrix

 

www.youtube.com/watch

 

There is no spoon.

 

 

 

Kendra dancing with her glowing orbs of stardust

www.youtube.com/watch

 

Voodoo baby.

 

 

Death Ann and myself as Jabba and Slave Leia

 

www.youtube.com/watch

 

Let the Force be with you.

 

 

We're kinda awesome like that. Another testament to our awesomeness is the fact that WE HAVE LEARNED OUR TRIBAL FEST ROUTINE! Our choreographies are courtesy of Kendra and Deidra, and they are mighty fine ones at that. We will be drilling them to perfection over the next couple months for your viewing pleasure. All four of us are really excited to share this with you.

 

What are we up to this week? Why we'll be in a show this Friday called "Resistance" at The Mix in Georgetown. It is a benefit for breast cancer survivors, 6006 12th Ave South at 9pm, $7 at the door.

 

 

Live Long and Prosper,

 

Seraphina

This Friday, 4/1: "Resistance" at The Mix in Georgetown, featuring Hands of Kali, William Wilson, cool art and hot DJs, in a benefit for cancer survivors. Join us in support of a great cause! Address 6006 12th Ave. S., doors at 9pm, just $7.

Over the weekend I started piecing together a Julie Newmar Catwoman outfit (not for a show, but for a kitty-themed party coming up), and it got me thinking about how awesome it is that we belly-dancers get to dress-up in cool costumes all the time, and how fun it is to go to shows and admire other dancers’ costumes, seeing it as part of their performance.

Since we’re visual artists, our costumes are also part of the art.  Whether we make our own costumes or buy different items and piece them together to create something unique, or even if we buy something pre-fab and doll it up with make-up and hair, it’s an expression of our individuality and helps our dance communicate a feeling or a story.  Plus, it’s super-fun to play dress-up! 

Some of my favorite things I’ve worn are a bondagey black bra I made, inspired by the Cenobites from Hellraiser.  I’ve made a mummy costume (note to self- do *not* try to hot glue yourself into a costume while wearing it).  I once got to dress like Slash and play air guitar on a broom at a show (while I wasn’t *technically* dancing, it was at a belly-dance show).  I’ve got a sweet metal bra that makes me feel like a bad-ass warrior chick.  I’ve got a big poofy skirt that swishes when I spin.  I’ve worn a pink cowgirl outfit, with a pink Casa Bonita cowgirl hat, from the REAL Casa Bonita in Denver (see South Park if you’re not in the know ;).  I’ve danced in devil horns, and I’ve danced in vampire teeth (not at the same time, but that could be cool…).   

I feel really blessed to be part of a dance community that allows so much room for personal expression, not only through our dance, but through our costuming as well.  I also am super DUPER fortunate and grateful that I have a troupemate (the wonderful Ms. Deidra) who is an incredibly talented and skilled seamstress- our costumes for Tribal Fest are going to be totally kick-ass, I can’t wait!

XOXOXXX,
Death Ann