About Us
As a "Queer Feminist Burlesque Collective", we are all writers, performers, and directors. This means that our performances are as diverse as our members, with song, dance, comedy, poetry, and more besides.
Our diversity also allows us to take in a wide variety of queer feminist perspectives - we are kinky and vanilla, monogamous and polyamorous, transgender and cisgender, lesbian, bisexual, asexual, and straight. We are students, we are professionals, we are activists.
Want to see what they've been saying about us? Read our smashing reviews!
Meet the Lashers
Sebastienne: Founder Member
Best known on-stage for writing and performing You're the Top, and off-stage for endless energy, enthusiasm and encouragement, enabling excellence from everyone. This is all, in some oblique way, Sebastienne's fault. She's not sorry.
Annalytica: Joined November 2008
The first Lasher to join Sebastienne's crusade, Annalytica brings incisive political thought that is inexpressibly valuable to a group like ours. The songs she writes are intricate and complex, and she sings them with thoughtfulness and intensity.
Galatea: Joined February 2009
The queen of choreography & song-writing, Ms Téa rocks behind the scenes almost as much as she does on stage. She can always get a rehearsal going with an embarrassing drama game, or lift a song from funny to fantastic with her dance ideas.
Lilka: Joined October 2009
First a fan, then a Lasher, Lilka is the perfect embodiment of "Don't Dream It, Be It". Writing and singing with a tremendous strength and power, we are all very happy that she has chosen to live the dream with us!
Sally: Joined October 2009
Sally doesn't get a stage-name, because her stand-up persona is far too raw and honest for the burlesquey pretensions indulged in by the rest of us. She's so special that she gets her own section on the website!
Carlotta: Joined January 2010
Writes as well as she sings - check out Love Story, which always gets the audience blubbing! Carlotta is designated the "real world liaison officer" as she is the most able to cope outside our little bubble of sex & politics.
Nigel: Joined April 2011
Lashings have a series of interchangeable Nigels. They provide secretarial support, make tea at rehearsals, and look oh-so-pretty in a pink dress for the sci-fi skits. Our current favourite is Nigel Newt.
Cleopatra: Joined December 2011
Cleopatra joined us when we were short one Dandini for our queer version of Cinderella. Her skill delivering Galatea's wine-puns made us all (beau)jealous, and now we couldn't live sans her. Cleopatra's venue-wrangling know-how makes our lives easier - and she can sing, too!
Past Lashers
Itcia: March 2010 - August 2010
It could be said that we picked up Itcia when we happened to play at her uni's Ladyfest.. but it would be more honest to put our hands up and admit that she was at school with Sebastienne.
Silvestre: June 2010 - April 2011
Described by a reviewer as 'Bambi-does-Ru-Paul' for his portrayal of Angel in RENT, we actually first saw him as Dr Frank N Furter.. all-charisma, all the time.
Florestan:March 2010 - July 2012
Florestan chanced upon the lashers at a cabaret and lept on them as soon as they finished their final number. Almost swallowing her moustache in excitement, she quite rightly suggested that we might have use for a female baritone with an ability to harmonise absolutely anything.
Dr. Carmilla: May 2010 - July 2011
We don't really understand how an immortal dieselpunk rock-star became Lashings' technical goddess. But we're so, so glad that she did. Dr. Carmilla has now returned to an alternate universe.
More bios coming soon!
