Blast-Off Burlesque celebrates a decade

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A decade of existence — especially when it comes to Atlanta's celebrated sexy goofball entertainment troupe Blast-Off Burlesque — calls for a legit celebration. And damn, does Blast-Off have one of those planned via the upcoming Under the Covers show in which a slew of performers — including drag stars Patricia Lopez, Baby Doll, and Juwanna Pimpmeeare — slated to put on album art-inspired works. CL got with senior crew member Barbilicious to chat more through email about Edgar Winter's allure, radio rock, and what to expect (spoiler: the unexpected) at the show. Above all else, though, Barb says, "Our greatest hope is that you'll laugh your butts off then go home and have lots of sex." Sounds almost like charity, TBH.

Tell me about the inspiration for Under the Covers.

We felt it would be neat to build a show around album cover art. The hours we spent locked in our rooms listening to music and staring at album covers was something we all connected to. We all have one. For me, one was Edgar Winter’s They Only Come Out at Night. I just remember staring at that cover, him shirtless in garish makeup and rhinestones looking so alien and dreamy. We look at the album cover for clues to song meanings, for special messages that speak to us. We stare in awe at the coolness, the style. The art is meant to attract you to buy that LP, so it needs to be something that draws you in to spend your hard-earned allowance. Album art can be anything — obvious, irreverent, sexy, subversive, or just plain weird. These things attracted us, and gave us an endless source of material to create burlesque acts to.

What kind of artists can folks expect to be repped at the show?

We love the classics, so definitely look for some big-hit radio music. But there’s some rare cuts, as well. Don’t want to give too much away, but you may experience anything from Zeppelin to Kelis, and from Cher to Crass. Look for some twists and turns along the way. You won’t be able to guess where we’ll go next — and if you do, that’s really weird.

How does this theme present unique challenges for the performers?

Incorporating the album cover art into the acts — while still creating the act around a song on the album — was interesting and a challenge for us. Some of us went the direct route, but some of us worked the album cover in more subtly. That seems how a lot of cover art is though, sometimes obvious and sometimes it’s sneaky. There’s some sneaky acts planned.

Blast-Off Burlesque presents "Under the Covers." $20-$125. 7:30 p.m. Fri., Sept. 9; 10 p.m. Sat., Sept. 10. Synchronicity Theatre, 1545 Peachtree St. N.E. #102. 404-484-8636. www.blastoffburlesque.com.