Whip It!

Today I saw 'Whip It,' a one woman show that combines striptease and baking.  I wasn't sure what to expect before the show began.  Michelle, who saw the show with me, sent an announcement about the production earlier in the week and I was intrigued, but even after checking out the Whip It website (www.sweetkellianne.com) I was not sure what it would look like combining semi-nudity with food on a stage that is not in a strip club. 

The multi-media show begins with childhood photos of Sweet Kellianne, the show's writer and star.  There is also footage from those classic 70s 8mm cameras of Sweet Kelliane dancing naked, eating cake and playing at the beach when she was a little thing.  When the footage is over, Sweet Kelliane makes her entrance on stage by doing a striptease behind a white curtain with light against her so that the audience sees her lithe, dancing, flirty silhouette.  When the semi-shocking, but mostly kitsch number is over, the thirty-something Sweet Kellianne is fully dressed in black fishnets, high heals, lacy underwear, apron (sexy), a bra and a long blond ponytail.  Clearly inspired, visually at least, by the 1950s and 60s, she looks like a living barbie doll, with the squeaky, funny, infantile voice to match.

She begins by telling us that her fascination with striptease began when she was a little girl (thus the photos and film footage) and explains that the kitchen table was her first stage.  While her older brother did the dishes, she would entertain him and herself, by doing a dance while singing the tune from the then popular 'Anjolie perfume' commercial.  It really does sounds like the classic strip song.  Remember the lyrics?  "Anjolie: I can bring home the bacon...Anjolie, fry it up in a pan...Anjolie and never let you forget you're a man 'cause I'm a woman...Anjolie."  But I digress.

From this cute anecdote about a childhood fascination with flirting and flesh, Sweet Kelliane segues into her first recipe for a cocktail called, 'The Striptease.'  As Sweet Kelliane describes it, the drink is like a hot buttered rum.  She prepares the drink at her fur covered kitchen island and then puts the ingredients on to heat at her stove top which looks like it belongs to an adult sized Holly Hobby. 

After the first demo, Sweet Kelliane goes on to tell more stories from her (as she puts it) 'girly girl' childhood.  She talks about being obsessed with the cheap Tinkerbell gift sets for girls (circa 1980) which included peel-off nail polish, lip gloss, and really bad smelling, cheap perfume.  The perfume inspired the name of the next recipe, 'Cheap Whore Pie.'  Why?  Because her father said she smelled like a cheap whore when she wore it as a little girl.

The tale after Cheap Whore Pie inspired the recipe for Drag Queen Surprise which includes pink button melts and candy canes.  The one after that is for Let's Play Doctor Cake - using Dr. Pepper as a main ingredient.   Sweet Kelliane is quite fascinating and funny to watch.  She pulls off the show by seamlessly transitioning from childhood anecdotes to baking and remains in character as a kooky, child-like adult all the while.  I was impressed by her performance and by the simple, yet chock-full set - which includes a wardrobe of 'girly girl' aprons, her cooking island and the stovetop-oven.  The film footage was also a great tool in setting the whole 1950s style kitsch stage.

Whip it!  and Sweet Kelliane inspired me with really funny, fresh ways to present and combine cooking with storytelling.  Kudos.

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