If you missed it, you missed a great show! It was so much fun! The performances were stellar, the body paint was awesome and the art was something to behold! Here are some photos! These images/videos are not really safe for work and/or young eyes due to bodypainted models in thongs/pasties and some adult language.
See the rest of the intro videos from the event by clicking Here.
If you missed this one, Mark your calendars for July 30, the next big event!!
Or at least, let’s go to Youtube and see some new stuff…. It’s video week! The parade video/picture slide is finally finished! HURRAY!
The rough cut of “Calling All the Magical People” is the soundtrack We rushed to have this version done by the parade, but I went back and redid some vocals, etc afterwards. I’m hoping the mastered version will be available for purchase within the week. I just couldn’t put off sharing this any longer.
IF you can’t see the video above, you can view it by clicking HERE
I’m going to try to break up my newsletters from now on so they’re not so daunting and come a little more frequently. By the time I get around to writing to you, I have so much to share, I fear I will fry your brains. In light of this problem, I have discovered an interesting solution! The “publish scheduling” option of wordpress!
In my next newsletter, I’ll have something fun for Derby for you. Do you have any off the wall photos or videos from Derby? Annual Derby Festivities ? I am compiling a parody youtube slideshow/video and could use your help…I am compiling a parody video/slide show that shows the other side of Derby – the drunken mayhem, the mud wrestling, chaos, traffic, and some of the fireworks, crowds…weird.. can you send your off the wall derby photos/videos?
Send them to ddcsubmit@gmail.com along with your written permission to use them. I will not be making any money off of this video. I will be posting it on Youtube for my Derby blog on my website. I will list your name in the info on youtube.
Thanks!
Annnd, enough of the past: Looking to the future:
May 29, 2011 at Saint’s Skybar in Louisville: I”m presenting a fantasy of poetry, pop culture, visual art and body paint! I can’t wait for you to see the five head to toe body paint designs I dreamt up (applied by international fashion designer Genna Yussman) and the two models wearing my poetry in calligraphy by Jen Grove. In anticipation, we recently did a photo shoot for upcoming fashion magazine Black and Grey by Bil Brown. I’ll be performing with guests Truth B Told, Raanan Hershberg, Jessica Neamon, Mamakitty Southwood and Tony Smith. Pop music, high energy performance poetry, projected abstract videos, a juried art show and more. This is going to be one of the most exciting and sexy events this summer! Don’t miss it! Tickets and more are available now at Brown Paper Ticket, the awesome sustainable and environmentally friendly ticket service. Click Here . This event will probably sell out and has limited seating, so get your VIP reserved seating areas today for just a couple dollars more per person! Ten percent of proceeds go to Breaking New Grounds, a local non-profit focused on creating jobs with sustainable urban agriculture.
As I move in some new directions and “break new grounds”, I have once again been reminded that people seem to think that I just push forward with ease as I follow my joy and create my heaven on earth. They comment on how easy it comes for me and remark that I am fearless. These are absolute untruths. I work very hard to make things happen. I sacrifice a lot of simple pleasures, stability and other things that most people want in order to achieve the things that I do. I deal with people who wish to attack me because I stand out. I have to combat (with the help of friends sometimes) doubt, fear, insecurities like everyone. I have to remind myself of the following: “There will always be opportunities to worry, to fear, to doubt, to hand over my power – but I will not give it. I am responsible for my experience and I plan to enjoy it. ”
I give you all permission to use my mantra if you feel it will help you in facing the difficulties that come our way day to day, tempting us to fear, to doubt, to give in and not claim our birthright, our heaven on earth. As a whole, we are all only as strong as our weakest brethren.
Love, Light, and blessings to send you through your dreams <3
Sometimes, it’s so hard to say goodbye to yesterday. That’s exactly what I’m doing in many areas of my life, but I also recently had to make a tough decision to let go of my baby of the past three years: Sub Rosa, the Gypsie Courtyard. Weekly production, booking, hosting was becoming too much for me, and I found myself unable to really pursue my own art forms and be such a supporter of everyone else at the same time. I am capable of and wanted to host higher quality shows, but found it hard while I was locked into the weekly duties of taking care of Sub Rosa. It’s been coming for a while. I have been struggling to keep it going because I know it means something to the people who were involved and came regularly and it meant something to me. You all mean so much to me. I wanted to keep it alive for you all, but had to know when to let go and follow where my heart was leading. Thank you for the amazing and overwhelming response of support I have gotten so far. I have met so many amazing talents over the last three years and believe in each of you so much. You’ve all touched me, blessed me and filled me up with wonder and good stuff. You all have such exciting journeys ahead of you if you just believe in the whispers from your heart that guide you. I will continue to produce events on a less regular schedule with a main focus on developing my performance art and hope to work with many of you in those events. I will be posting calls to artists, performers, models, etc for different productions. This is the first one: My next show is Poetry, Pop, and Paint and the information for the call can be found here on facebook : http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=188781017831980
In other news, the debut of my song Broken went so well! Thanks to my partner, Jada Parks for her photography and inspiration and to Nick Peay for the perfect music! Artography was such an awesome and fun event produced by Kenn Parks, and I was very happy with the response! I wish I had set up a webcam as suggested by my friend Tim to stream people’s responses to the web. Some people were creeped out to the point of being unable to look in my direction. One woman leaned in to tell me that I was very brave. Others let me know how much they enjoyed it, and I met some really awesome artists, creatives. Kenn did a great job at creating an event for people to mingle, appreciate art, and I foresee some awesome collaborations coming out of it. I enjoyed it immensely and can’t wait to do more living exhibits in the future. Here are some awesome photos by Tim Valentino of VU (pronounced View) Photography and Joe Mays and a phone video by Tim Druck. Enjoy! I am still working on the parade video footage and photos to share with you. Hope to have them done by the next newsletter.
On another note, I’ve found myself in a place where people that used to scare me with bullying or by holding their approval/love over my head no longer scare me. I’ ve found them raise their heads and try to surface with the type of behavior that would have used to make me give in or try to defend myself or try to make everything “ok” . I’ve found it quite liberating to realize that I’ve come to a place where I don’t really care what they think. I’ve found that the more I tried to shine, the more of a target I became. Somewhere in my journey, I overcame a need to prove myself to haters, people who wanted to hold me back and decided to let my actions speak for me. I am human like everyone else on a path of learning, trying to figure out who I am, go for my heart’s desires and learn how to best be me. Part of that process includes falling, making mistakes. We all do. If we didn’t, none of us would learn to walk..we’d still be crawling around on the ground. Some of us aren’t happy with just learning to walk. We want to fly. The further you are from the ground, the harder you may find yourself falling. It’s far too easy to weigh ourselves down with our own judgment and criticism. The last thing we need is a bully or someone we trust/care about to continually grab on to our legs and try to pull us back down. The truth is it has never really been them holding us down that keeps us from flying…it’s our failure to push off of them and leave them behind. It sucks that they are lonely where they are, but maybe if you continue to rise, they will see that they can, too. My favorite quote this year has been “Do not speak about your greatest gifts…Leave the talking to others.” I’m trying to make that my mantra. You’re either for me or against me and if you’re against me, the past is your home and I’m not looking down / back as I rise. The people I now find myself surrounded by and consider friends that have shown me real love/support, inspire me to continue to rise, and actually care about my well being/happiness and I theirs are more precious to me than gold, and the others are..well, people….people I once knew. It’s hard to say goodbye and walk away from the habit/desire of giving others your power and letting them make you feel bad about yourself or scare you into giving up on flying, but definitely a hurdle worth leaping over. So, raise a glass with me and toast to the liberation of saying good bye to the fears of yesterday!!
Hey everyone! I’m so excited about tonight! I’m performing at the Mother Lodge festival in Louisville, Kentucky with NYC Lady Rizo and a slew of other talented performers like Tyrone Cotton, JP Lebangood, Adam Rapp and Craig Wright.
I got to see Lady Rizo last year and she had me in stitches/awe the entire time! She is just in town for tonight! I can’t say enough good things about her.JP Lebangood is a local favorite performer of mine as well.Billed as “The Mad Bastard”, he lives up to his moniker in a way that forcesyou to laugh at his bouts of madness. He is an extremely talented writer and comedian.I’m performinga snippet from Doomsday Lover including Baby Girl and Soul Hungry, which means I’ll be all dolled up!
There is a 7pm and 9 pm show, Cost is $8
I’ll be performing/releasing a new song titled Broken as part of a live art exhibit with the Broken Doll photos that I did with Jada Parks. I’m excited to bring this new song to you, but am even more excited about the delivery method in being a living piece of art. I will be there live as a broken doll, surrounded by broken dolls, chained to the exhibit of broken doll photos.This will happen as part of Motherlodge on Friday 3/25. I believe tickets are $8. Also going on that night:
“Superwolf (NYC) Four 1 Act plays of rock and roll and extreme confessions written by Bekah Brunstetter, Jason Grote, Joel Horwood(UK) and Eric Meyer. Featuring: Kate Benson, Jamie Effros, Evan Enderle, and Sherri Kronfeld. Music by JANITORS OF THE APOCALYPSE “
If you can’t make it Friday night to see the release of Broken, you can come to Artography at Creation Gardens on 725 E Market St on Saturday, where the exhibit will be set up/I will be performing. There will be over 100 artists, bands, music, and a good chunk of proceeds go to support three important nonprofit organizations, including the Fairness Campaign.Saturday’s festivities begin at 4 p.m. and tickets are $15 Check out the full list of stuff going on at this amazing festival!
The St. Patrick’s Day parade was so much fun! I am so grateful to the forty people who came out as magical people and walked with us or kept it magical on the sidelines! I am so honored to have had each of you as part of the event. I want to clean up some of the vocals on “Magical People” and have it mastered, but then it will be available to purchase online! Later this week, I will have photos and video for you! Stay tuned!
I hope that this update finds you all well and actively creating your dreams!
In a world where we create what we believe in,I believe in you!
Beautiful Photos from Lisa Oeschli of Solidarity Photos coming soon!
Sometimes…I feel broken. I know I’m not alone. The thing about being broken is that it makes you want to go around trying to fix everyone else’s broken..It’s hard not to for me.It’s also hard not to hate /lash out at similar cracks we see in others. Maybe it is my own cracks, fissures, remaining pains and hurts that make me want to hug everyone else and try to help when I see it in them. It’s hard to remember to focus on my own cracks and hurts and to simply allow what I see in others to reflect something back to me. With that in mind, I did a photo shoot with local photographer/artist Jada parks. I’ve attached a few sneak preview photos. The photos will be part of a live art exhibit march 25, 26 called Artography. The photos will be put into collages that will be on display, and I will be there live in the middle of the display as a broken doll surrounded by my broken dolls as I sing. A lot of people think the photos are creepy. They are. There is nothing scarier than the fact that we have cracks within us. We have weakness. The people around us have cracks and weaknesses. To me: it is scary that some of the cracks can not be fixed. However, we can live brilliantly whether we are cracked or not!!
Coming up before that, though, is the St. Patrick’s Day parade!!! I am super excited! The float is coming along nicely, and Ethridge Enterprises, LLC signed on as our executive producer, which takes care of the supplies! Fashion Designer Genna Yussman is providing some costumes for the Vixens. Cool World Productions will be catching everything on video, thanks to the Great Escape comic books and records and Bearno’s in the Highlands. We’ll be having our after party about 6:30 at Bearnos and shooting some footage there as well.
There are several ways you can be involved and on video if you want! One, come out to the parade in costume as magical people and hold up the sign “Yes, DR, magical people are here!” as our float goes by…We’ll be turning our cameras outward looking for our magical brethren.
Two, Come out to the after party at Bearno’s in the Highlands, starting around 6:30 – then stick around for some of the wildest karaoke in town.
Three, you can advertise your business in the video or in the program we will be handing out. Deadline March 4.
Special thanks to Genna Yussman for the use of some of her fabulous costumes, Pagan Community Ministries, Framer’s Supply, Black Water Divers, Hataritaville, and the Va Va Vixens!!
This is my love letter to you. I know it’s not much, but I don’t have much else to give you. My words are the couriers of my soul, and my soul is really all I have to give. I don’t have riches or jewels purchased from high gloss window displays. A lot of my clothes are tattered, and my existence currently a little scattered as I hop around from place to place trying to be there for you as you’ve been there for me. It may not seem like much…I mean a soul is invisible after all…but I hope it will do. It is the one gift I can give and never run out of…andso I will continue to share it as long as you will let me.
I’ve attached some ECards you can share with others below (Just right click and save as to save them to your computer), and here are some other ways I’ll be sharing soon:
February 18,19 are the final performances of Va Va Valentine at Art Sanctuary and Alley Theater
March 11 – Divinity Rose will be releasing a new dance version of Calling All the Magical People at the Rudyard Kipling during an event there…get a sneak peek of the parade performance. Stay tuned for details.
March 12: Divinity Rose will be calling all the magical people in this year’s St. Patrick’s Day parade!
Last year around 30,000 came out to enjoy the awesome parade that had over 120 floats/units. This year Divinity Rose will be joined by a crew of magical people like the beautiful Va Va Vixens as she performs a new dance version of “Calling All the Magical People” and brings the enchanted forest to the streets of Bardstown Rd, blurring the… line where dreams and reality meet. Divinity Rose calls all creatures of the imagination to step through the mists and gather on the streets of Bardstown Road to make some noise to remind others that we are here and that IMAGINATION is alive and well and ready to thrive in a world that needs creative help. Bring the whole family and throw down like only the Fae and creatures of the subconscious know how! We invite you to come in costume! Faerie, Unicorn, troll, goblins, angels, etc, UNITE! Come to the parade and join with other magical people as we rally together to make some noise, make our presence known, and open the floodgates of BELIEF that we can live out loud and make dreams into reality. Also, join us after wards for our magical after party – location TBD. If you want to be in the parade and walk with the magical people, let us know! It’s time for inhabitants of different worlds to meet and mingle once more.
March 25, 26: ARTOGRAPHY – an awesome art show that pairs photographers with artists for exhibit, live music and more – I will be part of a live performance art installation – Come and see! Location TBA
April 1 or 2 – Stay tuned for a very special event involving Poetry, pop and paint
In between all this, Don’t forget you can join us on Mondays at Zazoo’s Bar and Grill in St. Matthews
I’ve had a bit of a vacation lately, with only a few shows to keep up with, but things are picking up again.
I was recently a guest on TheState of Affairs on NPR affiliate WFPL. If you missed it, you can check out the radio show by clicking here. It’s a very interesting chat with the host and author Karen Abbott about the history and art of Burlesque.
This is a pretty busy week!
Va Va Valentine starts tomorrow! If you’re a fan of Burlesque, these Louisville ladies will keep you on the edge of your seats. I’m honored to open the show with my piece “Letter from Goddess to Man”. You can buy tickets ahead of time by clicking here
Monday is Sub Rosa: The Gypsie Courtyard at Zazoo’s Bar and Grille.
Wednesday, I am speaking to a class at Jefferson Community College and then headed over to Howl at the Moon on Fourth Street Live!
Rocky Horror Picture Show party at Howl at the Moon is this Wednesday from 9 pm – 11 pm. I have a $50 gift card for the person who shows up before 8:45 with the most people in tow. Come on down for this awesome costume contest, easter egg hunt, games and see if you can stump the pianists and win prizes, hosted by Divinity Rose and the Va Va Vixens. Come meet and mingle with some of Louisville’s favorite entertainers! Say you are with me at the door to get in for free, eat at the buffet for free and get half price drinks! You will get a card that will allow you to come back with no cover and receive half price drinks at any time. A special treat from me and Howl to you!
Then Va Va Valentine again next weekend!
In addition to all that, I begin recording a new track Wednesday in preparation for the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Louisville, Ky. If you’ve never been, you’ve missed out! I love it! The streets are absolutely packed! The parade lasts for hours and everyone throws down and has a great time!! Even after the parade, Bardstown Rd businesses and bars stay busy well into the evening. CUTE IRISH BOYS (and girls) everywhere! I’ll be calling all the magical people, performing live in the parade. Don’t miss it! Better yet, show up as a magical creature and be ready to cheer for our float!! Faeries, gnomes, goblins, and more welcome!! If you’d like to be in the parade with me, let me know (costume required)!
I hope you’re all doing well. Valentines Day approaches, and I will be in Louisville at Sub Rosa that night. I hope to see you then. Whether or not we can be together, I hope you’ll join me in being the best lovers we can be to everyone around us. I hope to have some E-cards again this year that you can share with others. You are my beautiful and magical lovers after all, and I know I can count on you to go forth and spread the love to EVERYONE around you. Why keep it monogamous? Our love is far too great to be greedy. The more the merrier. See you then <3
Hello all my beautiful inklings, magical people and godlings! Just when I thought I wouldn’t have a big show until January, I was asked to co-produce and perform in a show on December 11 at the Rudyard Kipling in Louisville, Kentucky.
Prepare your minds! On that fateful night, Cirque Airotic aerial burlesque troop and I bring you BLACKJACK!
I’ll be dealing up 21 delicious acts that make everyone a winner including singers, dancers, comedy, magic and more Can you beat the dealer at her own game?
Tickets are only $12. That’s a lot of entertainment for less than $20! The imagery on this one is going to be beautiful, and two of the aerialists will dangle amongst the audience!
Va Va Vintage is finally done.The after party was the most fun I’ve had at karaoke in years. It was pretty much entire bar sing along night. Thirty of us sang Bad Romance, Love Shack, Bohemian Rhapsody…all the sappy party songs..but it was a whole bar of friends and strangers at one with each other. It was one of those rare moments of bliss, where everything else disappears. It makes me a little sad as I hear Boyz II Men singing “hard to say good bye” in my head. It was an awesome cast and show. That’s one of the signs I was slated for show business, though. When I was a child, my favorite thing was going to summer camp and being family with everyone for a couple weeks and then moving on. I made some amazing friendships through the production, and deepened some old ones. I also had to answer a bazillion times that Mike Nusser is not my husband, even though we dance together very well.
Speaking of Mike Nusser. He’s one of my favorite beloveds and we often sing together at my weekly variety show Sub Rosa: The Gypsie Courtyard. We decided to release a recording of us singing his song Suicide last Monday with Larry Doyle on harmonica. I was sick, and the recording is live, so it’s a little rough….but that’s real, and sometimes that’s the best part of Sub Rosa: how raw it is. There’s even a fun little bit of banter at the beginning of it. I think Mike was a little jealous that I was in deep conversation with national poet and beloved Truth B. Told, who was also there and I have video to prove it.
The Free track from Nusser and I is available to listen to at my Reverb Nation page. It is free to download and take a piece of Sub Rosa with you if you are a member of my email newsletter! (If you’re receiving this in your email from ReverbNation) If you aren’t, don’t worry. You can go to my page and sign up or you can go to www.divinityrose.com and sign up! (If you’re receiving this email from ReverbNation, there should be a link at the bottom of this email to download it!)
And don’t forget, I have a contest going right now where you can win $50, one of my new T-shirts and a copy of Diaries of a Godling: The Promise (my graphic novel). All you have to do is help me gather magical people for the end times! We want no one left behind!! You can join my street team at my ReverbNation and click on the mission on the right hand side of the page for instructions on how to use the widgets to gather people and be tracked for the prizes.
January 8, 2011, Divinity Rose as a Doomsday Lover. Even in the end times, the show must go on! This hilarious and sexy burlesque is set in post apocalyptic times and stars zombies, showgirls, a reporter and YOU! It is highly interactive and you want to get your tickets before they sell out! You can buy a ticket or you can buy a whole table so you and your survival crew can sit right up front amidst the action. It also features entertainment from some of Louisville’s favorite performers such as Jaime Duvall, Mike Nusser, Jorena Faulkner, Cyndi Snow, and a zombie fashion show by Rachel French of Venomiss designs. Tickets can be bought ahead of time at http://www.art-sanctuary.com
So much news! I know! I am on a busy journey, and I am so grateful that each of you are on the rise with me!! The path our hearts lead us on send us ever upward, closer and closer to the bright star that guides us! Hearing from you keeps me alive and going even when the times get tough! Write to me and let me know how your dreams are progressing!
Love, Light and Blessings to send you through your dreams!
I would love to start this newsleter with “As Va Va Vintage winds down,the deubt of my original show Doomsday Lover gears up”, but Va Va Vintage is not winding down yet!
And I can’t make all of you wait until Va Va Valentine for a group climax! It’s the best part of any story!
What better time than the new year to celebrate life, death and rebirth! I will be leading a life revolution in a post apocalyptic world on January 8th in the debut of my sexy and hilarious show “Doomsday Lover” featuring some of Louisville’s favorite female vocalists, zombies, a zombie fashion show, the Vixens and original music by myself, Jaime Duvall, Al Holbrook, Mike Nusser. With much of the burlesque tongue in cheek humor, audience interaction, and beautiful ladies, you’ll fall in love with being a part of this show. . If you’re living in a world where you feel surrounded by zombies, how can you be the best lover possible and rise above it all to the world of the living?
In this current crumbling world, this play is delivered right on time!
You don’t want to miss this show. Coming in costume (zombies, survivors, showgirls) is encouraged and will get you $2 off the ticket price of $20.
And if you can’t wait until January 8, come see me and the Vixens on December 8 at Howl at the Moon for “You can’t do that on Piano” Winter Wonderland and Rummage sale. Bring NICE items you don’t want or use anymore to put on the “Free store” table on the patio so some “free” Christmas shoppin’ can occur.
And if you can’t wait that long, then come hang out with me on Mondays for Sub Rosa the Gypsie Courtyard It’s the wildest variety show in town and I’ve been hosting it for about two and a half years now. Different performances every week, comraderie, and lots of Love to go ’round in a smaller and more intimate setting.
As we enter a time of Thanksgiving, I have to take a moment to say just how grateful I am for each of you and the love, respect and support you offer. Following one’s heart and dreams and the voice of Divinity Rising within is not easy, but I still feel eternally blessed every time I hear from one of you. I only hope that I can encourage and motivate each of you and inspire you in your dreams as much as you do in mine. Thank you. May each of you find something in your lives to revel in gratitude over this week. If you find it hard, remember, the world pours back upon you ten times what you give. So my focus this week is thinking about giving and gratitude <3
Dream well, dream deep and may all paths lead you back to the heart….
Love, Light and Blessings to send you through your dreams.
May 29, 2011 at Saint’s Skybar in Louisville: I”m presenting a fantasy of poetry, pop culture, visual art and body paint! I can’t wait for you to see the five head to toe body paint designs I dreamt up (applied by international fashion designer Genna Yussman) and the two models wearing my poetry in calligraphy by Jen Grove. In anticipation, we recently did a photo shoot for upcoming fashion magazine Black and Grey by Bil Brown. I’ll be performing with guests Truth B Told, Raanan Hershberg, Jessica Neamon, Mamakitty Southwood and Tony Smith. Pop music, high energy performance poetry, projected abstract videos, a juried art show and more. This is going to be one of the most exciting and sexy events this summer! Don’t miss it! Tickets and more are available now at
