By Tom Eckert
A dystopic vision of a derelict post apocalyptic world. Badlands brings burlesque to sustainability, environmental catastrophe and what’s going to happen if we screw it all up.
Camp comedy from sympathetically vitriolic MC creates a pleasantly jarring contrast with the images of environmental ruin that pervade the show and helps make otherwise despair inspiring subject matter more tolerable for a evenings entertainment.
True tho their philosophy all costumes and props are made out of recycled material. This is a philosophy not so much overtly pushed as intrinsically implicated in the the material.
The routines are original and inventive showing wit and insight and heavily invest in the grand tradition of burlesque eroticising that which could not be considered erotic in any other context. The BP oil spill, destruction of natural environments and the threat of cultural groupthink all get the striptease treatment with rich use of visual metaphor.
The aesthetic makes for some stunning visions with costumes of visions from your nightmares rendered in figure hugging layers that are rapidly removed to reveal the underlying form.
Badlands wrings great effect out of its limited production value and hangs to a great degree on the charisma of its performers which provide a fresh and unadulterated look at some of the existential concerns of our modern age.
Kryztoff rating: 3K
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