Not Your Grandma’s Bingo: Vancouver’s Newest Weekly Burlesque Night

By Taylor Neal

Post-lockdown reality in BC’s arts community has us all craving connection and excuses to get out on the town. For Vancouver, this has meant a clean-slate across the night-life scene as venues and events start to emerge from the harshness of the pandemic, allowing for abundant opportunity for fresh, new happenings to claim space in our city’s cultural landscape. For dancers and performers, this has meant the chance to finally take their art out of the studio and back into the public sphere for the first time in almost two years, and Vancouver’s newest Burlesque night hosted by Portia Favro and Delta Daggers offers a fresh, unique, and most importantly safe, space for art-starved Vancouverites to come and let their freak flag fly!

Hosted by two of Vancouver’s most recognizable Burlesque artists, Burlesque Bingo Night is a classical cabaret-themed, intimate and sexy weekly interactive show held at LanaLou’s Restaurant on Sunday nights in the DTES.

“It’s a mix of playing bingo, with cabaret, live singing, great prizes, and also space to hang out with your pals,” explains Portia Favro, one of Bingo’s two inspiring co-hosts and Vancouver’s own internationally-renowned travelling showgirl. “We are leaning into a “pop-up” feeling, where you never quite know where a performer is going to be (but still at a safe distance because…pandemic!) and the element of surprise combined with classic vintage glamour and music makes for a unique night of fun.” 

As producers taking a glace over their local Burlesque scene, Favro and Daggers identified a lack of “classical, vintage glamour show” in Vancouver, which is a deep inspiration for both artists. While Portia is a classically trained dancer-turned-international showgirl, Miss Delta Daggers comes from a professional musical background, which has evolved into a fruitful career as an international cabaret and burlesque performer across Europe and North America. The two came together as Vancouver’s COVID restrictions began to lift back in the fall of 2021 to discuss how their local burlesque scene would look as things slowly started to open back up for events and public gatherings, reluctant to jump in too quickly but curious to explore possibilities. Though producing in a pandemic world presents many hurdles to overcome, when Delta mentioned her “bingo boobs” from her previous, pre-pandemic Burlesque Bingo night in Stockholm, Portia’s eyes lit up and their own version of the event was born right here in Canada! Their combined backgrounds offer a diverse night of live musical and burlesque performance by Favro and Daggers themselves, as well as integrating guest performances from other local performers and themed nights as the event grows one week at a time.

“This isn’t your grandma’s bingo - although, let’s be real, she would probably love it. 

Everything you know about bingo is slightly altered for a cheekier game play. We don the “bingo boobs” and make our rounds (fully masked and sanitized, of course) to each table allowing players to pull balls from the bingo bra. Prizes are won, songs are sung, with burlesque pop-up entertainment and loads of fun to be had for everyone involved. We truly have as much fun hosting it as the guests have playing with us.” 

When one enters the intimate, kitschy space at LanaLou’s, there is really no way of knowing what to expect as the night gets into swing, but the energy is immediately warm and inviting, and excited, supportive community members fill the cozy booths eager to witness what these two forces of nature have in store. Quickly, guests feel right at home as they order themselves a cocktail and settle into the atmosphere. Also, it’s an all women-owned venue, yay for more babes in power! 

And don’t worry, these creative, innovative women really have thought of everything to ensure a safe and COVID-conscious cabaret experience. Months of meticulous thought and planning went into developing this unique, interactive event, as Favro and Daggers recognize a deep need for human connection in our isolated society, but also an equal need for reassurance and attention to varying degrees of comfort within their guests as folks re-enter social settings of this nature. “It’s a really safe and easy way to get people back into live events without being overwhelming for us or for the audience. We are in constant communication with the audience during the games and the performances, and there’s time between the games and the other entertainment for people to socialize with their friends, to catch up on what has been going on over the last two years.” 

The show is intentionally kept to a smaller capacity for the time being in hopes of maintaining “boutique value,” and this allows for the hosts to give attention and energy to each guest and safety detail as the night unfolds. After all, it’s a two-woman show. Of course, bumps along the road are inevitable, and they do not claim perfection, but their main goal is to ensure a safe, comfortable space for all of their guests on all levels. “Since the start we have really leaned into the “we are all in this together” mentality and have been transparent about the fact we are not used to this anymore (that goes for the audience and us as the hosts and performers!) Let’s figure out how to do it all again, together, shall we?” Daggers offers, “I think that helped a lot at first, to put us and the audience at ease.”

When asked about what creating safe space means to our Bingo hosts, Favro shares, producing safely in the pandemic world is all about communication. “We try our best, and even more than ever since the pandemic, to share what our expectations are in the space, boundaries and also stay open to what others have to say! It’s always shifting and changing as we do in the world. I’m thrilled as someone who occupies a larger body to be seen in my glory by an audience, versus the dance world, where I have always encountered brick walls.” To this, Daggers adds “We don’t tolerate hate in our environment and we lead with love. We are creating a space where everyone is welcomed and loved no matter who they are! Again, it’s all about the human connection!”

The power duo also wants it to be known that each week is entirely new and different, so just because folks may have been to one show does not mean they shouldn’t come again. Come every week, they cheer! They want to create a community space for humans one and all who want to have fun, be silly, and cheer on some beautiful, glittery, minimally-clothed ladies while playing the age-old game of bingo, so long as you are of legal drinking age.

Recently, they have implemented a new feature, The Tip Menu, which allows guests to tip performers for special gifts in return - including a Happy Birthday surprise, tassel twirls, piano serenades and even the option to choose the finale song! This, and many other fun twists and turns are in store for Vancouver’s first Burlesque Bingo Night, so get down to LanaLou’s and treat yourself to a night out! 

Ticketing and event information are available here. Be sure to check out what these two have in store leading up to the holidays!
After all, what are Sunday evenings for if not a little burlesque?

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