The wonderful organisers of the Ironbridge WWII Weekend put on a special event yesterday, which included a charity walk in aid of Pilgrim Bandits.
The Malthouse put on a lovely daytime and evening do and made a wonderful base for the event! With bunting, flags on the tables, Willy’s Jeep, Classic Car and 40’s music coming out of an old wooden radio, they had done a lovely job.
The weather was beautifully mild and the scenery spectacular. I had never had the pleasure of visiting Ironbridge before, but knew we would come back every year. Even though the famous bridge was being repaired, it didn’t take away from the stunning buildings, greenery and river!
I did 2 short singing sets in the daytime and trailed my microphone lead outside to the courtyard to make the most of the beautiful day! I did have 1 technical hitch, which was the fact that I was planning an Isis Wing Dance (Kieran’s Requiem) as the finale for my evening set, but the ceilings were too low for my wing span!
The only thing I could think of was to do it in the outside courtyard on go on the hunt for some bamboo fans and silk scarves to create fab veils with! We hot stepped it to the Antiques Centre before my first set to see what we could find. Nothing. But I did come away with a few charms for my charm bracelet! Some vintage fetish shoes, a burlesque dancer and pussycat.
So that was that. I explained the situation to the organisers and they were absolutely fine with it. It was going to be tricky as the patching was uneven and outside tables still rather close, but I wasn’t going to let them down.
After my first set we sauntered down the street to the soldier memorial and admired more pretty buildings and scenery. We chatted to a lovely lady in her garden with 2 crazy springer spaniels and headed back to The Malthouse for some lunch!
The second set was very lively, with more people and a super atmosphere! I really was in love with this place and the staff were so welcoming. I even got one of their themed B&B rooms to get changed in for my evening performance!
As we had a while until my last set, we headed to the Telford Shopping Centre to watch The Quiet Place (really good!) and then went to my room to get prepped.
As I was doing my hair and makeup I got to thinking about the last time I performed burlesque outside and realised it was with the USO Shows. Memories flooded my head…Giggles with Kieran and Sandra, repairing feather fans after strong winds had broken them, the Clover Sisters, dancing…then I realised what act I was doing (one I created in Kieran’s memory) and couldn’t stop the tears. I had to repair my eye make up constantly and will my false eyelashes to stick. Finally composed, Richard helped me tuck my costume fabric into my dress and we headed downstairs. I knew I looked a bit lumpy and bumpy, but hoped that people would forgive this once they saw the finale. There were soooo many people and most were dressed for the occasion! They waved their flags, sang along and made me forget all my worries! With a mild threat, I got them all outside and someone helped move one of the speakers to the doorway for my burlesque act. The performance space was still small and the tips of my wings were an ear hair away from some of the audience, but I just went with it. Whilst dancing I bantered back and forth with some of the watchers and my melancholy act turned into fun and laughter. I didn’t want to leave.
(2 performance photos above taken by Graham Hickman!)
So dear Ironbridge, I will be back! The seed has been firmly planted at The Malthouse and we have a few plans in the pipeline. Thank you for your hospitality, support and darned right loveliness x
1940's Pin-Up Entertainer Kitten von Mew 