I appear to have had all my hair chopped off 😀 Renders my headshots slightly out of date, but it certainly feels good! Hello Summer. The pixie-esque crop will have useful photographic evidence soon-ish.
In less hair-based news – my show GLITCH made another appearance last week: I was support to 2 bands at The Lexington in Angel. Wasn’t sure how it would go down in a gig setting, but it worked surprisingly well!
This Saturday I’m off out to do some Lois of the Lane air guitaring at The Stag’s Head in Hoxton for the legendary night that is Gypsy Hotel. I’ve even bought me some rockin’ wristbands for the occasion. Splendid.
2011 ain’t been too bad for me so far. A few bits have been going on…
I made another appearance at the Village Green Preservation Society at the end of January with a Lois of the Lane based guitar/voice over happening which, despite being very last minute, seemed to work! This was a very, very basic try out of an idea I have for a new full length show this year that I want to take up to the Edinburgh Fringe in August if I can scrape together the monies. Watch this space! (I am very excited about it…)
I’ve finally created a Facebook page for Lois of the Lane. You can find her here:
Whilst all quiet on the blog front it’s been all go in the real world…
My new show Super Situation was somehow finished in time after me spending most of the year hurtling at breakneck speed towards the ever looming deadline. We had a great couple of previews at Theatre 503 at the end of July and then off I headed to The Bongo Club for the whole of August for this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Wearing a Super Hero outfit almost every day for a month really ain’t that bad and a great time was had by all. You can find reviews, photos and the rather wonderful Extraordinary Watch blog here.
I managed to get a great team on board to help me with the show (you knows it) and the plan now is to develop the show further and get ourselves a nice tour booked. Yum. Lots of work to be done.
Lois of the Lane also made a number of cabaret outings up at the Fringe this year including Sweet Venue‘s open mic night, the Generation Crunch night at Bedlam Theatre, the MOOnlight Sessions at the Cow Cafe in the Underbelly and last, but certainly not least – the Bongo Club Cabaret. Then, upon our return, she nipped straight off to do a gig in the teeny tiny Comedy Tent at the Offset Festival, where she ate lots of food and drank some oh-so-delicious free beer.
In Gawkagogo news, preparations are well underway for the next, re-vamped outing of the Gawkagogo Freakshow which will be rearing its beautifully ugly head on the 3rd of December at The Lowry in Manchester. I’ve got one half of a great new character to get my teeth into and some new Piggy antics to attack. Can’t wait.
Some photos of three of the characters from the Freakshow, including me as the Pig Faced Girl, are up on Alexandra Jasper‘s website – taken for her collaborative ‘Burlesque Grotesque’ book project.
Finally, after picking up my geetar on Sunday for the first time in ages, I wrote a silly little song which there’ll be a link to once I’ve got round to recording it. For now though, the to-do list must be tamed and the backlog of my life must be vanquished. Have at you!
The show is now written, as of Tuesday last week, and it’s now onto casting the voices, putting together the soundtrack, finding more money, organising props, costume and rehearsals, putting together the flyer and press information and EVERYTHING ELSE! Lots to do, but I’m very excited.
Unfortunately I’ve been mysteriously let down by the Producer I thought I had on board, so valuable time has been wasted on that front, but hopefully I’ll have someone else in the driving seat very, very soon (please).
Blurb deadlines have already past, so here’s what’s going in the Bongo Club brochure:
Enter the world of Extraordinary Girl, ordinary Jo turned Super Hero.
KA-BLAM!
Following exposure to a mysterious chemical at the hands of evil genius Megalomaniac Man, Extraordinary is one of the members of the Government-funded Unstoppable 5, always ready to come to the rescue (not leaving a great deal of time for much else…).
Lois Tucker’s silent comedy creation Lois of the Lane returns to Edinburgh in this new visual comedy, following the transfer of her last show ‘Glitch’ to the British Library. Performed to a juicy soundtrack featuring great music and larger than life voice-overs.
THWACK!
along with this image:
I’m playing (almost) every day during the Festival in August at 3:30pm. Here are the dates:
Well hello there. I’ve just about recovered from the Latitude Festival (eee it were grand) in time to mention my appearance as Ms Lois of the Lane this Friday the 25th of July in ‘And the Devil May Drag You Under’.
Details:
“A Twisted Vaudevillian Romp” TIME OUT – Critic’s Choice
FINAL LONDON PREVIEW – FRIDAY 25TH JULY
FEATURING THE LOST SOULS OF:
Des O’Connor as “THE DEVIL”
Pustra/Vile-een’s Vaudeville as “CLAMMY DO AND THE CORN DOGS”
Lizzie Wort as “MISS MEPHISTO”
Scottee as “SCOTTEE”
Honey Lulu as “THE MERRY WIDOW”
Lois Tucker as “LOIS OF THE LANE”
plus
Archibald Floss
Volupte Lounge
7-9 Norwich Street
London
EC4A 1EJ
Nearest Tube: Chancery Lane (Central Line)
Doors: 6:15pm
Showtime: 7pm-8:30pm
Standing Room £5
Concessions available
2 for 1 Cocktails 5pm-8pm
info@volupte-lounge.com
And The Devil May Drag You Under is a darkly hilarious slice of razor-sharp, lightning quick comedy and song wrapped up in a thrillingly wicked story told by a dysfunctional family of colourful characters. Damnation Never Looked This Good!
Get yourselves down there for one hell of a time. (Sorry – couldn’t resist.)
I’ve just had some more fantastic Lois of the Lane photographs taken by Emre Soykan. Most of my faves are now uploaded to my MySpace and I’ll be getting on to putting them up here asap…
Been beavering away over here on a new Lois of the Lane act which I’ll be performing at The Red Velvet Curtain Cult‘s ‘(Truth &) Lies’ evening at The Bethnal Green Working Man’s Club next Thursday the 19th of June. The night’s a mask and dress up affair (dress code: Vagabonds, Butterflies, Carnival Freaks, Alter Egos, Dopplegangers, Victorian swooning ladies, Eccentric Gents, Vintage Belles, N’er do wells, Spies, Dead Poets, Faux Queens, Fake Kings, the Devil himself…) which promises: “productions and destructions, illusions and delusions and the conception of deception with performances, art, happenings, devilish delectables, oddities and conundrums galore.”. More details here, and here’s the flyer:
After this skewed affair, I’m going to be singing Second Soprano in a piece entitled ‘Steta Speaks: The Opera’, a 6-10min piece for 9 voices – concept and text by Rachel Greaves, score by Gregory Emfietzis – at the Byam Shaw Fine Art Degree Show on Monday the 23rd of June between 6 and 8pm and then Wednesday the 25th of June between 3 and 4pm.
Then (unless anything crops up beforehand) it’ll be off to the Latitude Festival with me as The Pig-Faced Girl in the Gawkagogo Freakshow. The Freakshow tent’s coming with us, to be pitched in what will become ‘Pandora’s Playground’, and we’ll also be headlining the Cabaret Stage on the Friday. Lots of happy squealing from me 🙂
The Edinburgh Fringe will be waving its cheeky little hand at all and sundry after this. I’m hopping up there a couple of times on the 9hr Coach of Joy to peddle Lois of the Lane to the masses. Hopefully, they won’t know what’s hit ’em. More on this when I have it…
So, the latest round of Glitch performances went down a storm. Thank you to all of you who made it along and to all who helped out. Another sell-out!! I had a great time and managed to get a few photographs taken – a couple of which you can see below. I look ever so serious…
When I’ve got all of the pictures on my computer I’ll upload ’em properly. Hopefully there’ll be more dates for Glitch, so watch this space. Want to start developing a new project too…
Then there’s another happening for the Gawkagogo Freakshow at The Vibe Lounge above the Vibe Bar on Brick Lane on March the 12th. Here’s the back of the flyer:
So if you missed the Barden’s show, now’s yer chance to see a revamped re-run!
Off to the kitchen now to go douse myself in some more honey and hot water. I shall be triumphant.
Yup, my one woman dystopian black comedy Glitch is back and this time will feature me as my silent comedy alter ego Lois of the Lane.
It’s playing at the Etcetera Theatre in Camden for 5 nights. Get yer bottoms down there!
There might even be some more free badges:
(Not that I’m trying to bribe you or anything.)
A little potted history of Glitch can be found on my Projects page and here’s the blurb:
Welcome to Room 8933 and the new ‘Stay Safe!’ Character Vetting Process!
‘Stay Safe!’ marks the dawn of a new era of security at Passport Control. A few minutes and a short digital questionnaire later: you’re free to continue your onward journey.
Quick, simple efficient and painless: ‘Stay Safe!’ – for you, for us, for everyone.
What could possibly go wrong…?
December was a very Crimbly affair for meself (the usual rushing about the shops, sweating profusely and much merrymaking) but I did manage to appear as the Fairy Godmother in Total Rock‘s Christmas Panto ‘Cinderella Boberella’ for me mate Talita.
Good grief, a whole heap of a lot of stuff has happened since I last posted on here. Wearisome wi-fi woe has been holding me back on the update front, but now I am victorious (haha wireless router – I have tamed you! Feel my power!) and ready to spill all sorts of beans and the like.
So, first up – Lois of the Lane, my cabaret creation. She’s a smiley silent comedy girl with a penchant for a bit of ridiculousness. The blurb so far:
Lois of the Lane – Nerd of few words. Snazzy dresser. Sharp mover. Lover of fine music and fine unexpectedness. Eater of cheese. Wearer of eyebrow. Purveyor of the most delicious bite-sized chunks of silent comedy this side of Vaudeville. You have been warned!
Each of my acts, otherwise known as ‘Random Acts of Ridiculousness‘ are around 4-5 minutes long and comprise of much stupidity 🙂 I currently have 3, (very nearly 4) ready and raring to go, entitled ‘Opus One’, ‘The Box of 1,000 Dances’ and ‘Showdown’.
My first gig at the opening night of Red Dress‘ Supper Club: ‘You Little Minx’ on the 29th of June was a storming success. This is me, mid ‘Box of 1,000 Dances’, photographed by Moira Lovell:
I’m getting some ‘Lois of the Lane‘ promotional photos done, then there’ll be a whole re-vamp of my website to accommodate my new alter ego. Lots and lots to do…
We had a fantastic time at the Glastonbury and Latitude festivals. A constant stream of people, endless queues to get in and a bit of coverage on Channel 4 in the form of Carling’s Festival Postcards. You can watch our bit in the show here:
While we’re up there, Paul‘s got another exhibition going at the Hula Juice Bar, Grassmarket. Details here.
Lastly, Gawkagogo joined the Fire Tusk Pain Proof Circus at their spectacular gig at The Roundhouse on the 27th of July, as part of the ‘Circus Front’ season. I had much fun clowning around as Hooters 🙂 Here be gallery:
(Actually, this is lastly – pictures from Glastonbury and Latitude:)
So, yes! I’ve got my very first solo Cabaret gig booked 😀 You’ll find me and my new act at Tiger Tiger in Croydon on the 29th of June. The night’s called ‘You Little Minx’ and the details are here. It should be a fantastic evening, so dust off your glad rags one and all! Details of my actual act are yet to be revealed, but they’ll be posted on here before the big day, if I manage to organise meself. Rest assured that it’ll be stoopid and much fun.
On an entirely different note (cheap link Lois, cheap link) I’ve been doing a bit of singing for a band called ‘I Eat Fog‘. You can find me doing just that for them – singing, not eating fog – here. (You need to scroll down and click on the ‘I Eat Fog’ album – there are 2 tracks.)
On the Gawkagogo Freakshow front, all is shaping up verrrry nicely. I’ve barely lifted a finger on it yet. I think my small part of the hard work is just about to start kicking in…
