Gorilla Tango Burlesque has added a new guilty pleasure to their smorgasbord of sexy delights on Friday nights – and it’s a morphin’ good time.
Hooter Rangers: A Spicy Morphing Burlesque is a delightfully dorky send-up of the similarly named (but not to be mentioned) kids show featuring “teens with attitudes” fighting monsters from outer space, all the while facing bad PR back home for encouraging rampant sex and violence. Helmed by director Bobby Hoffman and written by CJ Tuor, they lovingly skewer their source material with well-paced, quirky dialogue and an attention to detail that will warm the hearts of even the biggest fanboy or fangirl. The trademark (and oftentimes re-cycled) Rangers special effects and fight scenes have been deftly replaced by the choreography of Stella Cheeks, exchanging the kung fu posturing with sultry striptease moves and hip hop dance battles. The Ranger costumes, created by Wanda Cobar and Kim Fukawa, are an impressive splash of day-glo rainbow and sexy sparkle in all the right places.
One of the high points of any Gorilla Tango Burlesque show is their performers’ ability to create comedy onstage - it takes acting chops to produce their brand of provocative parody. The cast is solid across the board, with each performer doing double (and sometimes triple) duty as different characters throughout the show. While all the performers execute their roles with aplomb, Zatanna Zor-elle steals the show with her over-the-top, scenery-chewing portrayal of baddie Vera Vile. She performs with every inch of her body each and every time she hits the stage; her facial expressions alone convey the essence of the wink and nod that fuels great burlesque. Other standout performances include Ellie Gator and Lady Lemon Drop with a dead-on appearance as the bumbling bully duo of Squeal and Grunt and Dakota Fanny as Beta, an android complete with totally wack catchphrases and extremely well-oiled hips.
Hooter Rangers is a fun late-night romp and will provide those that were children of the 90s with a nice bit of nostalgia. Audience members unfamiliar with the Power Rangers series might miss a few of the references and in-jokes, but anyone that has ever seen a TV after-school special will be more than able to fill in the gaps. Hooter Rangers delivers a lot of heart and laughs, but most importantly – boobs with attitudes.
Hooter Rangers runs at 11:59PM on Friday nights through July 27, 2012. Tickets are $20.
