Sunday, 19 January 2020, 11:54
A bedroom
Paris, France
Well, this, I suppose, is it.
The beginning.
Before leaving the US, I set myself the task of blogging everything I possibly could once I left, keeping in mind that (a) my sweet fan base misses me and is excited for me and wants updates; and (b) I know that time is going ...
Friends!
When I left the US, I was given the very good advice to write a lot about everything that happened, as such a moment was unlikely to recur ever again in my life. I took this advice to heart, and I have been writing a lot lately, documenting this drop-kicking of my life across an ocean to an unfamiliar clime.
I have been mean...
2020-04-02 13:22:52 +0000 UTC View Post
In this video, #7 in my "dancing from my bedroom" series, I attempt to process through art the horrors transpiring in Italy and the incredible heroism we are seeing there.
This piece was inspired by a New York Times article (link below) that absolutely blew me away. It is one thing to hear the news reports as one goes about one's day...
2020-04-01 16:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post
Installation #7 in my "dancing from my bedroom" series!
This week, I found a bigger ladder, tried not to fall off it (I succeeded, please don't be alarmed), and made the camera jiggle with aggressive bourée.
In times of hardship and downright insanity, it is the job of artists to keep the soul fed. If I can do tha...
2020-03-31 21:00:00 +0000 UTC View Post
Hiya Patrons!
I hope you still feel appropriately special, even though I am releasing a lot of my weekly-video madness to the masses!
And I hope even more that you are safe and well.
This video is a special treat for all of you, and it shows how I warm up to improvise on a ladder in pointe shoes!
Including!...
-Foot...
2020-03-30 21:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Introducing week 2 of daily videos from quarantine!
In this video I discuss:
--The update from Berlin
--An article about Lombardia that knocked me on my ass 2020-03-30 20:05:23 +0000 UTC View Post
Thank god this ladder is sturdy. It's not like I checked it before I started improvising. (Classic.) But this is the magic of improv. You don't just sit in a studio and imagine climbing inside a ladder. It only happens when the transcendental combination of music and spirit pushes you in there. And then a bit of aluminum becomes a metaphor...
2020-03-28 17:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Ernestine gets cabin fever and the ladder becomes the perfect metaphor...
This is installment #5 of my "daily quarantine dancing-in-the-bedroom" videos.
I'm making these videos free to all, but as a sex worker, Patreon is my only current income. Want to support what I do, while I make the best of complete economic freef...
2020-03-27 17:01:04 +0000 UTC View Post
A deeper reflection still as I dive deeper into what's down in there in my marrow right now.
It is my intention with this daily filming to delve into all aspects of what we all face. For me, there is an additional bite as the stillness and slowness of our new world causes me to think more and more of what I left behind and what has ...
2020-03-26 14:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
This video is a deeper reflection.
It is my intention with this daily filming to delve into all aspects of what we all face. For me, there is an additional bite as the stillness and slowness of our new world causes me to think more and more of what I left behind and what has not yet been fully mourned.
I think we all have people who ...
2020-03-25 14:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
In times of uncertainty and trouble, it is the job of artists to uplift and sustain.
Hence, facing the great uncertainty of "what to do?!?" in such circumstances, I have decided to post daily or almost-daily videos of me dancing from my beautiful, sunlit bedroom in Berlin.
This is installment #2.
I'm making these v...
2020-03-24 13:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
In times of uncertainty and trouble, it is the job of artists to uplift and sustain.
Hence, facing the great uncertainty of "what to do?!?" in such circumstances, I have decided to post daily or almost-daily videos of me dancing from my beautiful, sunlit bedroom in Berlin.
This is installment #1.
While I value my patrons more t...
2020-03-23 12:53:18 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello everyone!
Introducing Ernestine Under Lockdown!
The city of Berlin has not been locked down yet, but it is imminent.
As a person who earns her living from intimate contact with other people, I was horrified as it dawned on me what is happening. I essentially have no job until this thing is over, even tho...
2020-03-21 17:06:37 +0000 UTC View Post16 March, 2020
Movenpick Hotel
Potsdamer Platz
Dear friends,
I have been languishing in a hotel room for six hours. One client cancelled. Then the next.
I love these Berlin gents, but they are--on a good day--about 30% unreliable, and in the era of Covid-19, apparently 100%.
In a tremend...
2020-03-16 17:56:18 +0000 UTC View Post
A raw, deep dive into my body via introspective improvisation.
Enjoy!
Fondly,
Ernestine
2020-03-03 15:00:00 +0000 UTC View Post
I am gearing up for some *fun new things* for y'all in the coming weeks...
...but as a teaser...
...and because you all mean so much to me...
Would you like a postcard from Berlin???
Yes???
Send me your address! And, if I already have it, send me a note! Tell me how you're doing! Tell me how you're enjoying...
2020-02-11 21:24:53 +0000 UTC View Post
This is my first improvisation that (to me) does not look like it was improvised, but rather choreographed and rehearsed, so sort of the holy grail there. Quite pleased!!!
It is also 100% contemporary ballet. I blame this incredible music.
Please enjoy.
Fondly,
Ernestine 2020-02-07 15:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post
Friends!
Here I am! I made it across the ocean, to Berlin!
This video is about what I really need from my supporters right now and how you can radically change my reality for a few dollars a month.
The Ballet Burlesque Project has not yet broken even. I have been paying my film editor out of other income, bu...
2020-02-04 16:05:57 +0000 UTC View Post
One of my favorite burlesques so far! The music by Postmodern Jukebox is absolutely ridiculous, I can't get enough of it. The peacock feather bra and green underbust corset are back!
Enjoy!
Fondly,
Ernestine
2020-02-04 13:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post
This week, a little breath of ballet fresh air.
A rather nontraditional ballet exercise...
In a real ballet class, you'd never see a barre exercise move into a centre exercise, but we get to have our artistic liberties here at the Ballet Burlesque Project. This piece of music was so beautiful that I just wanted to keep goi...
2020-01-20 18:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Yet another fabulous burlesque with a fabulous handmade corset, an absolutely absurd Art Deco thong, and pasties embellished with rhinestones, all made by yours truly. And pointe shoes. Of course, pointe shoes.
My GOD how I love bouréeing around in Victorian corsets to Nina Simone. Unparalleled.
Enjoy! 2020-01-13 18:01:00 +0000 UTC View Post
When one's camerawoman howls,
"Fucking A!"
at the end of a piece, one feels one has done something right.
Feathers--everywhere.
Enjoy.
Fondly,
Ernestine
2020-01-07 01:00:00 +0000 UTC View Post
Patrons!
Happy holidays!!!
While I'm visiting family in the San Francisco Bay Area, I jumped at the opportunity to book a session with the fabulous Gina Barbara, burlesque & pinup photographer extraordinaire! (See below to marvel in her website and IG.)
I want to hear from you! What do you want to see...
2019-12-26 08:07:25 +0000 UTC View Post
To all my most excellent supporters and friends, thank you for being part of the Ballet Burlesque Project--I can't wait to share all the mysterious magic that is to transpire in 2020!!!
Most fondly,
Ernestine
2019-12-26 07:33:57 +0000 UTC View Post
Oh my oh my oh my My first live performance in 9 years!!! I did it!
Become a patron to see the full video!
My joyful return to the stage, this video is the filmed version of a live performance that concluded my choreographer-in-residency.
It's also the first time y'all get to see previous...
2019-12-20 17:23:17 +0000 UTC View Post
Oh my oh my oh my My first live performance in 9 years!!! I did it!
My joyful return to the stage, this video is the filmed version of a live performance that concluded my choreographer-in-residency.
It's also the first time y'all get to see previously rehearsed dancing on my Patreon! Everything else h...
2019-12-20 14:55:20 +0000 UTC View Post
Dear friends,
I made this video for International Whore's Day (June 2nd!) this year, and I'm posting it here in honor of our other, more sombre sex worker holiday, the day we remember our fallen. Of whom there are many.
May we never forget what we're fighting for: A world in which we can all be free.
May you be safe and ...
2019-12-17 17:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Named by Nefeli.
More fun with the hand-held camera. The deeper we got into the shoot, the more closely we were communicating--just with our bodies and our eyes. No words. Totally rad.
This piece more than perhaps any other I've done so far channelled my training in Transnational Fusion, a type of dance heavily based in Middle Easter...
2019-12-17 00:00:01 +0000 UTC View PostPatrons!
I apologize for being rather out of touch lately and dreadfully behind on my monthly notes.
My move to Berlin approaches, alongside the final performance of my choreographer-in-residency, so I’ve been a bit frazzled.
One of my founding patrons asked an excellent question:
How do I get ready for a performance? (...
2019-12-08 01:59:15 +0000 UTC View Post
Another wild adventure from the single-hand-held-camera shoot!
I think this video shows ME more closely than anything we've been able to capture so far.
Killer song, as well.
Enjoy!
Fondly,
Ernestine
2019-12-02 18:01:01 +0000 UTC View Post