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Voted in the top 50 burlesque performers in the world 2015 and 2016 and top 10 UK Burlesque Performers for the past three years running by readers of 21st Century Burlesque Magazine, Velma Von Bon Bon is a Veritable Tour de Force in Neo-burlesque hilarity.  Gracing the Neon Moon stage again for Club Cirque Galactica at the Cambridge Junction on April 25th, this time in all her B-Movie splendor, Velma's 'indearingly silly and daintily sexual' charm will take you to another dimension!
An 'English rose plucked from a pop culture nonsense garden', Velma's unique take on burlesque fuses comedy and glamour in what she likes to call "Glomedy" (please humour her, it makes her feel like a scientist, very silly we know but she does look good in a white coat). Here's what she has to say on all things glamorous and Burlesque!  What is your main performance inspiration? My inspiration comes from everywhere. My childhood had a big impact on the style of comedy that I love and visuals that inspire me. I have always loved comedy and found my heroes in people like Rik Mayall, Mike Myers, Jim Carrey and Julie Walters. I watched old VHS tapes of Black Adder constantly. I guess if I had to put it in to one word I'd say "silly". I've always loved the music and films of the 80s and that decade really has a big influence on my style and my acts.
What do you love most about burlesque and cabaret? I love the sense of community and the connection with live audiences. I have made some of my best friends working in cabaret. I love making people laugh and getting to make that connection with them live on stage  What has been your most memorable performance so far? I really couldn't narrow it down to one! I really loved supporting Sasha Velour in Bristol a couple of years ago, the energy of the crowd was electric. I once performed in a parking space in the middle of Manchester pride, that was pretty memorable! I also got to perform in a big top with a traditional circus in 2018 and that felt pretty special. My first performance after breaking my arm in France was also quite monumental. I couldn't open my hand from nerve damage so I was really nervous and I'd travelled 33 hours by bus to get there so it was quite stressful. But I had such an amazing time it was really impactful.  Can you give us a retro or burlesque style tip? My best tip is be you! I have been through a few styles over the years. I got into pin up and 50s, which I loved for a time but I realised I started to feel restricted by sticking to just one era of style. Now I just style myself however I'm feeling on the day. When it comes to your own personal style or your on stage style, just be true to yourself. Do what you love and your passion for it will come across so naturally.  Come and see Velma's winning charm for yourself! She truly is a woman not to be missed! We LOVE YOU VELMA!
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 Leah Debrincat is a London based performer, specializing in fusion belly dance and sword shows. She has performed for various exclusive events, cabaret shows and private parties in the UK and internationally. Highlights include shows for Time Out (Live), MTV (EMA) awards for artist Taylor Swift, fashion photographer Nick Knight and SHOWstudio, Erotica, Lovebox festival, Tattoo conventions worldwide, and launches for Game of Thrones, Diet Coke and Jean Paul Gaultier.
Leah has worked for the English National Opera for Cosi Fan Tutte at The Coliseum and has appeared in many magazines and featured in various music videos for artists such as Unkle, Alesso and recently Cubanate.
Leah was also nominated for ‘best specialty act’ at the London Cabaret Awards 2013 and called “Dazzling” by Time Out Magazine (London). Oh, and she will also headline at Neon Moon Club Cirque HALLOWEEN 2019. Excited? OH hell yeah!   If you're looking for inspiration for a corpse themed costume - then we've got a whole range of ideas to inspire you! Check out the "how to" videos below that we've collected for you:
One of our favourite facepaint artists at the moment is Skultress - here are two super glittery ideas from her to inspire you:
Tickets are still available for our Halloween show at Cambridge Junction - don't miss it!
 We caught up with Jamie Double, strongman extraordinaire ahead of his performance in this weekend's show!
What is your main performance inspiration? My main inspiration has always been to discover what I can do with my body. I now like to play on audience expectations and stereotypes too. What do you love most about burlesque and cabaret? The freedom one has to create whatever they feel they want to What has been your most memorable performance so far? Performing a cigar box act while wearing a dog collar being held by an evil queen (for a children’s show) Can you give us a retro or burlesque style tip? Grow a moustache. Catch Jamie at our show this weekend!  If you're a sci-fi fan, we're sure you've tried alien and robot looks before. It's an ideal theme for bright colours, can be cute or scary, and can be as simple or as complex as you like! Here's a few of our favourite futuristic facepaints to inspire you - with alien and cyborg looks from straightforward facepaint to full on prosthetics!
 Everyone loves an animal costume - animal style costumes have been a staple of our Wonderland parties for a long time! But we wanted to show you some different ideas to the traditional white rabbit costumes - so peacock, zebra, dog or lion, these face paint ideas are here to get you inspired to try something new!
If you're ready to release your ultimate animal costume, then come to our next event and show us what you've got!
 Candy is one of the most colourful themes you can have. It's all about shiny and sweet costume ideas that make you think of lollipops, bubblegum cupcakes and more. From pastel goth headresses, to raver candy wear, to Katy Perry's infamous cupcake bra - candy and cakes have been a major inspiration for many costumes. Here's some of our favourite looks, and how to get them! Key concepts for the looks are:
We hope this inspired you to take the candy dress up challenge and nail the candy look!
See you at our upcoming shows! The history around stripes in clothing has a long and winding past. When we think about stripes with our modern mind we tend to romanticise them with images of whimsical circus performers, or mysterious French mimes. However, stripes started out with a much darker past and were originally regarded as shameful, degrading and diabolical.  The first known documentations of stripes in clothing dates back to medieval times where anyone who wore stripes were considered outcasts and associated with disorder and difference. These people tended to be circus performers, prostitutes, non-Christians and disloyal knights. People in the medieval ages found any surface in which they could not distinguish the foreground from the background disturbing. Stripes were associated with the devil and wearing them could actually get you killed as documented in 1310 when a French clergyman was condemned to DEATH for wearing them. No one really knows where the condemnation of wearing stripes originates but there are several theories regarding the origins. The first being a free interpretation of a quote from the Bible: “You will not wear upon yourself a garment made of two different kinds of textiles.” -Leviticus 19:19  The second theory is that wearing stripes conceals the silhouette acting like a type of camouflage. In the middle ages, zoologists even thought that Zebras were evil because of their black and white stripes, despite never actually seeing them. One could also argue that the contrast between the light and dark colours could reflect good and evil, but that is open to interpretation. During the 18th century stripes started to develop a good name for themselves. During the American revolution wearing stripes became a political at that showed you adhered to enlightened thinking. This also carried across to the France and the rest of Europe during the French revolution.  Fast forward to 19th century America, and stripes started to become a sign of outcasts again with the famous prisoners black and white striped uniform symbolising jail bars and making them easy to distinguish. Most jails ended up abolishing the stripe uniforms as stripes were seen as a “Badge of Disgrace”. The last known state to abolish the striped prisons uniform was North Carolina in 1958. In 1917 Coco Chanel introduced stripes into her fashion line making the striped top a staple for people of all social standing, ages, and gender.  Today as normal as it is to wear stripes, we still associate them with the mysterious, strange, and curious and often these are re-affirmed in our minds by television and films where the odd characters ae usually dressed in stripes.  Whether it’s the light or the dark side of stripes, they have either enlightening or horrible history around them.
 With our upcoming Shadow Circus event, you can pretty much guarantee that scary clowns are going to be a thing. So here are some ideas, from quick and simple, through to layers of latex, to get you inspired! Beginner level - simple clown facepaints
Intermediate level - more tricky facepainting and latex use!
Advanced level - incredibly terrifying clown looks!
Hope this has inspired you!
Want to join us for our next event? Go to our homepage now! Imagine someone handed you the keys to a massive mansion for a day - what would be the first thing you would do? I immediately got on the phone to Black Cravat Photography and told them "Get down here - we've got a f**king mansion to shoot in!" Oozing elegance and sexuality - Stephen Harpa - Mr. Pole Fitness UK Nominee Before long I'd assembled a dream team of some of our facourite acts. Some of whom will feature in our forthcoming Halloween Shadow Circus spectaculars!  Dixie Dread in the master bedroom... enter if you dare  Ethereal Lexacution in the drawing room  Beautiful Burlesque Ruby Truelove in the Grand Ballroom  Drinking shots at the bar with Laurie Black It was an amazing day of shooting at the incredible and opulent Stanmer House (Proud Cabaret Country House) and I am thrilled to share the results with you! It was an incredible day - and this is just a tiny glimpse of how amazing this venue is going to look once we give it the full Neon Moon treatment! Come and see it for yourself - book tickets now at www.theneonmoonclub.com Photography and Film: Black Cravat Photography, Dominikas Photography - Edited by Catherine Watling www.catherinewatling.com - A Neon Moon Production 2018. Shot on Location at the Proud Cabaret Country House - Stanmer House Brighton.
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