Sudbury Burlesque is back with Halloween performances

Sudbury -

Hold onto your hats, your seats and just about everything else: Sudbury Burlesque is back.

The troupe, which typically puts on the 'Monster Ball' this time of year, has had to rethink its performance due to COVID-19 restrictions.

It'll be holding nine spooky Halloween-themed performances at the Coulson Nightclub at the end of the month.

"So burlesque is a little bit of theatre, meets comedy, meets live rock concert and some striptease in there -- it's all about having fun and you know body confidence and entertainment value," said performer and show producer Jess Crowe.

It's the audience for these performers that's been missed.

They've been waiting two years to hit the stage. They won't be able to go into the crowd as much as they once did. The audience has also been spaced apart.

"We're used to being able to get close to our audience so we won't be able to do that but that's OK for now -- we are going to get back to normal," said Crowe.

"It's just going to be a like a swanky atmosphere instead of like a club atmosphere, so that's the biggest change I think," said stage manager Ashlee Barlow.

The performers here are promising something for everyone, comedy, live music and most importantly, fun.

Men, women, adults of all ages, they say burlesque is more than just the art of taking off one's clothes.

"They just put on storylines and every act is different and they take you through a whole different world, for each show and each production itself," said Barlow.

Stefanie Goulet is relatively new to the scene. Her first performance was just before the pandemic started. This month will only be her second.

"It's just really fun," said Goulet. "It's an opportunity to come together as dancers and as a community and I think it's really great because it allows everyone to channel their own creativity and our group is really great for confidence and body positivity."

With strict, smaller capacities in mind, organizers say it's best to get there early. This will be a show that's literally been two years in the making.