Books, Burlesque and More!

[Phat Man Dee]

Who loves the written word or a pair of pasties more than me? If you like the turning of a page or a shimmy and a shake, you should totally make it to both my shows this weekend.... If you don't like these things, I don't know how exactly you ended up on this list, or reading this blog, but I'm happy you are here, and hope we at Phat Man Dee Productions may enlighten you to the beauty of flesh and language.

This Friday May 13th I am emceeing and singing at the Rex Theater! We are hosting a great night featuring visiting burlesque beauties from Baltimore!

Baltimore’s Sticky Buns Burlesque troupe is performing at the Rex Theater for a Friday the 13th Masquerade Ball. Sticky Buns specializes in unique theatrical striptease with sexy, comedic commentary. They’ll be performing with local jazz singer Phat Man Dee and the Bridge City Bombshells. The show is part of the “Burlesque at the Rex” series. Tickets are $15 in advance, $17 day-of-show, and to fit with the Friday the 13th Masquerade Ball, $13 in costume. Advanced ticket-holders will be refunded $2 at the door if in costume. Doors open 8:00 PM; show begins 9:00 PM and will be done by 11:30 pm, so if you're coming, buy your ticket now, come in costume for partial refund, and be on time. It's gonna be super hot and sticky sweet, I want you to enjoy every sugary drop!

Tickets are available here:
http://rextheater.inticketing.com/events/145062/Sticky-Buns-Burlesque
Facebook event page:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=101199149966656
The Rex is located at, 1602 E. Carson St., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the South Side

Once upon a time there was a wonderful used bookstore in the South Side, always full of cheap wonderful books that opened in my brain worlds I could never have imagined. Now I am older and have traveled a little more, I understand what it really was, affordable access to the wormhole of adventure without which I would be a sad and ignorant dullard. I was very out of sorts when ElJays Books left South Side, but luckily for us they have moved into some beautiful new digs in Dormont and they have more books than EVER! I am singing at their Grand Re Opening this Saturday and I want YOU to be there! No cover charge and cheap books everywhere!

Saturday, May 14 · 6:00pm - 8:00pm at Eljay's Books
3233 West Liberty Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in Dormont
Free event!

Come celebrate Eljay's Grand Reopening. We're full of books and ready to party. We just need you. (And your family and friends, and their family and friends etc... Music from the lovely Tommy Amoeba and even lovelier Phat Man Dee, with appearances by Andrew the Impaled, Christine Andrews of Zafira, poet Jerome Crooks and Professor EmCee Squared of the It's Alive Show promised to stop by and show off his spooky car! Cheap Books! Food and Drink More Books! Door Prizes And did we mention all the Books?

Lastly, if you are reading this on Wednesday May 11, 2011, the day I am composing it (I love and fear the immediacy of the internet) please note that today is a Pittsburgh is Art's Day of Giving. Basically, if you can give any $$ to the smaller organizations who help keep our culture unique and fresh in Pittsburgh, today is the day, because GPAC has put together a powerful coalition of folks who are willing to match all donations up to $400,000. You know, I was thinking today about some of the wonderful things people have said to me or gifted me with over the years because they like my music and the shows I produce and I was thinking about how lucky we as a region are to have so much talent here with such a supportive environment, and how it is the smaller organizations that really keep it all moving. If you can, check out the website and send some $$ to a group you like.
http://www.pittsburghgives.org

Here are some more details:

Pittsburgh is Art Day of Giving will be held on Wednesday, May 11, 2011.
This is a 24-hour opportunity for the Pittsburgh community to support our thriving arts and culture sector. Initiated by the Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council (GPAC) and the Heinz Endowments, it is sponsored by The Pittsburgh Foundation and modeled after their October 2010 Pittsburgh Gives initiative. With the help of funding partners such as The Benedum Foundation, the Buhl Foundation, The Grable Foundation and the Hillman Foundation, a $400K+ matching pool will be available to over 130 local arts and culture organizations. It is the perfect time to support smaller non-profits and help them stretch their funding a little further. Visit http://www.pittsburghgives.org on May 11th, to show your support for groups like the ToonSeum or the work of Creative.Life.Support, the not for profit arm of Mr. Smalls Funhouse or Pittsburgh Filmmakers or any other large number of wonderful groups who work hard every day to keep art alive and kicking in our beautiful city.

Next week on Saturday May 21, 2011, I am singing some original songs I have been keeping under my hat about ghosts and robots at the Grand Midway Hotel in Windber, PA. It's going to be a ridiculous event. Other acts and speakers include:
Devilz in the Detailz, Michelle Belanger, Bridge City Bombshells, Catherine S Cox, Damien Youth, Adam Blai, The Cadillac Creeps, Rosemary Ellen Guiley, Chad Hammit, Nova is tending bar, and Ghost hunting will be permitted. A hotel tour will be part of the experience... Buy your tickets now, and I am sure the in house's hotel rooms are being used for all the out of town guests, but I am sure there are reasonably priced hotels in very nearby Johnstown.
http://iliveinahauntedhotel.com/Dcon/Draculacon2011.html

The following Wednesday May 25, 2011 I am singing with Stevee Wellons of Smooth Groove, we are singing back up for Christiane D's new project!
More info and all the details:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=209065849124101

Love, light, burlesque, books and vampires! Happy May everybody!
Mandee

PS I would like to add that the above writing is dedicated to my mother, Sally Baker Kivowitz. She is a wonderful writer and teacher. Currently living in Chinle, AZ she is teaching special needs children on the Navajo reservation. She worked has worked very hard my entire life as a teacher, she has worked with college kids, inner city special needs youth, prisoners and now rurally based special needs kids. She fought in the Civil Rights marches in Oklahoma in the 60's and has always instilled in us a sense of social justice. She is a special lady and I have much to thank her for. I wish I could buy her a hot tub and a decent retirement plan, but in lieu of being able to do either of those things I would like to publicly say, thanks Mom, for loving and supporting me just the way I am and not how I was "supposed to be".