Flyin' at the Mayan: A Recap

It's that time again, and not a moment too soon: Last Wednesday, June 21, I was privileged enough to witness the spectacle that is... Lucha VaVoom!



The theme of this edition of LVV was "Flyin' at the Mayan", referring to the historic Mayan Theatre in downtown Los Angeles, the home of Lucha VaVoom. The show is produced by my sister, the artist sometimes known as Ursulina.

Once again, I am lame for not having pictures to share -- but it's not for the usual reason. This time, I actually remembered to bring my camera; but unfortunately, due to circumstances way too complicated to go into here, my posse and I were forced to sit in the balcony. That's too great a distance in too dark a room for my weak camera to handle. Mea culpa.

The lack of pics is a particular shame, becase many of the acts were brand-new...SO new, that you're not likely to find pictures of them anywhere.

Most notable on the burlesque portion of the bill was the new duo of Gypsy Roze and Sweet Leighdy. These brave women in frilly gold bikinis performed a death-defying duet while hanging from a suspended metal hoop. And when I say "suspended", remember that I was 20 feet above stage level in the balcony, and they were directly opposite me, often hanging onto the slippery hoop with only one hand each.

This was a genuinely dangerous routine, and the performers pulled it off with incredible skill and grace. Yet they were SO vulnerable, that I was almost more scared than turned-on.

The same ladies also did a bang-up job as the corner girls for the great Mistico!

Also much appreciated were the performances by the luscious Lola La Cereza, Rocket Saffire, and Moana Satana.

Somewhat disappointingly for this fan, the Poubelle Twins (see their permanent link in the menu to the right) were in another "unannounced" match. The lights came up after a burlesque number, and next thing you know, the Poubelles jumped into the ring along with their nemesis Cry Baby and her partner (whose name I didn't catch, because the match was unannounced!!). Not that they weren't spectacular as always, it's just that these unannounced matches can be confusing for the audience, which could make them lose interest -- and THAT is unacceptable! If only I were a close relative of the show's producer, I could provide some feedback about this...

Appearing on the wrestling card were such luminaries as Los Gallineros (The Chickens), Human Tornado, Chilango, Cassandro, and the "Mini's" Tsuki and Mascarita Sagrada. And in a strange twist, the L.A. crowd showed their true colors by rooting for the Rudos (bad guys) Shamu Jr. and El Chupacabra, in their tag-team match. Must be because the lizard made his debut in the Mayan.

Keeping the crowd entertained as usual were color commentators Blaine Capatch and Tom Kenny (yes, the guy who does the voice of Spongebob), making a difficult job look effortless.

You know, as a Los Angeles resident I'm proud to add this mashup of Mexican masked wrestling and burlesque to the long list of innovations "invented here". Rest assured that I will stay on top of this phenomenon and report back to you for as long as I can.


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