From geek girl to show girl

SINGAPORE — There is an old song that goes “what a difference a day makes”, which highlights how things can change within a day. For Singaporean Sukki Menon, it took a week for the change to take effect, but what a change it was.

“In 2011, I was working in the United Kingdom as an IT geek, designing operating systems for the British Olympic cycling team,” she said. “I’m quite a dork and very geeky. I have a typical traditional family and they were keen on me going into the sciences. Both my sisters are in the sciences. But, I (have) always had an affinity for the arts and I love vintage fashion.”

Through that association, she became interested in burlesque (“the people in vintage fashion are into burlesque”) and after surfing for information online, decided that she would like to give it a try. She then found out that a theatre had opened down the road from where she was staying.

“I thought this was a sign. I don’t know what possessed me, but I marched in there, said I’d been doing (burlesque) for years and was a professional even though I’d never done it before. And they said, ‘Start next Friday’.

“So I had seven days to teach myself burlesque by watching YouTube. Well, you know, desperate times.”

She came up with her stage name Sukki Singapora (“Very imaginative, right? My real first name and my country’s name,” she quipped), and her first show was in front of 300 people at said theatre. According to her, it was a disaster. “It went horribly wrong. Everything got stuck and things got hitched and caught where it wasn’t supposed to, and it was really terrible,” said Sukki. “But the meaning of burlesque originates from Italian theatre and it is supposed to be cheeky and playful, so the audience loved it because they thought it was part of the act. They had no idea what I was doing. But theatre owners loved it and they told me to do it every Friday and Saturday. So I had a residency.”

Sukki would work weekdays at her IT job, before donning elaborate costumes for her burlesque shows on weekends. “During the week I was like Clark Kent and during the weekend I was like, ‘showgirl!’ I worked and practised really hard, got more solo gigs and I gave up my day job — I think it was in 2013 — to travel the world. I now perform in a different country every month.”

This month, Sukki Singapora brings her show back to Singapore over the F1 weekend at the Capitol Theatre. Called Boudoir Noire Presents The Box, Sukki’s set will headline the event. “One that I’ll be doing is a tribute to Chinese burlesque legend Barbara Yung, who was one of the first Asian women to do burlesque in the 1940s,” she said. “I also have a seven-foot illuminated diamond ring prop, which (has) just arrived. It is filled with champagne and I bathe in (it).”

This is the first time this act will be seen in Asia, but Sukki is not merely a performer. She is a living example of the term DIY. For instance, she designed the prop herself, and she also designs her own costumes. “This costume is the most elaborate one I’ve done, featuring 20,000 Swarovski crystals that I designed and made myself. It took two years to do,” said Sukki.

Sukki has also been a champion for her craft. She used to teach burlesque lessons to women (under the guise of giving yoga classes) and campaigned for burlesque to be legalised in Singapore. In January this year, she succeeded and performed at a closed door event. “The first time a Singaporean woman had performed burlesque here at Clifford Pier. No pressure!” she joked. “It was really quite emotional for me. I really needed to not mess up — otherwise, it would be very embarrassing. But it was great.”

WHAT IS BURLESQUE?

While times have changed, there are still some misconceptions about burlesque. “People ask, is it a seedy, sexual performance? Is there nudity? The answer is no. There’s never any nudity. It’s sensual, but it’s not sexual. It’s celebrating the female form, not objectifying it. It’s all about the tease and none of the reveal. There’s a bikini in there somewhere, but it never goes to full nudity. It’s a glamorous art form, actually.”

She added: “Burlesque is a form of theatre, so it lends itself well to venues like this one, the Capitol Theatre.”

So it is nothing like what we saw in the movie Burlesque? “That’s more like cabaret than burlesque. Maybe it’s just that the word ‘cabaret’ had already been used for another film. The good thing about that film, though, is that it brought burlesque to the mainstream, so more people know about it.”

Another misconception is that only guys watch burlesque. “Actually, about 80 per cent of the audience is female. I think it’s because they appreciate the body confidence element of it and the gorgeous costumes. It’s about women feeling great 
about themselves.”

But it was not all smooth sailing. Her parents — her father is Singaporean and her mother is British — were not too happy at first. “I think they’d rather I do something else. They weren’t exactly thrilled. But, I think they are used to the fact that I have an affinity for the arts and that this was inevitable. I think I’m the ‘wild child’ of the family.

“There was some kickback, but more from the guys than the women. Maybe because I like to present myself as a strong person and some guys were a little taken aback by that. But for the most part, I’ve received incredible support.”

Interestingly, Sukki outside of the theatre is a far cry from Sukki the show girl. She trains at the gym four to five times a week because “I really need to have good stamina”; and she spends a lot of time doing her costumes (“I love constructing my garments — I designed all of them myself”). And if she has any extra time left, she indulges in her other loves: Her cats and watching science fiction shows.

“I really love chilling out to sci-fi. I’m a Trekkie but I like both Star Trek and Star Wars. One of my cats is called Seven of Nine (from the Star Trek Voyager series) but I also cried a little bit when I saw the trailer for the new Star Wars movie. I also love the older series such as Babylon 5 and Firefly. Yes, I’m genuinely a dork and really geeky.”

But right now, all she is focused on is the show this weekend. “This is the most ambitious act I’ve ever done. There are a lot of after parties during F1, but this is like none other. It’s going to be an amazing theatrical event,” said Sukki.

“I think this is going to be one of the highlights of my career. It has a lot of emotional attachments for me, it’s like my ultimate homecoming show. It’s a labour of love for me at one of the most recognised global events. It’s not just representing burlesque in Singapore but also Singapore artists. I’m just really happy and super excited about it.”

Boudoir Noire Presents The Box is on Sept 19 and 20, 10pm till late, at the Capitol Theatre. For ticketing details visit http://www.boudoirnoire.com.