A REVIEW for ‘The Empire Strips Back: A Burlesque Parody’

A not so long time ago, in the Milky Way galaxy, I decided to go see a live Star Wars parody burlesque style show called, The Empire Strips Back. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but the show was in town, and I figured, this could be fun. So I put on my Star Wars best, and dragged my husband (who has never seen anything Star Wars) along, and it exceeded my wildest expectations! And his!

This show is 18+ so any younglings, and padawans, be sure to stop reading here, and come back once you’ve reached the title of Jedi Master. 

The evening was MCed by Lando’s nephew, cape and all. As soon as the curtains opened a tauntaun danced onto the stage. The audience burst into laughter, and we were off. While our MC referenced many different Star Wars movies and shows, the actual performances all stuck to the OG trilogy. While the actual story was not told, each scene represented an epic moment in Episodes IV, V, or VI. 

Check out a review for the book ‘Ahsoka.’

The Empire Strips Back is so much more than just stripping

While I expected some strip teases and Star Wars references, I was not expecting the level of dancing I saw, nor was I expecting to be laughing to the point of tears running down my face. While there were some absolutely gorgeous and sexy strip teases, the dancing was more than that at times. Watching Leia ballet dance around Artoo was incredibly beautiful. Of course, she did then strip down a bit, and Artoo took a page out of BB8’s book (I’ll leave that to the imagination, as I don’t want to spoil everything).

We also saw some amazing dancing by Han, Chewy, and Greedo. I won’t say who started dancing first, but I think we all know. Again, the dancing was impressive and hilarious. Han and Chewy should really give up smuggling and become full time dancers. The dancer inside that Chewy costume definitely deserves a medal. 

Each scene was set to newer music, but somehow still related to Star Wars. From Jabba singing Biggie, to whatever in the hell that was that Palpatine did during Miley Cyrus’ wrecking ball song (I may never recover from that scene). It was definitely a performance I will never forget! I don’t know how much spice the writers of this show were doing while writing this show, but I’m sure glad they did.

Overall Grade 10/10

The Empire Strips Back exceeded every expectation I had. It was sexy, moving, entertaining, hilarious, and just a hell of a lot of fun! If you love erotic dancing, fun dancing, comedy, and Star Wars, then go ahead and set those blasters to stun because you will be stunned! My husband described it as “awesome” despite knowing nothing about Star Wars except that Vader is Luke’s dad. Make sure not to leave early, because it ain’t over until the little green Jedi sings. I truly cannot recommend this experience enough. It was worth every credit!

If you want to see if this show is hyper speeding to your city anytime soon, click here.

For more from Lauren, check out Hops ‘GEEK’ News.

Have you seen The Empire Strips Back? What are your thoughts? Got another amazing and unique experience you’d like to share? Let us know in the comments, and may the force be with you.