The All-Male Revue will don barely-there clothing and strip tonight at Casa Nueva as part of a benefit show to raise money for Athens Books to Prisoners.
The night will kick off with local female musical duo The B Sides. Because one of the members, Tessa Evanosky, will be “taking a break from Athens,” the performance will be a send-off, event organizer Nate Ebert said.
After the musical portion of the evening, The All-Male Revue will take the stage.
The Revue originally formed as a fundraising group for The Wire, which served as a space for creative people of all kinds, Ebert said. Because the space was volunteer-run, “creative fundraising was a must,” Ebert added.
After The Wire closed, the All-Male Revue continued performing. Its shows have benefited The Interactivist and the “yet-to-be fully developed” West Side Food Co-op, Ebert said.
“Part of what we are excited about is giving small-budget, nontraditional organizations funding help, which may otherwise be very difficult to acquire,” Ebert said.
Tonight’s show will benefit Athens Books to Prisoners, a fledgling nonprofit aimed at providing books to Ohio convicts. According to a news release, the group believes “that books have the power to decrease the isolation and dehumanization of the prison system and stimulate individual growth and positive change.”
“What happens is (volunteers) show up to a little space and they can open a letter from a prisoner in Ohio, pick out a book from our selection, package it, and write a letter if they want to,” said Evanosky, an organizer for Athens Books to Prisoners and one-half of The B Sides.
In preparation for the event, The All-Male Revue designed its own costumes with some help from members of Boxcar Burlesque.
“We really appreciated the idea of turning the tables on the objectification of women for money,” Ebert said. “Turns out, it’s really fun too.”
Donations from the event fund postage for Athens Books to Prisoners.
Evanosky said she hopes the event will raise awareness of the organization and motivate people to volunteer.
eb104010@ohiou.edu
If You Go
What: Athens Books to Prisoners Benefit
When: 10:30 tonight
Where: Casa Nueva, 4 W. State St.
Admission: $5-$20 donations
