Once upon a time…
Our story begins in the spring of 2006. The founding members of The Jigglewatts met on the set of the brilliantly wacky film, Z: A Zombie Musical. One fateful day as we sat waiting for the next scene to be set, a remarkable idea was born. “Oh, what it would be like to form a scintillating burlesque troupe!” At that moment, images of what could be danced through each of our minds. As the images faded, we exhaled, still staring out into the distance. The realization hit us all like a train in the darkness… “What is stopping us???” Nothing, that’s right, absolutely nothing. So we vowed to reach into our hearts and wrest the images that we’d seen just moments before… and bring them to light!
Our first show was produced in June of 2006. Now going strong in our fifth year, The Jigglewatts continues to be an exclusive "boutique" troupe of some of the rarest talent in Texas.
The show…
All of our dance numbers are intensely character-driven, giving a revealing glimpse into the personas we’ve created. More than just adopting cutesy stage names, each dancer has a captivating presence with which she infuses all actions.
Perhaps the strongest element of a Jigglewatts performance, however, is the attention to detail. From the music selection and editing to the precisely timed lift of an eyebrow, the balance of choreography to improvisation, the lighting design (where available), and let's not forget the dazzling, custom-made costumes... each plays a vital role in the creation of The Jigglewatts world.
Awards and Accolades
"Troupe of the Year" - Hot Rods & Heels 2010
"Performer of the Year" (Coco Lectric) - Hot Rods & Heels 2010
"Best Costume" (Ruby Joule) - Texas Burlesque Festival 2010
"Audience Choice Award" (Pearl Lux) - Texas Burlesque Festival 2010
"Audience Choice Award" (Coco Lectric) - Texas Burlesque Festival 2009
"Most Original" (Ruby Joule) - Texas Burlesque Festival 2008
"Art of the Tease Award" (Coco Lectric) - Joy of Austin's Striptease Competition 2008
Venues we have performed include:
Austin
Antone's
Stubb's
La Zona Rosa
Esther's Follies
Sagra Enoteca Trattoria
The Parish
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema
Fiesta Gardens - Austin
The Hideout Theatre
Momo's
Emo's
The Highball
Hole in the Wall
The Scoot Inn
Red 7
Elysium
The Beauty Bar
Beerland
Room 710
The Velvet Spade (now The Mohawk)
Carousel Lounge
Hanover's - Pflugerville
Allure
Aces Lounge
Dallas
The Lakewood Theatre
The Texas Theatre
The Quixotic Theatre
Excuses Cafe
Other
The Viper Room, Hollywood, CA
The Doll Hut, Anaheim, CA
Double Down Saloon, Las Vegas, NV
Harrah's Casino Theatre, New Orleans, LA
The House of Blues, New Orleans, LA
The KiMo Theatre, Albuquerque, NM
Visions of Jigglewatts…
We are thrilled to see the amount of talent that has developed in the Austin burlesque scene over the past few years. Burlesque goes hand in hand with Austin's live music scene and the "Keep Austin Weird" battle-cry that can be heard from South Congress to Red River. But for The Jigglewatts, burlesque is also much more than that- it's an art form which allows us to call upon the wealth of our combined skills and talents to create something truly exceptional. We can finally put to good use our many years of dance training, film, theatre and costuming experience, not to mention mad Home-Ec skills and sometimes penmanship!
