Rare condition forces burlesque star into early retirement
AS Ruby Ruin left the stage and felt her feet cramping, her whole body aching, she knew something wasn’t right.
The burlesque stage shows the 32-year-old had dedicated a large portion of her life to were now causing her such pain that behind closed curtains she couldn’t stand without support. She had fibromyalgia.
She says for the last few months it was sheer adrenalin that got her through even a fiveminute performance of the high energy, dance performances which involved glitz, glamour and lots of feathers.
Her performances were hurting her so much she would spend weeks after her shows tired and sore and that sent her to ‘‘a really low place’’, she said.
The South Canterbury-based performer, who has won numerous awards including Queen of the New Zealand Burlesque Festival 2013 and has travelled the world with her talents, has retired after almost a decade in the industry. She performed her last dance at a show in Christchurch last weekend.
Fittingly, in Auckland the next day, she was honoured with the Significant Contribution to the NZ Burlesque Industry Award at this year’s New Zealand Burlesque Festival. She said she kept the pain private – the condition includes widespread musculoskeletal pain along with fatigue, sleep, memory and mood issues – and it had been a shock to many when she announced her retirement.
While she said she has managed some pain through a good diet, it has got worse throughout the rest of her body over the past two years.
‘‘I am retiring a lot earlier than I thought. I expected to be going a lot longer.’’
She said she was naturally a reserved person and through burlesque has gained confidence.