Reading shows take off
Events where books are read to audiences by women in the nude encourage body-positivity
SOME might argue that the ideal way to unwind is to indulge in a good read while in the most comfortable position.
Organisers of an unconventional reading group have taken this idea and turned it on its head to establish what has been described as “a living, breathing nude painting”, which celebrates female sensuality.
This has earned the group international acclaim while promoting body-positivity – and encouraging reading at the same time.
The group, Naked Girls Reading (NGR), was the brainchild of two burlesque performers who decided to combine two of their passions: reading and claiming one’s own body.
Their gatherings have led to groups of women in different parts of the world stripping down to their birthday suits and reading literature to audiences at shows that have been called “an intelligent and sexy pastime”.
The concept has been successfully replicated in South Africa, with NGR’S latest show in Joburg being held this weekend. Director and producer of NGR’S Johannesburg chapter Alicia Skead insisted that while some might come to their shows simply to see naked women, many more would return because of the reading itself.
“After the show, 98% of our audience comes to talk to me about the pieces that were read and how they resonated with the pieces read,” she told Saturday Star.
“They all want to go home and read more.”
NGR was born in the US back in 2009 through the efforts and passion of burlesque performers Michelle La’mour and Franky Vivid.
It involves a group of women of all shapes, sizes and races disrobing and reading to an engaged audience who remain dressed during the show.
“These magnificent queens take a brave step in baring their hearts and bodies on stage. That vulnerability, and that ability to share this with others, is life-changing,” said Skead.
NGR reached our shores when producer and director of the Cape Town chapter Kelly Smith brought the concept to the country in 2016.
The shows in Cape Town were the first of their kind on the continent, with the organisers there making a commitment to read literature by African authors at performances in South Africa.
“We insist on using at least one story by African writers, as well as allowing some of the readers to write their own pieces,” said Skead. “This has made the audience realise how much talent there is on our continent, and (in their) backyard.”
Following the success of the first rounds of readings in Cape Town, Skead obtained the rights to bring NGR to Johannesburg, where she said audiences had been just as responsive as those in the Cape Town.
“We don’t care what you look like as a reader; your physicality is not important. We feel that anyone who wants to have the experience should be given the opportunity to read,” she said.
Skead said a theme which organisers felt would resonate with nude readers and audiences was chosen for every show.
“One theme chosen was ‘Queerly beloved’, and for our upcoming show it’s ‘Out with the old and in with the new’. We want to create a platform that inspires people to read, perhaps to remind them of books they need to revisit.” While NGR emphasises the importance of, and the readers’ love of, reading, the group’s shows aim to encourage body-positivity.
One of the ways they achieve this is by casting a diverse group of women to conduct the readings.
“The aims of the shows are to celebrate the beauty that is you, to show that we are strong, intelligent women, and we claim our bodies,” said Skead.
“We want to show body-positivity and encourage an acceptance of what your body is... (show) people that all sizes and shapes are beautiful.”
Skead said women reading in the nude at shows encouraged attendees to accept their own imperfections.
“Members of the audience have said on many occasions that it made them feel better about their own appearance. And we will continue to make women, and men, more comfortable with who they are.”
The NGR show in Johannesburg will be held at the Popart Theatre today and tomorrow. SOUTH African men are among scores of males in cities around the world who seem to prefer their mistresses to be curvy.
These men who stray from their committed relationships also prefer their lovers to have longer hair and would apparently choose adventurousness over maturity.
This was according to a recent survey which aimed to discover exactly which qualities and attributes made a woman the perfect mistress.
Overall, it found that the majority of men who took part in the study ranked women’s physical appearance over intelligence.
The study was conducted by Victoria Milan, an online dating network for married and attached people looking to cheat.
The findings were based on mined data from thousands of Victoria Milan members from 22 countries including South Africa, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Germany, France Argentina, Spain, Netherlands, Greece, United Kingdom and the US.
The research conducted by the online dating network regarding the ideal mistress was originally done back in 2015 when the results showed that slim women topped the list.
The studt was repeated by Victoria Milan late last year, and the updated poll revealed a completely different type of mistress.
During the initial study, 40.2% of 4 427 men registered on victoriamilan. com chose slim women over curvy women (38.6%) to have an affair with.
Three years later, however, these men’s physical preferences have changed: now 40.8% of these other 4 803 participants prefer curvaceous mistresses over 35.2% who keep choosing slim lovers. According to the men who took part in the poll, the perfect mistress also has long hair, and this attribute has marginally increased in importance over these past years, from 41.2% to 42.3%.
Victoria Milan CEO and founder Sigurd Vedal explained that they repeated the study as preferences changed.
“We wanted to repeat this survey because physical stereotypes have changed a lot over the past years.”
“Consequently, these results show exactly how men’s physical preferences are now different, and all types of women are represented in the survey.”
The results of both studies also revealed that physical appearance was more important than personality for men seeking extramarital affairs.
In 2015, 67.4% chose appearance over personality (29.6%), while in 2018, physical looks were more important for 70.1% of unfaithful men.
For just 26.9% of the participants, personality was more important than physical appearance.
According to 28.3% of the men polled in 2018, stylish and elegant women were preferred, while in the previous survey, this factor was only important for 11.4% of men seeking affairs.
The most recent results of the survey also showed that just 5.6% of the men surveyed preferred their mistresses to be mature.
However, a sense of humour was among one of the top traits they looked for in a lover, as 67.6% were looking for a funny lover.