Shedding stereotypes

Plus-size burlesque troupe bares body and soul in performance based on Tim Burton’s quirky movies

Kathy Pacheco wants to inspire others and break societal stereotypes of beauty and she’s willing to bare it to prove her point.

That’s why she wears a revealing bodysuit and fishnet stockings as the leader of Sister Bear Burlesque, a 15member plus-size troupe bringing its strip tease show “Burtonlesque: A Tim Burton Burlesque Revue” Saturday to the Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas at SteelStacks.

“This is definitely something new,” the Bethlehem native says. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a body-positive show in Bethlehem. … I’m excited to bring something I’m doing positive and creative to my hometown.”

Pacheco says the body-positive image the troupe portrays through its performances is vitally important in this age of filtered and photo-enhanced social media perfection.

“I’ve had so many people come to me and thank us for doing the show,” Pacheco says. “We’re all sizes and kind of represent everybody in that sense and we represent people culturally ... and it’s kind of opening up other people.”

The “Burtonlesque” show was created after Pacheco and Ryan Hill, ArtsQuest’s programming director, brainstormed about an idea for a show tied to the Burton film “The Nightmare Before Christmas.”

The Oscar-nominated Burton is known for injecting the theme of acceptance of differences into his quirky films such as “Beetlejuice,” “Edward

Scissorhands” and “Nightmare.” It’s a theme embraced by the troupe.

Pacheco, who directs, produces and hosts the show, says the audience can expect to see a film clip to introduce each segment of the show, which will riff on “Beetlejuice,” “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure,” “Sleepy Hollow” and “The Nightmare Before Christmas.” Four troupe members each perform two solo acts and there will be a group performance at the show’s end. Depending on the act, the performers may strip down to pasties and thong.

For example, troupe member Penny Praline dresses as Peewee Herman before stripping out of the costume into another character.

“It’s not going to be a boring show, that’s for sure,” Pacheco says. “It’s going to be a good time; it’s going to be a fun night.”

Pacheco says that overall, audiences have been accepting and positive about the troupe’s shows. Occasionally, some in the audience don’t realize what burlesque is and that’s something she tries to address as the show’s host.

“I tell them: ‘This is inclusive of everyone. If you don’t accept this, you can leave.’ A majority of the time, they know what they are getting into and give us great feedback.”

A longtime performer, director and stage hand on the Lehigh Valley theater scene, Pacheco became involved in Philadelphia’s drag scene when she was cast as the alternative female performer in Bearlesque, an almost all-male burlesque troupe in the city, where she now lives. It was a role that boosted her confidence.

“For me to go to a pasty and thong, I was uncomfortable,” Pacheco, who uses the stage name Kitty Devereaux, says. “Being in front of the Bearlesque audience … opened me up and liberated me. They were so welcoming and positive, and so accepting of my body form. They just didn’t care.”

That acceptance helped her shed uncomfortable feelings about showing her body and giving her a confidence she hopes will inspire others.

“It’s important to break that mold, not only for us, but for the generations [younger than] us. It’s already assumed that I’m not healthy, all because I’m fat, and that’s not the case.

— Kathy Pacheco, formerly of Bethlehem, founder of plus-size female burlesque troupe Sister Bear

Pacheco, a 2000 Liberty High School grad, then decided to start a female troupe. Sister Bear was born as an offshoot of the male troupe. It officially became a troupe in January and performs the second Saturday of each month at Victoria Free House in Philadelphia. Starting in December, the troupe will have a show in Brooklyn, N.Y., on the first Friday of each month.

Shows have different themes, sometimes tied to the time of year, like a lovestruck theme for Valentine’s Day in February. The troupe also has done a show around ’90s rhythm and blues music and a Halloween show.

Performers range in stage experience from just starting out to more than a decade. For example, dancer and choreographer Esmerelda May from New York City has five years of stage experience, and has performed in several burlesque troupes.

“She will do things that I will look at her and say, ‘How did she do that?’ ” Pacheco says. May will be performing solo to “The Nightmare Before Christmas” on Saturday.

Pacheco says the troupe’s shows prove that any body shape can be attractive and