By WILL McKINLEY
“With Cho as mistress of ceremonies, “The Sensuous Woman” feels like a variety show from the Golden Age of Television, only dirtier and gayer.”
If you enjoyed Janet Jackson’s performance at the Super Bowl a few years back, you’ll love Margaret Cho’s new burlesque show “The Sensuous Woman,” now playing at the Zipper Factory. It’s two hours of wardrobe malfunctions — all of them intentional.
“This show is about showing the body in all of its glory,” Cho proclaimed (or perhaps warned), as she took the stage for a recent performance. And she wasn’t kidding. For the next two hours, the San Francisco-bred comic and a collection of gay, lesbian and transgendered performers staged a sex-positive celebration of gender identity — or lack thereof. There was music, comedy, dance, parody and a few things that truly defy categorization. And there was nudity. Oh yes, there was nudity.
There’s more exposed flesh in “The Sensuous Woman” than in a marathon of “Dr. 90210” on the E! Channel — but without that pesky pixilation that plagues basic cable. For Cho and company, good old-fashioned pasties (and one tiny, strategically placed American flag) covered the naughtiest bits, thus preventing all of us in attendance from getting arrested.
Let me stop right here to say that yes, I’m talking about Margaret Cho, the Asian-American stand-up comedian. And yes, she takes off all of her clothes in this show. She also tells jokes, but not at the same time, because that might be awkward. As a rule, it’s bad manners to laugh when someone disrobes in front of you, particularly a woman with a history of body issues.
Cho’s struggles with self-image have fueled her comedy since her mid-90s sitcom “All-American Girl” collapsed under the weight of network executives who considered Cho too fat for TV. In the years since, the comic has evolved into something of a Gloria Steinem for the post-everything generation. She is comedy’s angry young(ish) woman — rejecting the system that betrayed her and spreading her grass roots message of acceptance and tolerance to a loyal and largely gay fan base.
With Cho as mistress of ceremonies, “The Sensuous Woman” feels like a variety show from the Golden Age of Television, only dirtier and gayer. Imagine Jackie Gleason as a naked, heavily tattooed, Korean woman with a Latina lesbian in a football jersey standing in for Art Carney. Throw in a little person who jumps out of a baby carriage and strips, a gay rapper named Lisp, a transgendered comedian who offers tips for traveling with sex toys and a finale that you might not believe, even if I showed you pictures — and that’s “The Sensuous Woman.”
There are a number of jaw-droppers in this show, perhaps the most memorable of which is Downtown icon Dirty Martini’s striptease to the Republican hymn “I’m Proud to Be an American.” I enjoyed the sharp edged political parody of the large and lovely Miss Martini’s raunchy performance, but not more than I enjoyed the death masques of forced smiles on an elderly couple seated near me. Note to tourists: “The Sensuous Woman” is not fun for the whole family, unless your family name happens to be Aphrodite.
Sadly, Cho doesn’t do much stand-up in this show, and what she does is not her best work. Set-ups like “Celebrities nowadays are crazy!” and “The Middle East is truly a mess!” are a disappointment coming from one of the sharpest and most quotable comedians of recent memory. Thankfully, her much-loved “Mommy” character does make an appearance, however brief.
To her credit, Cho generously cedes the comedic spotlight to a new generation of talented performers who are honing their craft in the digital Vaudeville house known as You Tube. The most engaging of these is the hilarious Liam Sullivan as teenybopper Kelly, with a live performance of his/her viral video smash hits “Shoes” and “Let Me Borrow that Top.” Another perverse pleasure is belly dancer Princess Farhana’s tribute to the “The Wizard of Oz,” which culminates with a naked Dorothy running off with one of the winged monkeys. Oh my, indeed.
On the downside, Cho maintains that “The Sensuous Woman” is for audiences of all sexual orientations, yet she does little to create an environment where a straight crowd can feel like they’re in on the joke, and perhaps develop a greater sense of acceptance. It’s important to create a mainstream pulpit for alternative voices, but it would benefit Cho’s mission to acknowledge the awkwardness that many unsuspecting audience members might feel attending an off-Broadway show with such a sexually frank, queer sensibility.
If Cho really does want to change minds, she has to stop preaching to her choir and start reaching for the bleachers. You’re not in The Castro anymore, Toto. You’re a short walk from the Theater District, where there are millions of tourists whose horizons you have the power to expand. Nudity is a good way to get them in the door, but what matters most is what happens when they leave.
“The Sensuous Woman”
Wed. & Thurs. 8 p.m., Fri & Sat. 8 & 11 p.m., through Nov. 3
The Zipper Factory
336 West 37th Street
(212.352.3101 thezipperfactory.com)