THEATRE REVIEW 2025
The Empire Strips Back
riverside studios
Director: Bec Morris
Created by Russall S. Beattie
Cast:
Brogan Paris, Samantha Ho, Freja Nicole, Savane Boisleveau, Jolie Ponchetti, Ema Steindl, Cass Tattersall, Oakleigh Briscoe, David Devyne, Dennis Anin-Badu
Riverside Studios, London
4 May - 17 Aug, 2025
May, 6, 2025
★★★★
It wasn’t until recently that May 4th became such a big deal. With the revival of the Star Wars franchise with The Force Awakens, coupled with Disney buying Lucasfilm and releasing an onslaught of Star Wars-themed TV shows and films, May the Fourth (May the Force, I mean, you knew, right?) has grown to become a day of global significance for Star Wars fans. Is there no better day to celebrate the legacy of Star Wars, its cultural significance and its lasting legacy than by attending the UK premiere of The Empire Strips Back, a burlesque parody at Riverside Studios in Hammersmith?
With its own sci-fi connection, the Riverside Studios seem an apt venue for the UK premiere of Russell S Beattie's Star Wars-inspired burlesque parody. The Empire Strips Back is more than a nostalgic romp through the galactic world created by George Lucas; it’s a testament to this world Lucas has created that such a show can exist. Not since Mel Brooks parodied Star Wars with his action comedy Spaceballs in the 1980s has the universal potential of Star Wars been realised. What started off as a small show in an Australian bar, Beatties’ creation, has since toured the world, gaining rave reviews and a dedicated following in its own right.
The opening night was compared by Pete Dobbing, who, aside from the usual housekeeping role, helped settle the distinction between striptease and burlesque. It was an interesting moment, as the theatre space at Riverside Studios takes away some of the important intimacy that burlesque shows offer. A packed audience tiered in rows of seats are set for a much more ‘mainstream’ introduction to burlesque than they might expect. Considering this was May 4th and press night I spotted two costumes, and the audience was somewhat muted throughout the performance; only once did Dobbing have to, politely, admonish the audience for shouting ‘take it off’ during one of his interludes.
There is a lot of humour in Star Wars, and this is mirrored with some of the characters. A lot of references from the Star Wars universe within all of the pieces, with Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie, Lando, Vader, C3PO, and R2D2 all getting a moment. The biggest challenge the creatives faced was this balance between campness, sensuality, and performance. I feel that they managed to strike a fine balance whilst also offering some social/political commentary on the early Star Wars films and the lack of female characters.
Whether it's burlesque, striptease, or stripping, our modern understanding of this form of expression is that it's not just creative freedom but an opportunity to regain power and control over one's own body. Through the art of burlesque, Brogan Paris, Samantha Ho, Freja Nicole, Savane Boisleveau, Jolie Ponchetti, Ema Steindl, Cass Tattersall, and Oakleigh Briscoe provide a female gaze into the world of Star Wars that most men would never have appreciated before. It also opens up an even bigger conversation about the sexualisation of women in Star Wars, a conversation that's been had before but is one that's worth continuing.
But then there are other moments where one has to just watch the performance. No shouting or roaring, just watching the delicately crafted dances. The sensitivity created by Twi’lek to Roads by Portishead, with its combination of music, movement, costume and emotion, really lifted the piece. A few whoops and claps could be heard throughout the dance, but the audience seemed more mesmerised by the synchronicity of the two performers and wonderfully illustrating the skills of choreographers James Barry and Lisa Toyer, production designer Daniel Whiting, and Peter Rubie's lighting. The show doesn’t have many of these sensitive moments, but when the time came, the performers really gave you something unique and heartfelt. Shouting, applauding, screaming, etc., is all encouraged in a way to celebrate and support the artist. This changed when Palpatine came on to Wrecking Ball; it was a jolt of humour, vulgarity, and silliness that was like a vitamin C shot that the audience really needed.
Burlesque isn’t a new creative format, but for a lot of audiences, getting to experience a burlesque show is still on their bucket lists. Stripping, striptease, and burlesque should not be in competition with one another, and audiences should be respectful and understanding of the art form. Dobbing’s words at the start of the show, telling the audience to be respectful, should not need to be said in 2025. Audiences should be, at the very least, respectful to the performers they’re seeing and the creative work they produce. The strength of The Empire Strips Back is the performers and the passion, skills, and fun that they bring to the show. In some of the big set pieces, whether with the Jedi or the Imperial Guards, the big numbers are epically crafted and brought to life in such a remarkable way. These moments create genuine and audible wow moments and a real testimony to their work as a company and their director, Bec Morris.
"the big numbers are epically crafted and brought to life in such a remarkable way."
Outside these big set pieces, one of the biggest crowd pleasers of the night was the medley between Han Solo, David Devyne, and Chewbacca, Dennis Anin-Badu. The quick succession of pop songs really energised the audience, and this, I feel, could have been duplicated with some of the other pieces. Most of the performers would do an entire song when perhaps only doing the first verse and chorus would have allowed for tighter performances. The only issue I had was that the male performers don't fully engage in the ethos of burlesque quite the way their female counterparts do. With so few male dancers in the company, I think it would have served the show message to have Han do a piece akin to Twi'lek, something slow, sensual, and with depth.
The Empire Strips Back is a lot of fun that has been imaginatively brought to life by a team who really grasp that the soul of what Star Wars is all about, the audience.