People ready to skip town for a few days, can consider the Skagway Expose an invitation to pack their bags.
The Skagway Expose will include a full slate of live entertainment over four days Aug. 12-15 and offers something to satisfy all live entertainment itches. Each day will offer a menu of options ranging from music, stand-up comedy, theme meals, burlesque shows, karaoke, pole dancing workshops, a scavenger hunt, a public market, a sparkle brunch and a cornhole tournament.
“The ferry leaves Friday morning and gets you back Sunday evening. Even if you can’t make it the whole time, take a three-day weekend and see a new town just 90 minutes from Juneau,” said Taylor Vidic. Vidic is organizing the event and is a co-producer and performer of the Nude & Rude Revue, a burlesque troupe, which will perform Saturday night.
Vidic said that lodging and camping opportunities are still available for visitors.
“It’s a bold choice to undertake something this large after an 18-month hibernation,” Vidic said, adding that Skagway has a special place in her heart.
“Skagway was pretty dramatically hit by COVID and with a lack of cruise ships and without Skagway, Nude & Rude would not exist,” she said in an interview with the Empire this week.
Vidic said she was thinking about ways to combine reconnecting with friends and collaborators with giving back to the community of Skagway when the idea of the Skagway Expose sprang to mind.
“This is a unique summer to visit Skagway. There are usually an additional 12,000 tourists in town. To see it this way is pretty special,” she said.
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Getting the band(s) back together
Due to pandemic restrictions, Vidic said that many of the performers have not rehearsed or performed together for over a year-including members of the Nude & Rude Revue. She said it’s a case where absence makes the heart grow fonder and that she is looking forward to putting the show back together.
“Most of our troupe members are seasoned performers. I hope and expect it to fall into place,” she said.
After so many months in which live performances were restricted, Vidic expects audience members to go home feeling different.
“I think it will be a cathartic experience for the audience,” Vidic said.
COVID precautions
Although the event will be full of fun, Vidic said that health and safety measures are part of the plan.
“We are following the guidelines and recommendations set by the municipality of Skagway, the state of Alaska and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to the best of our knowledge,” she said.
She continued: “We are working to produce an event that is entertaining and enjoyable for attendees while mitigating risk and staying as safe as possible.”
She said that masking, social distancing, outdoor events and limited capacity venues are all part of the plan.
“We are doing double features of all shows. Our performers might have to work a bit harder,” she added.
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• Contact reporter Dana Zigmund at dana.zigmund@juneauempire.com or 907-308-4891.
Know & Go
Visit skagwayexpose.com for a complete list of performances and to purchase tickets.
