Thrifty business

The Thrift Store Gala portion of the evening is the brainchild of Ryan Wert, owner of REO Town’s Elm Street Recording. Wert was inspired by friends who host an annual “fancy party.”

“Everyone dresses up in thrift shop suits and dresses and we drink champagne and Goldschläger,” Wert said.

The idea laid dormant for a few years, until he recruited the help of co-organizer Autumn Luciano. A photographer who specializes in vintage, pin-up style photos, Luciano also organizes burlesque events in the Lansing area.

“I saw Autumn’s show and thought it would be a perfect fit,” Wert said.

And thus, the idea blossomed into last year’s inaugural REO Town Thrift Store Gala and Burlesque Extravaganza.

The event encourages participants to come dressed in their finest thrift-store-purchased outfits. Last year’s event featured everything from classy, roaring 20’s-inspired suits and dresses to tacky leisure suits and over-the-top prom dresses.

“Everyone really dressed up,” said Luciano. “It blew me away.”

The event is an attempt to reflect the unique character of REO Town, offering something a little grittier and a little more risqué than festivals you might find in Old Town, for example.

“The neighborhood has grit to it,” said Wert. “It’s not a ‘fine arts’ community. Our artists are graffiti dudes and welders.”

As the event enters its second year, Wert and Luciano are tweaking the evening to make this year’s event even better.

“There will be a bigger variety of entertainment this year,” Luciano said.

The entertainment for last year’s event was made up almost entirely of burlesque performers, with Lansing City Councilwoman Kathie Dunbar serving as emcee.

“This year, the whole show will alternate between burlesque and other acts,” Wert said.

Those other acts include comedians, actors, singers and a magician. Dylan Rogers of the Lansing Unionized Vaudeville Spectacle emcee the evening.

The evening also serves as a showcase for REO Town businesses. Both Thriftique and Vintage Junkies will have pop-up shops set up for the event, and food will be provided by the Good Truckin’ Diner. Foliage Design Systems will host the event in their warehouse space. The warehouse, which is normally filled with trees and shrubs of all sizes, will be cleared out to make room for a stage and a dance floor.

Other Lansing-based businesses getting in on the action are Sleepwalker Spirits and Ale, who will be selling beer, and Luciano’s Decadence Dolls studio, who will be providing a free photo booth.

Luciano has been organizing burlesque shows in Lansing for almost two years. While burlesque shows are decidedly provocative, Luciano also stresses the art and craft of the performances.

“It’s classy and it’s artistic. The girls rehearse tirelessly,” she said. “It’s not like being in a dark, sleazy strip club. It’s fun.”

On the surface, the Thrift Store Gala and Burlesque Extravaganza is about dressing up and having fun. But it is also part of Wert’s long-term plan to establish REO Town’s place in the community.

“We’re Lansing’s cool, weird neighborhood,” he said.

REO Town Thrift Store Gala and Burlesque Extravaganza

8 p.m. Saturday, March 21 $10 adv./$15 at the door Foliage Design Systems 1027 S. Washington Ave., Lansing thriftstoregala.com