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The freaks were out this week — literally. Production company Riot Development put together Reprise Parisienne Thursday night, a surrealistic fiesta complete with bearded lady, fire dancers, and lions (really — there was a performer in a lion costume), turning Villa 221 into Sideshow de Soleil for the evening.
The party, thrown in conjunction with Whitehot Magazine, featured work by Michael Anderson, Dos Equis’ “Most Interesting Artist in the World” — one of the first street artists to gain mainstream acceptance through gallery representation.
Spencer Trunick, the photographer best known for his large-scale nude shoots, was on hand as well, but even his shots of dozens of naked people picnicking at Queens Botanical Garden couldn’t compare to the weirdness that permeated the event on Thursday.
In addition to the bearded lady (who was actually quite attractive), there were Siamese twins, a human lion (with whip-weilding tamer included), and a Burton-esque Marie Antoinette. Plus, Candice, a cotton candy-making female covered in checkered paint, Too Tall, a guy on stilts cracking a whip, and other assorted freaks.
It was easier for the “normal” folk present to assimilate due to the copious amounts of free alcohol being served in the VIP area, courtesy of Bols Genever. Guests chugged designer drinks and Irish cream as the freaks roamed freely and posed for pictures with nonfreaks.
As the night wore on, you couldn’t tell the difference.
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