MAT holds Valentine's Day burlesque in Havre

Montana Actors’ Theatre will host a Valentine’s Day Cabaret — Burlesque — Martinis event Saturday in the Havre Historic Post Office building, including a performance by the Cigarette Girls Burlesque.

“It’s entertainment that we don’t normally get here in Havre,” MAT Artistic Director Jay Pyette said.  “The show is very much traditional cabaret-burlesque.”

The evening is set to begin at 6 p.m. with a social hour, followed by dinner at 7 and the the show scheduled to start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $100 per couple, and that includes dinner, the show and the martini bar. Individual tickets cost $55.

This will be the third year MAT has held the event in Havre. Pyette said people have had a great time in the past and he anticipates the same being the case this year.

The Cigarette Girls Burlesque are a group of entertainers from Missoula.

“With the snap of a garter, and the oh-so sultry removal of a long, velvet glove, our ladies will tease and taunt their way into your heart and imagination,” an “about me” statement on the group’s Facebook page says.

Burlesque, as defined by A Glossary of Literary Terms, is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects. The word derives from the Italian burlesco, which, in turn, is derived from the Italian burla — a joke, ridicule or mockery. Cabaret is a form of entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation or drama.

Even though the event will be four days after Valentine’s Day, Pyette said, it would still be a great way to celebrate Valentine’s Day.

Tickets are available. They can be bought online at mtactors.com, or at Five Heads, Bear Paw Meats, Computer Center or Greytak Realty.