{"id":48401,"date":"2023-11-08T11:14:34","date_gmt":"2023-11-08T19:14:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bcaletrail.ca\/?p=48401"},"modified":"2023-11-09T17:26:39","modified_gmt":"2023-11-10T01:26:39","slug":"cool-nelson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bcaletrail.ca\/cool-nelson\/","title":{"rendered":"Cool Nelson"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Kootenays\u2019 cultural capital serves craft brews and cool art.
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The auditorium goes crazy as Margo Mayhem steps onto the stage with an inflatable flamingo around her tiny waist. Underneath, she\u2019s wearing a corset and not much else. She strikes me as a Betty Boop character with her black curly hair and bright red lipstick. Next up: her partner both in life and burlesque, Samson Night. New Yorkers might recognize him as Mustafa from Broadway\u2019s <\/span>Lion King<\/span><\/i>. The audience screams as Samson Night drops his luggage and so much more for the Nelson crowd.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It’s fitting we\u2019re in the Capitol Theatre<\/a>\u2014built in 1927, the vaudeville house matches the exotic 1940s burlesque vibe. The duo, called Midnight Mayhem when they perform together, are internationally recognized burlesque dancers, but also regulars in Nelson\u2019s burlesque scene.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Capitol
Capitol Theatre in Nelson, BC (photo: Melanie Chambers)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Over the century and a half<\/span> since gold miners first dropped their <\/span>pickaxes<\/span> into <\/span>local dirt<\/span>, Nelson, BC, has become the cultural hotspot of the West Kootenays region. It became a beacon for counterculture and cool artsy types. Eight hours from Vancouver, through countless mountain passes, Nelson is called, \u201cthe best small arts town in Canada.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The town also got huge artsy credibility as the location of Steve Martin\u2019s 1986 movie, <\/span>Roxanne<\/span><\/i>. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe setting, which is as much a part of the film\u2019s appeal\u2026 is the gorgeous, homey-looking little town of Nelson,\u201d wrote Janet Maslin of <\/span>The New York Times<\/span><\/i>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Much of the energy and creativity is palpable and apparent walking through the alleyways, which <\/span>serve as<\/span> giant canvases for murals: cartoon cats, Indigenous art, historical figures and so much more.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n