And now, the very nature of the venue might be in for an overhaul. Last August, on one Centerfolds dancer's MySpace page, Overton wrote: "Hey, LADIES and Gentalmen im [sic] looking for entertainers for my CLUB."
Ryder says he has heard Overton might be looking to take Centerfolds in a more Vegas-style, coed revue direction, but didn't want to speculate on what it might look like or when it might happen.
Steven Dewall
Will Ryder of Centerfolds: Nothing says sexy cowboy like pleated denim pants.
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Even without the moratorium, there hasn't been a rush to open new adult cabarets in Seattle, male or otherwise. Zoning severely limits the locations for new venues, and strip-club regulations in Seattle remain fairly stringent (for example, dancers must be on stages well removed from the audience by the time they drop trou). Since the moratorium was lifted, only one application for an adult-entertainment license has been filed, by local architect David Hasson, says Schubert-Knapp. According to city records, Hasson filed the application for Fantasy Unlimited on Westlake. A member of the Déjà Vu chain, Fantasy Unlimited provides patrons with adult-themed products and a live peep show, a designation that falls short of a strip-club license.
"We're hoping within the next five months to be completed and open," says Wendy, a manager who answered the phone but would not give her last name. She adds that because of the Déjà Vu connection, Fantasy Unlimited will operate in a similar format with female entertainers, but does not yet know if they will adopt the Déjà Vu name.
Otherwise, the lack of interest in new venues may be due in part to the reality that any nightclub willing to finesse the letter of the law can put on nearly the same show as Centerfolds, without succumbing to the rules that prohibit alcohol at full-fledged adult cabarets.
Capitol Hill's R Place, for instance, hosts an amateur strip show with a $3 cover charge and a $200 cash prize for the winner every Thursday. Unlike Centerfolds, which can be pretty sparse if bachelorettes don't show up, R Place's third floor is packed by the time the show starts a little after midnight. The onlookers are mostly young gay men, but all types are welcome. Before the action begins, Hostess Lady Chablis, a matron of the Seattle drag scene, explains the no-touching rule, then yields the sound system to pulsing dance tunes.
The first amateur up is Mr. Ed, a paunchy guy who awkwardly gyrates down to a thong. Chablis laughingly dismisses him with "we've seen enough." But the next contestant, Preston, is well built and has rhythm. As he works his way down, swinging around a pole, the distinctions between the entertainment at Centerfolds and R Place grow pretty narrow.
The Seattle Municipal Code is explicit about what defines adult entertainment: being "unclothed in such attire, costume or clothing as to expose to view any portion of the breast below the top of the areola or any portion of the pubic region, anus, buttocks, vulva or genitals." At R Place, the skivvies stay on, though contestants occasionally skirt the law with a flash of a backside. For the women performing in burlesque shows at places like the Pink Door, a set of pasties is enough to stay in compliance. With these shows packing in fans, Centerfolds and Overton may struggle to expand their audience, even with a face-lift.
But Ryder isn't worrying too much about the future right now. He's been focusing on his characters, who, in addition to the cowboy, include a cop, a mechanic, and a disco dancer. His success, he says, is less about the sexual aspects of stripping than about putting on a good show.
"We don't want it to be sleazy," he insists. "We want this to be classy."
lonstot@seattleweekly.com
