Being a wrestling promoter isn’t easy. Miss Rita D’Albert, the mastermind behind Miss Rita’s Lucha VaVoom is exasperated trying to book a flight last minute for a wrestler that has suddenly become available for her High Performance Rodeo show January 24^that Winsport. Politics in the USA has resulted in less flights and higher costs. In a world of high-flying luchadores and stunning burlesque performers, it’s not what she should normally have to deal with.

"I just want to be the best possible show so I'm just going to have to eat it. That's what I was dealing with when you called," D’Albert said on the line from her LA Home. "I'm so used a lot of stuff happening last minute. The great wrestler after months of trying to nail down the best people is like, "Oh, I'm available a week before."

The general public may not consider wrestling to be "theatre." The art of the storytelling, especially in Mexican Lucha Libre, is over the top theatrics. Lucha VaVoom was part of the 2012 rodeo, and Miss Rita is excited to be back.

"Last time was the biggest indoor event we've done, including LA because they did two nights. They had to add like 500 seats each night because the demand was so high. That was very flattering. People think arts have to be really dead serious and somber."

One of the highlights for her is the inclusion of gay wrestlers, called Exoticos in Mexico. Lucha VaVoom featured Cassandra, who recently was the first exotico and openly gay wrestler to be inducted into the AAA Wrestling Hall of Fame. More LGBTQ wrestlers are out in pro wrestling then ever before. Along with the high-flying style, costumes, and masks, Lucha is very different from the WWE style.

"I like the high flyers. I barely can stand upright and yet I perform in the show. I'm challenged by gravity. What I love about Mexican wrestling, not just the humor that they put into it and these very grand characters, but the physical dexterity and the flipping, like it blows my mind. It's like watching a really fun and exciting Olympics sometimes. For a lot of the dancers, we'll do an aerial pole act or just crazy trapeze stuff. I'm just like in awe of people. You take these incredible skills and then on top of that, they have to have that certain something that pushes it over the top, that connects with audiences. So having said that, what I'm bringing is a lot of characters that are traditional characters that people have seen before, like The Crazy Chickens are a huge favorite. Domafina, the female wrestler that I created and El Bombaro, the Sexy Firemen and all of the characters and they're all being portrayed by high flying wrestlers that you might have heard of, but it doesn't behoove me to say their names. Many years ago, we did a match that Cassandra was in and it was Team USA, Team Mexico and Team Gay. And I definitely want todo Team Mexico, Team Canada and Team USA, which should be very cathartic for the audience. "

"I say Lucha VaVoom is for people that don't like wrestling and people that do."

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Contributor Jason Clevett |

Locale Calgary |

Topic One Yellow Rabbit | Theatre |