Va Va Room With a View

I have realized the greatest dream of every attention-starved American. I was on reality TV. It wasn't MTV's booze-fueled LoDo soap opera, but rather the home-improvement show that refuses to die: TLC's Trading Spaces.

That's how Westword contributor Michelle Baldwin starts her account of being a Trading Spaces star -- for at least sixty minutes. The segment, which documents how Baldwin's living room (below) was transformed into a shrine for her alter-ego, burlesque queen Vivienne VaVoom, first aired Saturday night and repeats today at 2 p.m. on TLC (that's Channel 32 on Comcast in Denver) -- a perfect activity for the snowbound. Or catch the show at 6:30 p.m. at the Bug on January 7, when Baldwin will be on hand to offer her own commentary.

And you can see Baldwin as Vivienne (above, in a photo by Ted D'Ottavio ) tonight, when Burlesque As It Was Goes West! at Lannie's Clocktower Cabaret. The cowgirl cuties will also take it off on January 6 and 12. For information, call 303-293-0075.

In the meantime, you can read her account here. Fair warning: She's no fan of Doug Wilson, designated ass. --Patricia Calhoun