ORLANDO — For years, local clubs and performance centers have been promoting those two words, Hard Rock, to draw in a crowd that loves to hear full-volume guitars blasting heavy metal noise.
Now, to promote an upcoming event, The Abbey in downtown Orlando is reversing those words, but the theater’s promotion of Rock Hard has nothing to do with musicians.
“Rock Hard Revue” is all about the men, it’s all about muscular bodies, and it’s all about watching the guys peeling off their shirts and pants while on stage.
The show makes its debut on Saturday, Jan. 11 at the Abbey, with doors opening at 8 p.m., and the show starting at 9. But it’s not quite the same thing as what you might catch at a gay strip club.
This is a 90-minute, fully-costumed show that also happens to be an elaborately choreographed production. It’s about more than just a look at how artfully the guys can unbutton their shirts, since those male performers will be handling live vocals and employing plenty of audience participation to bring the show to life.
It was directed and choreographed by David Greenhouse, who is a former director and choreographer for the famed “Chippendales” show in Las Vegas.
The Abbey is billing “Rock Hard Revue” as a “must-see for girls’ night out, birthdays and bachelorette parties.”
The show features eight male performers of varying degrees of hunkdom, and Rock Hard Revue is offering discounted tickets in advance for anyone who wants to experience what is being billed as a “high-energy, highly-entertaining male revue show that everyone has been talking about.”
The Abbey is at 100 S. Eola Drive, Suite 100. Tickets $15 in advance, or $20 at the door. VIP and preferred seating are also available. Call 407-347-5035 for reservations.
Those who prefer a more traditional male strip show, minus the intricate dance moves, can always go to
Pulse Orlando, a club friendly to gay and straight audiences alike, at 1912 S. Orange Ave. Pulse is known to pack in large crowds during peak hours of the night.
Despite the popularity of male strip shows today, male strippers actually date back only about as far as the 1970s. Before that, most strip shows featured women in front of male audiences.
Since the 1970s, though, male strippers performing to female audiences have become both common and popular, and a particularly strong draw for bachelorette parties.
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