We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Coco Lafousfous a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Coco, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

During the 2019 Hollywood Fringe Festival I was lucky enough to work on Aeriform Arts’ Cirque du Giselle. It was a theatrical aerial dance interpretation of the classical ballet Giselle; a story of a young girl who tragically falls in love with a Prince and through self sacrifice saves him from death. This show was a unique challenge. Adapting a fairly obscure story for modern audiences through both traditional dance as well as aerial acrobatics without losing the emotional intensity of the plot.

I loved choreographing aerial movements for different characters and working with the legendary Dani Maloney for the traditional dance portions of the show. It was difficult to create Cirque du Giselle with a cast of 14 talented performers using Aerial silks, hammock, contortion, dance trapeze, silts, and bungee harness in only a few short months. The schedule alone could drive a person crazy; not to mention setting choreography for 6 different apparatuses while trying to tell a cohesive story rather than just a showcase of talented artists. However, there was something truly magical when all the pieces fell into place opening night as the story unfolded for the Hollywood Fringe audience. Since the pandemic, it has been difficult to create another show like Aeriform Arts’ Cirque du Giselle. One that shares a new story with the audience, built with a cast of talented as well as dedicated performers, and an outstanding production team to keep it all from falling apart. I am beyond grateful for what we created and can only hope it won’t be the last show.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am Coco LaFousfous. A performance artist, choreographer, Aerial dance teacher, and an all around wild woman. I currently live in the middle of the woods and will travel around the country performing and teaching aerial dance. I have taught Aerial workshops in central florida, wisconsin, and most often Los Angeles. While I have been known for my evening length aerial ballets, such as the shows for the Hollywood fringe festival, I have most recently been exploring my cabaret side and performing burlesque, aerial, and chair dance acrobatics for both in person and virtual audiences. I am a bit like a chameleon due to my many different styles ranging from a mysteriously dangerous woman to a soft sweet forest nymph and occasionally a straight up clown. I am always looking out for new ways to express my creative performance style, and learning new circus apparatuses to grow my skill set.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

Leaving major metropolitan areas has shown me just how big of a disconnect there is between professional creatives and professionals in other fields. In more rural places deciding to work outside the Monday through Friday 9-5 is seen as being unconventional. Where spending more than a half hour to get to work is not worth it. Where the thought of performance art using (and sometimes abusing) your body is simply “selling it”. While this may not be the perspective of all those outside major cities, there are too many folks that seem unaware of the similarities between creative and non-creatives professional fields. No judgements are passed on a third shift factory worker, no discussions on CDL licensed driver’s value, and no questions raised on the thousands of back breaking blue collar jobs. Although to be fair, none of those jobs require a certain number of followers on social media to feel validated or to become sponsored.

Artists, creators, performers, writers, and all the other creative jobs are just that. Jobs. We work hard to entertain and amuse in exchange for the hope that we will be able to provide for ourselves and our families in this increasingly competitive culture. The biggest difference is usually our endless and shameless self promotion in order to keep doing what we love. You may not need to understand our profession to respect it, but it’s better if you do.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

The joy of our modern online world means there are endless ways to support performing artists. Of course there is simply going to their performances, showing up at a show will always be appreciated. But now with our expanding internet you can be supportive without even leaving the house. One easy way through social media. When you like, comment, share or follow an artist you are not only boosting their ego, but telling the great algorithm in the sky this artist should be shown to more accounts. This can often lead to better opportunities for the artist to grow their careers. For example, I have had TV, podcasts, influencer, and touring opportunities because of my social media presence.

But, if social media is not your cup of tea then you may enjoy an in person or virtual cabaret. Since the start of the pandemic there has been a rise in online cabarets where you can enjoy incredible performances from the comfort of your home. Not to mention the rise in local variety shows for uniquely talented folks to bring some joy back into our lives. I have loved performing in online cabarets and in person events across the country. If you would like to find out more about my upcoming in person and online shows you can find me @CocoLaFousfous on all major social media sites. *Wink*

Grab a friend, a drink, and your phone and let us entertain you.

Contact Info:

• Website: linktr.ee/CocoLaFousfous
• Instagram: CocoLaFousfous
• Facebook: CocoLaFousfous
• Twitter: CocoLaFousfous
• Youtube: CocoLaFousfous
• Other: TikTok @CocoLaFousfous

Image Credits
Lost Hat Media Revoy Reflections Behind Burlesque Studio Coco LaFousfous