Courtney Barnes

"This is way bigger than me. This is something that's needed to happen for a long time," says Edith Edit as patrons spill into Big Wig to glimpse her army of dominatrix ladies decked out in revamped versions of UPS, police and military uniforms. A mother-daughter pair wanders up to the information table, curious about the whipping, flogging and tickle torture sessions in the second-floor playroom. Edit excuses herself for a moment to explain.

At Uniform Night this Sunday for Edit's weekly theme party, it's the usual mix of Sadean spectacle, BDSM performance, and good old-fashioned kink. A man struts past the red-and-purple-lit bar in a tiny nurse getup, boasting legs to die for and a corset full of condoms. Play-room host Mistress Minax, a key player in Edit's crew, dons a military ensemble complete with knee-high boots and fishnets to complement her corporal punishment games, and a kinky UPS worker offers bondage lap dances to improve costume service. As the night progresses and the sexual energy on the dancefloor ignites with the help of doms prancing through the crowd and treating lucky costumed kinksters to a little "spanky spanky," the nurse's condom stash dwindles to a mere handful. When rumors of a peep show upstairs spread, anxious spies struggle to get a glimpse of for-adult-eyes-only action behind the red curtain.

Originally scheduled to be a one-night fling, to benefit her upcoming sex-saturated film "Dominatrix Waitrix," Big Wig eventually asked Edit to make the night a monthly, and most recently a weekly, event, as part of their new "Queer Night Out" lineup. "It was a great time, everyone had a blast and so we decided just to give it a shot," says Charles Joly of Big Wig. "I think it offers up one of the most realistic, authentic representations of the S&M community," he adds. "It's a good vibe."

As the vibe pulses into the night amidst shrieks of laughter at the tickle torture table and gasps from peepshow spies, the kinky nurse's empty corset suggests the party will continue to last call--and beyond.

Queer Night Out is every Sunday at Big Wig, 1551 West Division, (773)235-9100.

(2003-11-19)

Also by Courtney Barnes

Awoke from a trance
His newest record, "Reflections," basks in the rays of a heated political climate and expounds messages of camaraderie and peace disseminated throughout electronic riffs
(2003-11-13)

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