Pleasure Garden

SO SEXY and not in an overt or distasteful way but in the subtle, leave-​you-​wanting-​more kind of way. For a pop-​up show, Orchid Pleasure Garden breezed through Miami and left its mark on me and those lucky enough to see it. I loved the combination of the well-​known musical acts, the multitude of talents and costumes, the transitions of the scenes, the acrobatics, the love story, the energy, the beautiful silhouettes… I was enthralled. The naughty kitty that was sort of the side-​kick of the show was very entertaining and just brazen enough. The drinks were expensive, but that is to be expected at show venues. A little unexpected detail: the popcorn by the way was amazing. It had parmesan maybe? and came in a brown paper bag just like the vintage circus shows I went to as a kid. I’m glad I got the chance to see this show and would recommend it to anyone looking to see it, in this city or wherever it pops up next. It was a very «Pleasurable» experience.

Great show, very entertaining. Do not go if you are easily offended by nudity or almost topless women. These people are very talented and put on a good show ! My boyfriend and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The tent is beautiful!

LOVED the show but eat somewhere else. The show was everything promised: entertaining, sexy, & fun. The music they chose was fantastic. I loved the setting… sitting in the antique Belgium pop-​up tent was like bringing Moulin Rouge to Miami. The actors were great and the way they interacted with the audience made the experience really fun.
The only dissappoint of the night was the food. It was like food you would get on an airplane. We found most of it (even the fried chicken) to be disgusting. I don’t think it is their fault, the way the waiter described it to us was that they don’t have a proper kitchen, he said there wasn’t even running water there.
If you go, enjoy the show, but eat somewhere else.

awesome orchid show

Fun show, loads of talent. This crowd can sign, dance, hang from ropes, and be sexy. Don’t miss this one, you will always hear about that time when the circus came to town. The show is good, very good.
Not to give much away, let me just say, this show will stimulate your senses, and you will leave feeling better, because talent is good for the soul.

HOT HOUSE FLOWERS. Orchid the show, and especially the performers, are 5 stars all the way. The score is moving and powerful, the dancing and acrobatics are jaw-​dropping, the jokes are funny, and it skips along the perfect line of coming off naughty and sexy without turning sleazy or crass. If the performers had been slightly less talented, this may not have been the case; but fortunately, there isn’t a flat note, a left-​footed dance step, or a saggy butt cheek in the place.
The Bernstein dinner preceding the show was slightly less successful. Mr. Wonderful and I had tickets for the 7:30 performance with strict instructions to arrive 1 hour and 30 minutes before showtime for the meal. We arrived at the Garden a few minutes after 6:00 and we walked right into a staff meeting. Awkward! And did anyone stand up, find us a place to sit and something to drink until they were ready for us? No. The guy running the meeting just shot us the stink eye, and we were left to stand against a wall until they finished up. The food itself was quite good, but all tableware is disposable at the Pleasure Garden. Supposedly, this is part of what it means to be a «pop-​up.» They don’t have the capacity to wash lots of dishes so every plate and fork is made of plastic. The show is not obscene, but this disregard for the environment IS obscene. We ordered a bottle of wine and it was served in plastic stemmed wine glasses. Seriously.
Even though we arrived too early for dinner, somehow, we were late upon entering the show tent. One of the ushers told us we’d have to sit in the back row until intermission and just as we were taking the crappy seats in the back, a different usher showed another couple to their proper seats in the front. Paint me pissed off.
When the lights went down and a sandy-​haired Adonis in dungarees and naked biceps lifted his velveteen voice in a love song, I forgot all about the plastic. The show swept us away to a wonderful place – the Pleasure Garden.

How does one start to review a show called the «Pleasure Garden»?? It is hard, only because it was indeed immensely pleasurable, sensual and an assault on almost all of the senses. This is meant of course in a good way.
The show is a pop-​up show in an actual vintage tent that is intimate and provides a (mostly) great view. We were off stage left and would miss a few details that could only be seen facing the stage directly or at a lesser angle. It was however so intimate that we didn’t miss most of the show and were close enough to really see details on the costumes, or lack thereof.
Acrobats, dancers, a bit of burlesque and amazing singing with a show that isn’t for the prudish, easily scandalized or homophobic, it is just breathtaking. The music is wildly eclectic ranging from «9 to 5» to «Welcome to the Jungle» (one of my favorites) and the rendition of Evanescences «Bring Me Back To Life» gave me the chills.
Kitty Bang Bang managed to be sassy and yet adorable, as the well… Pussy Cat is a Burlesque Performer who is a Fire Dancer, MEOW! LOVE IT! So there are a ton of incredibly athletic, sculpted barely dressed dancers and acrobats. What is not to love about this show?
If you have a chance to see it, do so NOW, its not here forever. We skipped the dinner option, but if you can don’t skip it, Michelle Berenstein delights as always.
As for the idiot in the straw Cowboy hat at the performance on December 26 who was drunkenly talking to an equally classless drunken woman: We could hear you three rows in front and you are an a**hole. It was hard to tune your crass voices out. Luckily the show was so amazing we were able to. Besides who the hell wears a hat like that to a show like this? Oh yea. you.

Orchid the Show is definitely a unique experience. Think of it as an R rated Cirque du soleil with smoking hot performers.
Guys, not only is this show entertaining but this is probably the only time you can watch tassel swinging boobs while watching the arts (No Scarlett’s does not count as a cultural experience). Not to worry ladies you have plenty to look at too as the dudes in the show have muscles on top of their muscles (although I don’t think they play on your team).
The vocalists were surprisingly talented and most of the songs are pretty contemporary so you will recognize most of the tracks. The acrobatics and fire display were also impressive.
We also had dinner at Michy’s pop-​up next door and were happy to see she was actually in the house instead of just lending her name. Plastic dinnerware aside, the food definitely exceeded expectations. The fried chicken and fish were very good as were the croquetas and tortilla soup. The panna cotta was better than the chocolate cupcake, but overall $ 38 for a 3 course meal was well worth it.
Definitely check out Orchid before its run ends. It was just extended for 11 weeks so there is still time to check out this great show and dinner. It’s a great sexy date and definitely will get your blood pumping for when you get home.

The show is naughty but nice.
The atmosphere is great at the pleasure garden dome and the entertainment is really superb.
Loud music, great vocals and stunning costumes.
The food is 2 star at a 4 star price but it’s really nice to eat in the adjacent tent.
Tiny portions with plastic cutlery … plastic wine glass paper plates …
great fried chicken everything else was mediocre but the atmosphere was great and it was all part of the experience.
If you liked Absinthe in Vegas you’ll love Orchid.
If you hated Absinthe you will probably still love Orchid.
Oh that cat «pussy» my wife wouldn’t let me take her home but she was the outright star of the show.

Orchid the Show at Miami’s pop-​up theatre, The Pleasure Garden has completely set the stage to transport everyone who is lucky enough to enter the Garden into another world. From the moment you walk into the Garden, you know that there’s something special inside. There are two Vintage Circus style pop-​up tents, one for dinning (a la Michelle Bernstein) and the other with the stage set for a magical fantastical show. Now I would never want to give anything away, but just know that this is one of the best executed burlesque shows, outside of Vegas that I have seen. That said, we know how shows are in Vegas, right? Let’s say though the costumes are gorgeous, there’s not much material (thankfully). So leave any stodgy, prudish thoughts at home. Sensual, creative and smart. Amazing dancers, actors, aerialists, and contortionists.
Not sure how long it is going to run in Miami, so get to it Unilocalies, tickets are going fast.