The Albuquerque burlesque scene has always thrived on the weird versus the pretty, the neo versus the classic. Powerhouse Productions, consisting of Mayo Lua de Frenchie, Jane Sweeney, Dr. Killgreedy and Holly Rebelle, brings a weekend of the bizarre. Kicking off The Mess-tival's inaugural year at Sister on Friday, Sept. 20 at 8pm is the Strip the Unstrippable Dream Competition, where 12 competitors face off to “unstrippable” music to ultimately win the title “Hottest Mess.” If you've ever wanted to see internationally renowned performers strip to “We Built This City,” anything by Weird Al or horrific dubstep, this is the show. Saturday, Sept. 21 brings night two, the Bizarre Beauty Showcase, at 8pm at Launchpad which welcomes even more stellar performers to the 505 for unbookable, messy, strange and confusing striptease. The shows star EmpeROAR Fabulous!!! (Wash.), Jeez Loueez (La.) and Sgt. Die Wies (Calif.) for the weirdest, wildest and most unsettling weekend of burlesque ever witnessed. The shows are both 21-plus and cost $15. (Ashli Kesali)

Image by Pat Berrett

Not unlike Earth Day, every day is dance day if you feel moved by the spirit of dance. That said, National Dance Day is Saturday, Sept. 21, so why not avail yourself of the opportunity to take a free dance class at Keshet Dance and Center for the Arts? Starting at 9am, Keshet offers a free class to anyone who's ready to move, from 2-year-olds on up. A full schedule of classes and registration details are available on their website, keshetarts.org. Pro-tip: As with all free dance, it’s best to just leave your scarf at home. (Clarke Condé)