Through November 2025 you can experience and participate in the continued deindustrialization and gentrification by checking out the converted Pullman Yards and watching a Star Wars themed burlesque show. For those without knowledge of Star Wars I will confidently state that the two hour show, with a 15 minute intermission, moves quickly, is respectful to the performers and audience, and is something that I thoroughly enjoyed. While the overall location of Pullman Yards isn't full of restaurants like Atlantic Station or Krog Street Market it is close enough to other places that have more options.

Location and Food

You might think you're lost, but you're just where you want to be.

Pullman Yards was founded by Pratt Engineering in 1904 to process agricultural products and was later used to created fertilizer bombs during WWI. In 1926 it was purchased by the Pullman Company and was used to manufacture and repair rail and sleeper cars until the 1980s. How this got it nominated for historical landmark status, and not its contribution to culture as a location for Fast Five and Bad Boys for Life, is beyond me.

Since ~2020 it has served as a rental facility for pop up entertainment events and has a few restaurants. Parking is horrible there, and the walk from either the Edgewood or East Lake subway station just sucks. Put your life in the hands of our self-driving taxis for the 15-20 minute ride and plan to end your night in a rideshare or near a subway station.

Two restaurants, Peckish and Brick and Mortar, are located at the site of the event. Nearby Kirkwood has several more places to eat and drink but would require a rideshare. Little Five Points is also located nearby and is a nice place to barhop if you’re into that sort of thing.

Peckish serves a tapas-style rotating menu with a bar and dessert menu. We had the Coconut PEI Mussels, Oxtail Empanadas, Seafood Hushpuppies, Chicken with Rice and Peas, Pineapple Pico de Gallo, and Mango Piri Piri. The food is an elevated Jamaican/southern fusion and would serve as a nice change from “burger/chicken fingers/pizza”. If you would bring a party of more than four I would highly recommend making a reservation given the limited seating capacity. I personally didn’t care for the coconut twist to the mussels but enjoyed the roasted chicken.

Brick and Mortar has a more simplified menu and more sports bar feel featuring hotdogs, wings (called Sue Birds after the WNBA Hall of Famer), and chicken fingers. I’d recommend grabbing a drink and an app at Brick and Mortar before the show and getting a drink and dessert after at Peckish. One nice aspect of Pullman Yards isolation is that each venue was open to us walking in and getting served fairly quickly.

The entranceway led to a bar with “light side” and “dark side” drinks and some merchandise. While the staff is nice and the service was quick for the 100-150 person audience, you’re paying ~$8 for a beer and ~$16 for a cocktail. Seating consists of fold out chairs that are grouped and general admission but there were no blocked sight lines.

The Show

I was grateful that this parody show didn't focus on a plot and recreating famous scenes and lines from Star Wars. The custom design, physicality and skill of the performers, and the camp of the entire situation. If you want a Star Wars parody with talking/plot/narrative structure Space Balls is real. Scenes introduced the loose idea of a Star Wars character and then allowed them to explain a story and emotional state through dance. While Episode IV opens with Darth Vader who looms throughout the original trilogy while this show keeps the sexy version of Darth Vader unseen until the final number. The show is billed as an “Episode V” but draws completely from the original trilogy and frequently genderbends the mostly male Star Wars cast with female performers substituting for storm troopers, Luke Skywalker, Imperial Guard, and of course Darth Vader. Music is mostly pulled from popular 80-90s rock and rap with the inclusion of the camp classic Wrecking Ball whose bridge fits Star Wars and the specific scene far too well.

“I never meant to start a war I just wanted you to let me in And instead of using force I guess I should've let you win”

The show is 18+ but leans more into the “sexy” rather than “obscene”. Props such as lightsabers are used as a tool that provides light and color and not shown to the audience as objects that could fully penetrate an opponent or oneself. The fake male dong is the most likely prop to be censored but is played 100% for laughs and was part of the best act of the night. You’re getting plenty of caked up cheeks with a larger number of female performers compared to male. Unlike the women, men are allowed to present nipples without covering. Gloves, tights, and belts are appropriately Star Wars themed. Any hint of female presenting nipples are covered by pasties or implied and hidden by smoke or shadow.

Between most sets a “cousin” of Lando Calrissian bought time for the performers with some gentle crowd barbs. He was generally fine in setting up the next performance and buying time for the more elaborate set changes. If you sit up front be prepared for some mild roasting and understand you’re in a slash zone. The overall tone was is very similar to being a Warhammer fan where we can make fun of ourselves, have a laugh as friends, but ultimately respect the effort and craft that is being put forward in the production. The show might be a joke, but the performers and audience are not made to be jokes.

Lando on a stage talking to hundreds of people

Lando on a stage talking to hundreds of people

Ironically the "Lando we have at home" was somebody we left home to go see.

A knowledge of Star Wars or professional dance is not required for enjoyment of the shows. Sexy Luke washing his speeder is self-explanatory as are the sexy imperial guards. However, the show incorporates the iconic sounds of characters well enough that you can anticipate those characters arrival, but not predict, how those characters will be portrayed. While most of the performances are upbeat there are a few slower numbers that put the emphasis on sensuality rather than camp.

The production design was far above my expectations with a fully operational R2D2 interacting with a Leia, a Jabba the Hutt rapping “Hypnotize” and taking up the entire stage, and a frozen carbonite Han Solo. During one number storm troopers featured what would best be described as stormtrooper armor bikinis. The outfits and hair were of a high enough that my initial skepticism that it was just “walking around convention cosplay” was completely unfounded. This is a very specific Star Wars themed experience and every single prop, song, performance, and detail was universe specific. The show resisted any urge to make fun of Trekkies and despite a few allusions to incest we don’t get the Luke/Leia/Han love triangle performance.

This is likely is doubly said because Han Solo’s performer killed it in both his performances. First, his emergence from carbonite and interaction with sexy Greeto to Smooth Criminal was extremely well received and the first presence of male cheeks. Second, a melody with Chewie that involved the crowd singing along to “Nookie” by Limp Bizkit is something I, and most of the crowd, enjoyed and am happy that there was a strictly enforced "No recording" policy. I also appreciated the artistry in the number where a sexy jedi used calm and determined moves with a green lightsaber before moving to more aggressive and high energy moves after the saber transitioned to red indicating a fall to the dark side. The seven person closing had an impressive level of choreography and marching. All of the performances and performers were enthusiastic, fun, and campy and outside of the host avoided breaking the fourth wall.

A Star Wars Parody Show

Yes, Akbar is rapping. Yes a puppet yoda is about to rap. Yes, the stage props are Star Wars specific.

While I might be an older person, I found that the music was a little too loud. This was the first show in Atlanta by a touring troupe this may have been a result of playing in a huge warehouse that was empty outside of the show. Part of the enjoyment of a live burlesque/drag show is hearing the random cheers from the crowd and enthusiasm for the performers. I could hear my neighbors hooting and hollering and thought that I might have heard an enthusiastic “Utinni” to a non-sexy Jawa assisting a sexy C3PO disrobing. However, this may have just been poor crowd acoustics as some of the answers to the MC were often ineligible.

FAQs

Q: Is there sexy Chewbacca?

A: Some people, not me of course but some people, would say that Chewbacca is already sexy. Chewbacca, along with R2D2, appear as you’ve seen on the big screen and are more handled respectfully than in The Rise of Skywalker.

Q: Are there sexy Twi’leks?

A: Yes.

Q: Is there sexy Grand Moff Tarkin?

A: Unfortunately there is not sexy Grand Moff Tarkin portrayed by our most famous historical mini lover Peter Cushing. The Empire Strips Back shows greater respect for the character than the Disney corporation.

Q: Is this legal?

A: As said above, this is a parody focused on the original trilogy so bringing up that stuff is gauche and shows poor taste, like yelling at a performer to...well, yelling most anything at a performer.

Q: Is there sexy Glup Shitto?

A: One or two are sexy, a few are not sexy, but they are all joys to behold.

Q: What is the dress code?

A: Covered feet at the minimum. Some people were wearing sports coats.

Q: I have heard that Atlanta offers locations that show even more…

A: Atlanta is well known for having both that cater to your tastes. Go to Magic City and get the Lou Williams wings, or BJ Roosters for great cocktails.

While this is the last weekend to see the show in Atlanta, there is a permanent show located at the former location of LVO, the Rio. The Rio continues to have more weird stuff for those Warhammer fans that missed the hotel rooms with the weird shower windows. Otherwise you can keep up to date with the travelling show by googling a combination of "Stripper Star Wars" or "Star Wars Smut Show" until your targeted ads are completely useless.

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Tags: Atlanta | burlesque