Marjie Southerland, also known as Jo'Rie Tigerlily, is a versatile artist with roots in New Jersey who has chosen Richmond, VA as her creative sanctuary.

She has been fortunate to let her passion for performance take her many places across the continent. Her talents blossomed in the church, where she first honed her skills performing in concerts and cantatas. This early experience laid the foundation for her artistic growth, which continued to flourish throughout high school and college, ultimately leading her to pursue a career as a professional performer and creative artist.

She embarked on her collegiate journey studying vocal jazz performance at Columbia College of the Arts in Chicago, Illinois. However, her passion for musical theater led her to transition to the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York City. She later completed her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at The New School, strengthening her grounding in the arts.

Before making Virginia her home, she played a vibrant role in the Chicago theater community and gained additional artistic experience through internships in Sarasota, Florida, and Atlanta, Georgia. Her decision to move to Virginia was driven by the opportunity to join The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, the largest living history museum in the nation. Over the course of five years in Williamsburg, she immersed herself in portraying the lives of both free and enslaved blacks of the 18th century, adding depth and nuance to her craft.

Marjie has left her mark in the Richmond theater community, contributing to productions with Firehouse Theatre, Richmond Triangle Players, The Heritage Ensemble Theater, The Conciliation Project, Yes, And Productions, Virginia Repertory Theatre and The New Theatre. Her outstanding talent and unwavering dedication led to a nomination for Best Breakout Performance for her portrayal of Harriet Tubman in the Virginia Repertory Theatre production of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad at the prestigious 2019-2020 Artsies.

Her introduction to Richmond, VA also marked the beginning of her burlesque persona, Jo'Rie Tigerlily, also known as the Ferocious Flower. Her immersion in burlesque began in 2015 with classes at Boom Boom Basics Burlesque & Performing Arts Studio, quickly evolving into a significant extension of her artistic exploration. Her accolades include being selected for the Movers, Shakers, and Innovators showcase at the 2023 Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekender, headlining the 2022 Colorado Burlesque Festival, and performing at renowned events like Jeezy’s Juke Joint in Chicago and The Show Me Burlesque Festival in St. Louis. Her journey in burlesque has also seen her crowned the Burlesque Bunny at the 2016 Edmonton Burlesque Festival in Alberta, Canada.

Jo'Rie is not just a performer; she is deeply involved in the Richmond burlesque scene as a student, instructor, choreographer, and producer. She is a founding member of the Nu Rodeo Caldonia, a vibrant queer and bipoc focused artist collective in RVA.

In addition to her involvement with The Basement and Nu Rodeo Caldonia, Marjie/Jo'Rie plays an active role on the Gallery5 community board and serves as a liaison for the Richmond burlesque community.

Qing Blaze (They/He), is an international performer hailing from the Richmond, Virginia. Qing is the co-creator and producer of Nu Rodeo Caldonia and a contributing editor of Richmond based queer fashion magazine, Just Femme and Dandy. Qing is a draglesque performer, emcee, and writer and visual artist with 20 years experience in public health and electoral organizing experience. Qing is also an experienced public speaker, grant writer and program manager.

Qing serves as the Administrative Director at The Basement and co-produces in-house events at The Basement.

Crimson has been a Freelance Stage Manager in RVA for the past 7 years. He has worked at Virginia Repertory Theatre, Yes, And Theatrical Company, SPARC: Youth Theatre, The Conciliation Lab, Dogwood Dell, Dogtown Dance, VCU Arts, The New Theatre at Firehouse, and Richmond Triangle Players.

As Technical Director, Crimson uses his experience garnered from his time as a Stage Manager to handle all technical needs for events at The Basement. If he can’t do something, he knows someone who can! He has really enjoyed working at The Basement and being able to dabble in designing Lights and handling other technical specifications needed for each event.

Crimson has also started a business! Crimson’s Resumes and Websites aims to take the stress and anxiety off of people’s shoulders. He uses his experience creating Resumes and Websites from his other jobs and does the work for you! He even designed this Website!

When not working one of those 3 jobs, Crimson enjoys spending time at home with his girlfriend and their son, and their French Bulldog and Bombay Cat.