Julie Atlas Muz, one of the most acclaimed and prolific conceptual performers and choreographers in New York, sucker punches the boundaries between performance art, dance and burlesque with dark, twisted, come-hither performances that have secured her place in the underworld of nightlife as well as the bastion of the art world. On any given night in New York City, you can see Julie Atlas Muz swimming in a salt water aquarium as a mermaid, peeling off the outlandish costumes she dons, or covered in fake blood in the basement of a gay bar. A 2004 Whitney Biennial artist, Muz has presented her work at P.S. 122, HERE, The Performing Garage, La Mama and Art at St. Anne’s Warehouse, Chashama, LaMama, and Dixon Place. Late at night you can see Julie Atlas Muz perform regularly in New York at the VavaVoom Room, Joe’s Pub, Galapagos, The Slipper Room, The Coral Room, the Marquis, The Palace of Variety and a host of other locations. Ms. Muz brings her newest work, I Am the Moon and You are the Man on Me, to P.S. 122 from Nov. 8th to the 28th.

1. What aspect of your new show, I Am the Moon and You Are the Man on Me, excites you most?

Jesus fucking Christ. Well right now, I’m most excited that we (Kate Valentine & myself) have put together a show that makes a certain kind of sense. Thank God. So I’m REALLY happy about that. I had to cut my favorite section because it didn’t fit it. Otherwise I would’ve said the “minute men”. But right now the section that we have just called hamburger brain makes me laugh the hardest.

2. You get naked in all of your shows. What about nudity interests you?

Personally, I feel very comfortable and on top of my game when I’m naked. I feel strong. Historically, a lot of art, visual art, has been nude. It’s immediately controversial, particularly with our current administration. The corporate backlash after Janet Jackson’s nipple at the Superbowl is still a big deal, which is ridiculous to me.

3. How do your burlesque performances and your “high art” pieces
relate to one another?

Well first of all I try not to distinguish between my burlesque pieces and my “high art” pieces in a creative sense. Both happen on the stage, which is a sacred place for me. I love the stage, no matter where it is, who it’s for,how much they paid to get in, if they’re drunk or sober. There are different things that are appropriate for different venues, but it is not always my goal to be appropriate.

4. Who or what inspires you?

My colleagues inspire me including but not limited to Dirty Martini, Kate Valentine, Murray Hill, Scotty the Blue Bunny, Tigger, Bambi, The World Famous BOB, my mom. Fictional characters inspire me: Jean Luke Picard for example. Literature and Trashy horror novels inspire me, bad movies inspire me, hot sex inspires me, a juicy steak, orchids, dreams, a sunset, a moonrise and the next sunrise.

5. What’s next?

A well earned vacation.