The Milwaukee Steampunk Society

Hello members of the Milwaukee Steampunk Society! The abundency of

local events happening this month is fantastic! There is absolutely no

excuse for anyone to have a sorry October. Tis the season for costumes

and building and preparing for upcoming event of the year, Teslacon!

OCTOBER EVENTS

The Masque of the Red Death

Carte Blanche Studios

Check Website for Dates

8PM

$20

This play, written and directed by Bill Jackson, is an adaptation of

Edgar Allen Poe’s Masque of the Red Death. It is highly appropriate

for Halloween and also has steampunk costuming and aesthetics. Don’t

miss this intimate theater experience! www.carteblanchestudios.com

Dead Man’s Carnival First Friday Freakshow

Miramar Theater, 2844 North Oakland Avenue

Friday, October 5th

8PM

$10 Pre-sale

Each month, Dead Man’s Carnival brings new acts from around the

country to titillate and amaze attendees. This variety show is the

largest and wildest in the Midwest and can be considered Milwaukee’s

finest hidden treasure. Live American Roots music performed by Sir

Pinkerton & the Magnificents, juggling, burlesque, fire performance,

human oddities, and other absurdities to be witnessed at Miramar

Theater on Oakland Avenue and Locust Street. www.deadmanscarnival.com

The Milwaukee Steampunk Society Monthly Meeting

Scottish Masonic Rites Center, 790 North Van Buren Street

Wednesday, October 10th

6PM

Each month, the MSS has a meeting to make connections with fellow area

steampunks and build relationships through business and friendship.

For this meeting, we hope to encourage the use of steampunk personas,

in preparation for Teslacon. Everyone is encouraged to wear steampunk

outfits and bring their characters to practice on fellow members, but

if you have neither of these things, you’re still welcome to come and

see what the Milwaukee Steampunk Society is all about. Table games,

drinks, and food are available at this venue. In addition to this,

Rasputina will be performing at Shank Hall, which will be a

destination for some around 8:30PM. (details below)

http://www.facebook.com/events/139210586224177/

Rasputina

Shank Hall, 1434 North Farwell Avenue

Wednesday, October 10th

8PM

$20

This pseudo-steampunk band from the east coast will be returning to

Milwaukee for the third year in a row, bringing a unique electric

cello recital unparalleled by any other musical group. Front-woman

Melora Creager dons Victorian bloomers, corsets, Hawaiian headdresses,

and items of fallen medieval queens while singing of historical and

literary tales. Buying tickets in advance is recommended, as these

shows have been known to sell out. www.shankhall.com

Steampunk Garb and Prop Building/Sew Steamy

Lytheria, 2705 North Shepard Avenue

Saturday, October 13th

11:30AM

The fine dwellers of Lytheria host a maker’s session where you can

share tools, know-how, and ideas with other steampunks. If you find

yourself at a loss for gadget ideas or other aesthetics to add to your

“steamsona,” this is a great place to ask questions about design and

creation. This event takes place every second Saturday of the month.

Lytheria is located near the UW-Milwaukee campus. In addition to this,

Terresa Roden will be hosting an open sewing weekend (and possibly

into Monday and Tuesday) to prepare for Teslacon.

Milwaukee Steampunk Fall Formal Ball and Time Traveling Circus Show

Hotwater Wherehouse, 818 S. Water Street

Thursday, October 18th

7PM

$10 in costume

The Dead Man’s Carnival front man Professor Pinkerton presents “an

incredible evening of extraordinary entertainment from all around the

world... and TIME!” Come dressed in your Steampunk finest and partake

in a monumental occasion. Be prepared for an evening of sword

swallowing, broken glass walking, fire eating, aerial acrobatics,

large scale illusion, and prizes!

http://www.facebook.com/events/442629615775067/

SteamDRUNK Pub Crawl

National Avenue

Saturday, October 20th

6PM

$10

The Milwaukee Steampunk Society is proud to announce their first pub

crawl! Three locations in the Fifth Ward have been chosen: the Iron

Horse Hotel, Sabbatic, and Club Anything. All proceeds will go

directly to the November 30th Official Milwaukee Steampunk Society

party at Teslacon III! Attendees who pay ahead of time are guaranteed

an embroidered event patch. You can pay Shawn Kerr, Anna Rodriguez, or

Tim Murphy at the official Milwaukee Steampunk Society meeting. If you

have a conflict with this date, we can work something out. A limited

number of patches will be available on a first come, first served

basis. http://www.facebook.com/events/280749252030631/

Fall Trunk Show

MOCT, 240 East Pittsburgh Avenue

Sunday, October 21st

5PM

Silversark Clothier, Altered History, Suture Couture, MLA Chapeaux,

and The Paradise Rose will be showing and selling their designer

clothing and accessories for Halloween, Steampunk, or Lolita costume

needs. This is a cash-only event, with item prices that range from $2

to $200. Cheesecake and cupcakes will be provided!

http://www.facebook.com/events/390062517726930/

88.9 Radio Milwaukee/Made In Milwaukee Halloween Party

Turner Hall Ballroom, 1032 North 4th Street

Saturday, October 27th

7PM

$14

Radio Milwaukee and Made in Milwaukee promise this was will be the

best Halloween Party of the year. Michael Jackson Vs. Prince dance

party, Fatty Acids, a fashion show, live art, DJs, and Friction Dance

Company are some of the many acts Turner Hall Ballroom will house the

Saturday before Halloween. Although the event is not exclusively

Steampunk, a few of our members will be volunteering as assistants to

the fall fashion designers for the night’s fashion show. Show your

support by attending this event in your Steampunk garb!

www.pabsttheater.org

Beats Antique

Turner Hall Ballroom, 1032 North 4th Street

Tuesday, October 30th

8PM

$17

The electro-swing sensation, Beats Antique, will be performing in

Milwaukee shortly after their newest album release, Contraption Vol.

2. If you have not yet seen a Beats Antique show, prepare yourself for

heaps of jovial dancing. www.pabsttheater.com

Steampunk Book Club

Brocach Irish Pub, 1850 North Water Street

Saturday, November 3rd

3PM

The second monthly book club meeting will discuss “The Difference

Engine” by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling. Milwaukee Steampunk

Society member and Director of the Milwaukee Writer’s Workshop, J.

Boone Dryden will head discussion and present questions to further

understanding of each fiction. If you would like to sign up, contact

Mr. Dryden at [email protected] .

http://www.facebook.com/events/461260800563512/

Steampunks of the Month: Julianne Hunter and Charles Tritt

It is more than likely that you have met Julianne and Chuck at a

Milwaukee steampunk event, Teslacon, or even their annual Cogs and

Roses parties, held at their beautiful Victorian home in Mequon. Their

unrelenting kindness and eager attitudes towards the steampunk

community made them perfect candidates for a brief biography in the

Milwaukee Steampunk Society newsletter.

Julianne Hunter is from Dayton, Ohio, the birthplace of aviation. She

has degrees in zoology, preventative medicine, and commercial art. A

fine example of her current position as a freelance commerical artist

is the Milwaukee Steampunk Society logo. But for 17 years, she was an

industrial hygienist.

“I’ve been on high steel, spent shifts in foundries, and seen how

appliances and beer cans and prosthetic limbs are made. I’ve gotten to

see what makes things tick. I love the steampunk community itself. In

it I’ve found the good will and well-mannered elegance I’ve longed

for, and it’s not an affectation. It’s a movement. I’d like to think

we’re the forerunners of something exciting and new that’s happening

worldwide.”

Julianne is also a long-time science fiction fan, a Middle Eastern

dancer, and a rockabilly gal. She can be found haunting thrift stores,

flea markets, and eBay.

Chuck Tritt, her partner in crime, says that his first exposure to

steampunk is much like anyone else’s, through the love of H.G. Wells,

Jules Verne, and Wild Wild West reruns. This subculture also coincides

with his love of history and technology.

“[Steampunk] jives with my background in Chemical Engineering (2 of

my college degrees are in Chemical Engineering). At least back when I

studied Chemical Engineering, it was about all things steam (steam

engines, boilers, steam heated driers, triple effect evaporators,

steam jet vacuum coolers, distillation columns, etc.).”

Chuck is the biomedical engineer and the director of the biomedical

engineering program at MSOE. He and Julianne have traveled all over

the world, together and separately. Chuck’s most recent trip was to

India.

“I think steampunk has influenced my perspective on India and vice

versa. A lot of important Indian history overlaps the Victorian

period. The British East Indian Company transferred rule of what is

now India, Pakistan and part Burma to the crown in 1858 and this

lasted until 1947 when they achieved independence. I’ve read several

first person accounts of this period, some written by Europeans and

some by South Asians. While there were certainly numerous problems and

injustices during the period, it was also a time of discovery,

adventure and progress.”

Steampunk has most certainly spilled over into Chuck and Julianne’s

non-Steampunk lives. After attending a panel at the first Teslacon for

fisticuffs, he decided to take up boxing at MSOE.

“My boxing, somewhat indirectly, led to me learning about Bartitsu.

Bartitsu is an eclectic martial art and self-defense method developed

in England between 1898 and 1902. It is mentioned by Sherlock Holmes

in “The Adventure of the Empty House.” My interest in Bartitisu led to

a general interest in late 19th century fitness activities. I now

train using mostly techniques described in old fitness books including

a lot of body weight work and Indian clubs.”

Indisputably, Julianne and Chuck are model citizens of the midwest

steampunk community, bouncing between Chicago, Madison, and Milwaukee.

We are a very luckily society to have such genuine steampunks who live

the lifestyle with such poise.

Until next time friends,

Bridget Sharon, Anna Rodriguez, Shawn Kerr, and Tim Murphy