By ROB KENDT | Special to Newsday

“When Cho flashes that sunny grin after a self-abasing joke about oral sex, say, it plays as an ironic gloss, a feint to smooth over any awkwardness, which somehow only makes it funnier.”

It’s the proud, cheery smile that gives her away every time. No matter how provocative or coarse Margaret Cho wants to be – and in her new show, “The Sensuous Woman,” she holds the raunch bar very high, or low, depending on your point of view – she’s still essentially a nice girl who likes us and wants to be liked.

When Cho flashes that sunny grin after a self-abasing joke about oral sex, say, it plays as an ironic gloss, a feint to smooth over any awkwardness, which somehow only makes it funnier.
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By DAN BALCAZO

“Cho stars in several of the more risqué segments, as well as regaling the crowd with hilarious, politically inflected stand-up that promotes the idea that bodies of all shapes and sizes are beautiful.”

New York — Margaret Cho claims that she wants her new variety show at the Zipper Factory, The Sensuous Woman, to be sort of like the Donny and Marie Show: “a little bit of country, a little bit of anal.” She only partially succeeds; there’s not much of the former, but quite a bit of the latter.

The entertaining production falls somewhere between burlesque and performance art. Cho stars in several of the more risqué segments, as well as regaling the crowd with hilarious, politically inflected stand-up that promotes the idea that bodies of all shapes and sizes are beautiful. The acts she’s chosen to showcase reinforce that idea, even if not all of the performances are of equal quality.
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By MICHAEL SOMMERS

“Cho’s ultimate point to such frank disclosure, one supposes, is that individuals should feel free to be as sensual as they want regardless of their physical attributes, age, sexuality or whatever the current fashion dictates. It’s a positive message.”

The Sensuous Woman

Where: The Zipper Factory. 336 W. 37th St., New York
When: Through Nov. 3. 8 p.m. Wednesdays-Saturdays; 11 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays
How much: $45-$55. Call (212) 352-3101 or visit www.thezipperfactory.com.

NEW YORK — Comedian Margaret Cho strips for comic action — all the way down to a g-string and elaborate tattoos, in fact — more than once in “The Sensuous Woman,” her offbeat fling with burlesque entertainment which opened Saturday at The Zipper Factory.
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By CHARLES ISHERWOOD

“Ms. Cho has become a beloved figure in the gay world for her down-and-dirty comic style, and her resplendently nasty opening monologue will not disappoint fans.”

Oh my God, I’m seeing stars. With sequins on them. And tassels too! Round and round they go.

Since I have not, to my knowledge, recently been knocked unconscious by a falling disco ball, I must be having a flashback to “The Sensuous Woman,” the neo-burlesque revue at the Zipper Factory headlined by the comic Margaret Cho. This singular entertainment — more singular than entertaining, in truth — employs enough pasties to supply a decade or two of “Gypsy” revivals.

In her opening monologue Ms. Cho protests the body-type fascism of American culture, decrying the public ridicule heaped on Britney Spears after her infamous performance at the MTV Video Music Awards, an outcry that included much snide commentary on her size. As Ms. Cho rightly observes, with disgust, Ms. Spears is hardly fat by any sane standard. (I’d add that her performance was desultory and disengaged but hardly the scandal of incompetence that it was made out to be. I feel for Britney, really I do.)
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By WILIAM WOLF

I thought I’d seen everything, but a striptease by a 3 foot 10 inch little person, as they say in politically correct jargon? There was Selene Luna doing her zestful, sexy strip in “Margaret Cho’s The Sensuous Woman,” and from the neck down her body is perfectly proportioned for her size. Cho, in addition to her hilarious standup routine, brings with her a revue of a wild assortment of characters, with burlesque-style emphasis.

Even Cho herself gets into the take-it-off act, including the feat of twirling tassels with her breasts, and when she gets down to the last bit minus the g-string, you are in for a ribald, riotous surprise.

This is an anything goes, foul-mouthed, down and dirty satirical production that at is peak moments offers much hilarity, but obviously it is not for the prissy. Cho’s fans scream with delight, and if you are keyed to her brand of humor, there is much to enjoy. In her standup routines she takes on a variety of targets, political and otherwise. Her in-your-face vulgarity tweaks hypocrisy. She mocks Senator Craig’s self-described wide stance sitting on a toilet at the airport, but she’ll also express pity for people who can’t come out of the closet.
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