Photo courtesy of Chocolate City Burlesque and Cabaret.

Black Friday marks the start of the holiday shopping bonanza, but this year it also heralds the beginning of something more worthy of celebration than elbowing your way into a deal—a year of Chocolate City Burlesque and Cabaret. The troupe will celebrate with its second annual Black Friday show at GALA Hispanic Theatre.

Chocolate City Burlesque and Cabaret debuted in 2014 with its Black Friday show, before the troupe officially formed in early 2015. The group focuses on black burlesque, highlighting women of color engaged in the “art of the tease.”

“There’s something inherently radical and political about a female-run troupe,” says Ché Monique, producer and co-founder of Chocolate City. “Here’s my body, here’s my sexuality, and here’s me—a woman—profiting.”

“Last year, nobody knew who I was but we talked people into doing the show. People were like, ‘Well, they’re going to pay us,’ but I could see the performers get an extra jolt when they went onstage and saw the huge crowds. It was magical.”

In order to pay performers for last year’s show, Monique had to take a financial risk. “Ultimately, if you’re going to start a business, you have to invest in it,” she says. “Somebody’s gotta be willing to pay.”

And a year later, the troupe has 18 performers and staged five separate shows including tonight.

While part of the Chocolate City Burlesque and Cabaret’s ethos is highlighting the beauty of diverse body types, that’s not something that Monique necessarily thinks should be given lip service. “Body positivity isn’t something we need to talk about. It’s something we need to be about,” she says. “I’m a 300 pound woman about to take my clothes off on stage.”

Chocolate City also works on education beyond their shows. “We are technically strippers, so we can’t necessarily read to the children, but we try and contribute to the community.”

Unlike last year, this Black Friday show will feature four group numbers in addition to individual performances. The theme is R&B, so dancers will swivel and shake to songs from the genre across the decades.

But spectators won’t be chair-bound, given the audience participation games incorporated in the performance. “You’re not coming to show,” Monique says. “You’re coming to an experience.” The hardest part is getting the audience off of the stage after the game wraps, she adds.

The Chocolate City Burlesque and Cabaret Black Friday Show happens tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the GALA Hispanic Theatre. Tickets are $35 and available at the door.