The second part of my LA Kink Ball review covers the fetish dinner and cabaret night called Masque. The brainchild of Kink in the Caribbean promoter Robert Fluty , Masque has been inspired by the success of the Twisted City fetish dinner cabaret Fluty organized as part of the Absolute Kink Amsterdam back in April. Sponsored by FetishMovies.com, Masque promised to be “an evening of elegant fetish attire, exotic masks, fine food, and erotic entertainment from the most gifted alternative performance artists from around the world.” Little did anyone know that the night would not turn out to be what anybody expected.

As a guest photographer, I was invited to have dinner with Tony Mitchell , and the lovely Nikki Vega , and her friend Victoria. We were in the prime location, right in front of the stage. The room was packed at this sold-out event, all attendees dressed in beautiful fetish attire and nearly all wearing a mask. Before dinner was served, I wandered around the room, shooting some candid shots of the guests. The room was filled with some of the most beautiful Dommes and Fetish Models from around the world, including Betka Schpitz, Anastasia Pierce, Princess Kali, and RubberDoll. Everyone was having a great time enjoying the open bar, and looking forward to the terrific lineup of performers. Little did anyone realize what was happening behind the scenes.

One hour after the party started, adult star Brittany Andrews informed Robert Fluty that she wasn't going to be coming to emcee the event as she had committed to. Terril Teran, an aerialist who was to have performed a striptease duet high above the crowd , had to drop out because the ceiling structure was too complex to rig for her show. And finally, a bondage artist who was scheduled to perform was a no-call/no-show. Fortunately, the stage manager jumped in at the last minute and emceed the show, doing a rather commendable job!

The performances began with a provocative Japanese-themed show by RubberDoll, Anastasia Pierce, and Maxine. RubberDoll's performances are always high-energy and sexually charged. She is an imaginative and creative force who never fails to delight her audience. In this performance, RubberDoll did an elaborate fan dance, followed by dripping hot red wax over the asses of her two submissive girls. Next on stage was a kinky femdom scene with Athena Fatale, dressed in latex stockings and high heel stilettos, and Natalie Minx. I was able to get some really great shots of Athena's gorgeous tattoos, as she proceeded to spank Natalie with her hand and a bouquet of crimson roses. The petals flew as Athena whacked her submissive's ass and slid the thorny bouquet between Natalie's latex-clad thighs.

A little break enabled me to walk the room and take a few more candid shots , before Maxine came back on stage for her feather-fan dance. Maxine gives a passionate performance, and really knows how to work those feathers! The best show in my opinion that is, of the night is where the trouble began. Dressed in a latex military uniform with bright red boots and matching trim, RubberDoll marched on stage with submissive Anastasia Pierce chained and collared. She forced her slave onto a chair, and proceeded to restrain her with some quick rope bondage. She then forced a ball gag into her mouth and blindfolded her, while she proudly showed her large black strap-on dildo to the audience. The sexual energy was high, as RubberDoll simulated fucking her slave and forcing her to worship her rubber cock while wearing a gasmask. Just when the show started really getting good, suddenly the lights went out and the stage was immersed in total darkness. Tony Mitchell and I were up front on the floor photographing as the performers followed through with their scene. I was close enough to hear RubberDoll tell Anastasia to keep going, proving what professional performers they both are. The light from our flashes was the only illumination for the finale, and I actually heard later that many in the crowd thought that the strobe effect was intentional!

The lights came back up shortly thereafter, and the final performance was a beautiful fire-play scene with Master Arcane and his submissive. It was difficult to capture the flames as they swept across the body of a beautiful female sub, so the photos could not possibly do justice to the intense, fiery performance. At midnight, the tables were supposed to have been pushed aside, and the real play could commence. The doors opened to late-night guests who only wished to attend the after party, which was to have been an “Eyes wide shut” themed play party, lasting until early morning. However, that's when the evening really started to unravel.

The venue for the event, The Entertainium, had been described as one of LA's best-kept secrets. It's a fully licensed downtown movie studio with numerous theatrical sets and themed rooms. However until very recently, the venue had been shut down for throwing sexual encounter parties without proper licensing, and since then had been sold to new owners. The party contract had been signed with the old owners, and according to Robert Fluty, he was only informed of the new ownership two weeks before the party! He had little/no time to find a new venue, and either had to cancel the party or try to make it work. The new owners panicked because they were apparently still under constant scrutiny by the authorities, and also because alcohol was being served at an event where the potential for nudity and sexual play was very high. Of course, they neglected to tell the Masque organizer this until the middle of the evening!

I noticed that the crowd began to thin dramatically just after midnight. Rumors began traveling through the venue as the staff informed people that they must cover any exposed nipples and genitalia. Unsure of what was actually happening, and fearing that there was a potential raid, nearly everybody left except for a few die-hard players. It was nearly 1:00 in the morning by the time I caught a cab back to the hotel, disappointed in the turn of events , but overall satisfied with what I had been able to photograph.

Even though Masque did not go as well as anticipated, Robert Fluty assured me that the event will go on. In an email to me he stated, “As you are aware, this was only one of three parties that I produced as part of the LA KinkBall weekend. From the feedback I have received, the other two parties were very well received. But Masque was in fact the party I had really invested the most energy into, as I truly believe people want this type of event and have little doubt that this event will grow into something very special, as evidenced by two consecutive sellout Masque parties.  Finding the right venue(s) is the biggest obstacle ahead of me, but I am determined :-). I never was one to take a bitch slapping very well, so rest assured Masque will be back...with a vengeance.”

And after meeting and talking to Robert... I have no doubt he's a man of his word.

Click here to see the entire Masque 2007 photo gallery.