Saucy shows turn River City into Raunchy City Libby Munro as Vanda and Todd McDonald as Thomas in Venus in Fur playing at QPAC from June 22 to July 27. It may be winter, but a number of sizzling hot productions are giving Brisbane theatre-goers plenty of bang for their buck. With the nouveau circus of Empire stunning Spiegeltent crowds, an Australian Burlesque Festival ready to fan the flames and masochistic masterwork Venus in Fur premiering at QPAC, it's not so much the River City as the Raunchy City. "I think there's a lot of interest in sex and how we represent it onstage," said Libby Munro, currently rehearsing the award-winning Venus in Fur for the Queensland Theatre Company. The raunchy Empire is a must see at the Spiegeltent in King George Square. Photo: Supplied. We're becoming more comfortable with ourselves. The comedy-drama is about a playwright searching for the perfect actress to play the female lead in his adaptation of 1870 masochism novel Venus in Furs. Enter Munro as Vanda, a woman comfortable with or without furs. The Gorilla Girls get flexible in Empire. She said humour was key to drawing audiences in to think critically about the beast with two backs, and the depiction of both sexes in society. If we're just watching something very sexual and naked, we're just watching sex, but if we're commenting on it, or being humorous, we're watching art, I suppose. But Munro - who's taking regular Pilates classes to prepare for Vanda's many underwear-only scenes - said it was also about appealing to a younger audience. "I know a lot of my friends are not going to spend a night out at a show if it's too serious, or if they're going to go home depressed," she said. You want it to be new, hot, sexy, fun and funny. Over at the Tivoli, the Australian Burlesque Festival is putting its pasties in place to be just that. "It's all about the tease," said founder and director Dolores Daiquiri. She said beyond the base requirement that performers "peel garments," there were no restrictions on form or style. Fifteen performers - including one man, the muscled marvel Captain Kidd - will reveal almost everything on Friday night. "Our shows always do really well in Brisbane," said Daiquiri. It's escapism, it's pure fun, it's titillation, it's funny, it can be sensual and anyone can go along and enjoy it - as long as you're over 18.