Definition: Hardcore (adjective)

  1. A militant or fiercely loyal faction of society
  2. Extreme, intense
  3. Relating to graphic and explicit sex

In wrestling, there are a lot of examples of people, promotions, and fans that embody the first two definitions.

In terms of covering all three, though, there’s one name that immediately comes to mind: Jasmin St. Claire.

On top of being one of the biggest names of all time in porn, St. Claire is also known for her involvement in professional wrestling, including a memorable stint in ECW back in the ’90s. Today, she is still involved in wrestling, in the independent XPW promotion.

And while her porno days are behind her, she’s still revealing everything to her fans. But this time, that’s being done through her one-woman show, “A Weird Kind of Fame,” which she brings to Chicago’s Annoyance Theater on Tuesday, September 20th.

“The show is me, covering my journey through the subculture of porn, pro wrestling, and heavy metal,” she shared with SlamWrestling.net over e-mail. “It’s the story of how an Ivy League graduate became a catalyst of ‘American Shock Entertainment’ – and I feel, in this day and age of political correctness and ‘cancel culture’ it’s a perfect time to go back in time and explore my rise to infamy in the 90s.”

 

The show is a multi-media affair, with St. Claire running down the events of her life in her own voice, with audio and visuals and costume changes punctuating the story. Though St. Claire had some acting experience – in addition to her extensive porn movie legacy, she has also acted in more mainstream films – this show tapped into some other skills, notably improv.

“I was at the Upright Citizens Brigade when I met Ryan Nemeth,” she explained. “He asked me to host an improv show that he and some other wrestlers were doing at Second City. I liked being on stage and telling stories, so I took some classes at Second City in Hollywood, completing their complete conservatory and grad review program.”

“While I was at Second City, I was speaking with some peers about doing the one-woman show, and they fully supported it. Tim Paul, one of the Second City teachers who directs shows, was really wonderful, so I asked him to direct it, and he agreed. It took about a year to write the show. Well,” she clarified, “probably a bit longer than that, because it sat on the shelf for some time.”

In addition to her adult film career, St. Claire does go into some detail about her professional wrestling career. As noted, she got involved in ECW in the late 90s, and was invited to be part of the Living Dangerously pay-per-view event thanks to the Dudley Boyz.

Unlike some people who aren’t necessarily welcomed with open arms into the business, St. Claire said she felt no such backlash. Indeed, she found the transition fairly easy, though she didn’t necessarily know what to expect.

“I grew up watching pro wrestling,” she said, “I was always a huge fan. So it was interesting to me, making the transition. I just went with it. I knew I had to (be open to anything) to take it to the next level or be more involved.”

She jokes that her previous on-camera experience wasn’t really something she could draw on to help hone her wrestling skills.

“I was taking a ‘slamming’, just in a different way,” she said wryly. “Seriously, though, there’s really no comparison between the two worlds.”

After ECW, St. Claire did stints with XPW and XWF, and even had a couple of appearances with TNA Wrestling in the early 2000s. She wishes she would have had more time in the business back in the day, and shared two things that she would have liked to have seen happen.

“I hoped the XWF would have done well,” she said, looking back (the company started in 2001 with some fanfare, but fizzled shortly thereafter). “And, at some point, I would have liked to work with Val Venis.”

Fortunately, St. Clair is still able to stay involved in the industry, and earlier this year, she joined the newly-resurrected XPW.

“I’m glad that there are so many wrestling companies out there today,” she said, about the state of the industry. “I’m happy to be with XPW.”

Though it’s not like she was just waiting for the opportunity to come around. Indeed, St. Clair has been busy with many other ventures, including looking at more touring of “A Weird Kind of Fame.”

“I have my ‘Krazy Train with Jasmin St. Claire’ podcast that drops every Wednesday on Apple, Spotify, and all the podcast platforms and YouTube,” she said. That show lets her share her thoughts on various topics as well as interview many other famous names – including some wrestling personalities like Ricardo Rodriguez and April Hunter, who have been guests in past episodes.

She’s also been doing some more mainstream acting as of late, including appearing on the last season of the HBO series The Deuce and was also recently on Vice TV’s Dark Side of the 90s series. As well, she is a big motorcycle enthusiast, and gets to write about that passion for a motorcycle magazine.

None of her plans include a return to adult films, however, and she’s emphatic that she is completely done with that world.

“I’ve been out of that for over 25 years,” she said definitively. “I have nothing to do with it anymore. That chapter is completely closed.”

While that may be a disappointment to her “hardcore” fans, her truly “hardcore” fans will be content to hear her relive those days on stage instead.

Jasmin St. Claire’s “A Weird Kind of Fame” debuts at the Annoyance Theater in Chicago, IL, on Tuesday, September 20. Click here for tickets.

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All photos courtesy of Jasmin St. Claire.  Photo credit (all photos): Slava Siderman