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What? Never been decorated in body paint? Well, tonight's your chance to become a human canvas, in a cabaret-style setting in Kenmore Square, at the first Boston Body Painting Festival.
The fest is part of the Dark World Cabaret, a CD release party for the local band Incus, whose frontman, keyboard player Jason Cohen, often performs with a palette of paint on his body. The event is the brainchild of Cohen, who is currently touring with Incus, a dark, powerful six-piece that produces tribal beats and ethereal sounds -- and has no guitars in its lineup.
Cohen, from Jamaica Plain, hopes the body painting will set the mood for the night of music, belly dancing, and the ''wacky, tribal, harmonic goth-rock groove that we're stringing right now. I thought [the Body Painting Festival] would be a great way to promote the vibe the band tries to create.''
Tonight's event toasts the release of Incus's new CD, ''Burning Thread.'' The band will perform with a new lineup, which includes drummer Brian Viglione from the Dresden Dolls and Kara Trott from Fluttr.
Artists from New York and Boston will first paint models. Afterward, they'll paint anyone willing to wear artwork on their skin.
One of the body painters, Shara Meltzer, a Somerville transplant who now lives in Binghamton, N.Y., travels the country painting people -- at clothing-optional festivals, Mardi Gras events, Renaissance fairs, concerts, even children's parties. She uses paintbrushes, an airbrush, and water-based theatrical makeup to emblazon people with small tribal designs or make their bodies look like tigers, leopards, marble, robots, or aliens, or as if they're wearing clothes or lingerie.
''[Body paint] can really transform people into animals and creatures,'' Meltzer says. ''I've been body painting for 17 years and see no sign of stopping.''
Meltzer will be painting people tonight for a small fee, starting at $5. The evening will be hosted by Tatiana de Profundis, winner of the 2003 Miss Gothic Massachusetts pageant.
Tonight's festivities will also include performances by Ego Likeness from Baltimore (Cohen describes its music as ''earthy and fiery and gypsy goth'') and some sexy acrobatic comedy by street performers the Daredevil Chicken Club, which includes Jonathan Taylor of Blue Man Group.
Between sets, DJ Addam and DJ Arcanus will spin goth, industrial, and synth-pop.