Anyone who's lived in New York for more than a minute knows how
painful it is to watch a favorite neighborhood haunt close down.
And when it's a beloved venue—like CBGB on the Bowery or the Oak
Room at the Algonquin Hotel—it's a loss for the entire city.
Rosabelle Selavy rehearses her aerial act at the recently
reopened Slipper Room, on Orchard Street. Claudio Papapietro for
The Wall Street Journal  Thankfully for New York's burlesque
scene, the closure of the Lower East Side's Slipper Room was
only temporary. After a two-year hiatus, the marabou and good
times are now back in full force: The club has officially
reopened at Orchard and Stanton streets (its home since it
opened in 1999) following the total razing and rebuilding of its
space.  Given the velocity of change in this city, the Slipper
Room's staying power is a small real-estate miracle. When its
lease was up in 2010, its founder and producer, James Habacker,
faced closing a stage that had became a hub not only for
downtown burlesque performers, bu