“I think that your audience is what’s important and if I choose to wrap my stuff up in something that’s a little more flashy, so be it,” proclaims Gene Dante, lead singer and songwriter for the ambitious post glam-rock band aptly dubbed The Future Starlets.

“It’s not a novelty act," he says. "We know we’re on stage, we know we’re putting on a show… I mean, anybody can wax intellectual about putting on a show, but it is a show. A healthy sense of humor is definitely necessary. Someone taking themselves too seriously is pitiful!”

Don’t misread that last line – Gene Dante is as affable as he is intense. His MySpace page makes no bones about it: he is “the master of dichotomy”. His music is glamorous yet gritty, lighthearted yet raw, straightforward yet complex. Gene makes duality his manifesto.

“The idea of four or five grown men up on stage playing rock music is a little bit ridiculous,” Dante says. “So the fact that we’re up there doing this kind of thing that is – let’s face it – for boys…it’s ridiculous! [Laughs] But that’s part of the fun! I don’t take myself seriously at all; well, somewhat, but I’m not so much of an ‘artist’ that I can’t be an entertainer.”

Dante’s taken his years of experience on stage in professional theatrical roles as diverse as The Beast in Beauty and the Beast to the Rocky Horror Show and redirected that dramatic bombast into live performances that are as theatrical as they are pop. "Honestly, between you and me – actually between me and everyone – there’s never been a transition for me," Dante says. "A rock performance is a theatrical performance."

“Believing in the words and the intention is a lot easier when I’m writing it rather than when I was reading off a script or singing somebody else’s song. With rock, if I’m writing it, it actually is coming from somewhere that’s real inside of me; it’s less of the actor’s process. When it comes to theater and rock, the audience is the reason for any performance – they’re the focus. To be a businessman about it – or to be a music consumer myself – when I go see a show or buy a record, I want my damn money’s worth.”

Dante does just that with help from the Future Starlets: guitarist Scott Patalano, bassist Jim Collins, guitarist/keyboardist Erik Andersen, and dummer Tamora Gooding. Crowds at this year's WBCN’s Rock ‘N Roll Rumble got their money’s worth after an electrifying showing netted the group second place in the competition. “We took home the silver! What a great ride!” Dante , who is very grateful for the radio station and its local programming, Boston Emissions. “Even when I was a kid they used to broadcast concerts of bands that nobody had heard of yet… For a major-market station to have their fingers in the local pot is pretty exciting.”

The band’s unique mix of high rock theater and lyrical pop is getting them noticed not only in Boston, but nationwide; their latest album, The Romantic Lead, has been picked up by over 40 different college stations across the country, and their music video, “A Madness To His Method” has been featured on MTV's LOGO network. But it’s their bawdy, not-ready-for-radio single, “C-Star”, that has fans and media abuzz.

“Honest to God,” Dante says, “I tried family-friendly re-writes and nothing worked. Every revision caused the song to misfire and it lost its tawdry, cheeky charm. There’s something naughty about it, but I see 40-year-old women in the audience singing along and smiling and laughing, because it’s dirty and it’s funny and they get it. They’re not feeling offended – it’s not a rape-rock song.

“What I like about it is because you can’t have it on radio, it’s like a secret that you can pass along to your friends. It’s like, ‘Omigod, have you see this video? Have you heard this song?’ And you have to get it online; you have to get it from a friend. I like that passing on a secret thing – the word of mouth, grassroots stuff.”&

Wherever rock music is going to go next, Gene Dante seems to wish to remain dedicated to duality – honest and unconventional, rootsy yet spectacular – ever dedicated to the crafting of theatrical rock that will win audiences over wherever he and The Future Starlets go.

On Friday, the band will perform at Olivers Nightclub at the Cask'n Flagon on Friday as part of the BMS Local Spotlight Live Series (they will also perform at Provincetown Rocks: The Festival next week). Dante promises a great show, “We are fabulous, we are tragic, we are romantic. To the girls – we will sing songs that you will learn instantly and you can sing along with us right away. And to the boys…I would say that a lot of girls come to our shows!”&

Gene Dante and The Future Starlets will perform at Olivers Nightclub at the Cask'n Flagon on Friday as part of the BMS Local Spotlight Live Series. Tickets are $10. The band will also perform at the Provincetown Rocks: The Festival next week. For more information about the band, visit their website or MySpace.&