I stood on
the sidewalk looking down the main drag of Tampa's historical district
wondering how prepared this city was for what was about to happen. The
night was warm and humid with a faint breeze carrying the scent of salt
water from the Port of Tampa only blocks away. The day had been long and
tedious with a lot of emotionally charged words being flung about carelessly.
Feelings had been hurt. People were holding grudges. Every member of this
burlesque troupe was apprehensive and completely on edge. Would Tampa,
Florida truly understand what we were about to do? We were a united front
of sparkly sequined underdogs waiting to do battle with the misconceptions
that people had about our chosen art form. This was not New York City
where people could catch a burlesque show in just about any part of town.
We were not in Los Angeles where liberal and sleazy theater reigned supreme.
This was Ybor City. A place where $20 got you into your nightclub of choice
and afforded you drinks for the night. This city was overrun with strip
clubs and lap-dancing parlors and a growing fetish/BDSM scene. All of
these things proved to be an obstacle in promoting what it was we had
set out to accomplish. For the past four months, we had fought tooth and
nail to make people understand what we were all about. Had we succeeded?
With five minutes until the curtain call, we were about to have our trial
by fire.
Let's go back in time a bit. I have always been a fan of burlesque. Brought
up by a single mother who was a bit older than most mothers of children
my age, I was introduced to a very old-fashioned variety of entertainment.
Instead of growing up on "Spiderman" and "Knight Rider", I was raised
on "I Love Lucy" and "The Honeymooners". My earliest heroes were the Three
Stooges, Laurel & Hardy, Fred Astaire, and Abbot & Costello. Needless
to say, I didn't identify easily with kids my age or the mainstream fads
that everyone readily embraced. But, I learned a lot from my heroes and,
in doing so I also developed a love for all things vintage. I was in my
early teens when I first stumbled upon the sultry allure of burlesque.
I forget the name of the publication, but I suppose it isn't really that
important to this story. I just remember beautiful women in stockings
and garters and elaborate styles of near undress. Betty Page (who was
never really a burlesque performer), Gypsy Rose Lee, Tempest Storm, and
various other names belonging to statuesque goddesses jumped off the page
and burned hard into my brain. For an adolescent who was already actively
pursuing the stage through vocal lessons, dance instruction, and drama
classes in high school, this discovery was just the spark I needed. I
had found my calling. Unfortunately, things don't always go according
to plan. But this isn't about me. I am merely explaining my love and enthusiasm
for this genre of entertainment so that the reader may trust more in my
opinions of what burlesque in America is really like.
America in the 1840's was a complicated time for most. People felt pressured by the upper class and the government. Quality entertainment was one of the most popular ways for people to unwind and cope with their day to day problems. Immigrant performers from various parts of the world were coming to America to make a name for themselves in a land where the streets were rumored to be paved with gold. These performers did not acclimate well to the staunch ideals and oppressive nature of members of the upper class or those who held official positions. It was in these times that burlesque made its debut in American society. Patrons flocked to shows by the hundreds to laugh and shrug off the weight of their mundane lives. Over the next hundred years, burlesque would evolve and change in many different ways. Some liberal transformations would help free the minds of society as a whole. Some scandalous displays would do damage to burlesque as a genre, eventually leading to its virtual demise in the late 1940's, finishing in a morality war between the Minsky Brothers and Mayor LaGuardia of New York City.
During what I call the “dark ages of burlesque”, the mainstream regarded the genre as nothing more than a “fetish” and, therefore, it became nearly synonymous with the word. It wasn’t until the mid-1990’s that burlesque started to find its way back out of the shadows and troupes started popping up in the largest cities of the United States. Over the past decade, troupes have spawned all across the nation. Some of which are in very surprising locations given the religious influence in certain parts of the country. Burlesque in the United States is definitely finding its place in American entertainment, but the road ahead is long and arduous.
It
is still very rare to find a troupe in this country that practices the
traditional ideals of burlesque. Modern misconceptions about the genre
have lead to the rise of many different styles of neo-burlesque. It is
not unheard of to find performers executing hip hop style dance routines
on stage and calling themselves a burlesque troupe. This is largely in
part to ignorance about the genre itself and the popularity of the Pussycat
Dolls whom have strayed from their early burlesque roots. Modern burlesque
starlets such as Dita Von Teese have contributed to the scene with a more
classic approach, but even those who try to remain true to the old ways
still seem to miss the point at times. I can only imagine that this is
due to burlesque in America having such a long and diverse history which
allows performers to pick and choose from any era of burlesque they wish.
Unfortunately, they seem to latch on to the more popular ideals of old
school burlesque which causes them to perform primarily striptease influenced
routines. The comedy and satire has been left by the wayside in favor
of the glitz and glamour. But, as the genre progresses, more and more
people are starting to pick up on the forgotten aspects of burlesque.
Another popular misconception about burlesque in America is that all of the performers are female strippers. When people hear the word “burlesque”, they immediately think of girls in pasties grinding against men while wearing leather hot pants and fishnet stockings. This is largely thanks to the false understanding in the 1950’s through the 1990’s that burlesque was an erotic fetish style of performance. This misunderstanding was exploited by Hollywood and, in many instances, popular television. Efforts to make potential modern audiences understand the true roots of burlesque are often in vain. Though America may seem morally liberal, the society as a whole is still chained to some very old-fashioned and conservative ideals that create prejudice for anything outside the norm. This attitude also causes people to be very judgmental and unwilling to try new things. This is a major obstacle for any American performer or troupe trying to promote themselves as true entertainers instead of morally corrupt heathen strippers who will rob you at gunpoint while seducing you with their dark and blasphemous mojo!
There are, however, some benefits to burlesque taking on some modern aspects of performance. Circus style acts have started making a comeback. Talented performers from every walk of life are slowly catching on and educating themselves about the roots of this ever-growing phenomenon. Every day, a new troupe is established somewhere in the country. The scene is expanding and, as with any growing form of entertainment, the performers and content get better and better. I don’t think that burlesque will unite all races and cultures and create total harmony across the globe, but I do believe it is playing its part in breaking down social barriers for the sake of great entertainment.
My
first hand experience with burlesque has been very rewarding and enlightening.
My attitude, social outlook, and even my faith in humanity have all undergone
vast changes over the past few years. Working in burlesque allows you
to see people in a completely different light. I can’t say for sure
if it’s true all over the world, but in America there are a lot
of performers with obnoxious egos that cannot get their head out of the
clouds. They like to think they live above the rest of society because
of their time in the spotlight. Dealing with these people is a real eye-opener
and it becomes impossible to forget just how eager people are to walk
all over you to get what they want. This attitude is one of the many reasons
that burlesque is not advancing as quickly as it could. Everyone is too
busy tearing each other down and striving for glory to concentrate fully
on the art. Luckily, there are exceptions and those exceptions are the
ones who carry the torch for the entire community. This was my goal. To
carry that torch so that everyone could see what burlesque was truly about.
This brings us back to beginning of this article. I’m still standing on the street wondering if I was about to kill my career in burlesque before it had even begun. The show was about to start and my nerves were on the verge of overcoming my entire being. I took a deep breath and headed inside, checking all the last minute details and asking everyone how they were feeling. The energy in the place was overwhelming. Three-hundred fans had filled this beautiful night club to see us perform. The sheer number of people in the audience was overwhelming. This was our premier! Our very first full-feature performance! Why had so many people decided to attend? Were they there to see us fail? Were they there because they thought they would see something we weren’t about to give them due to a misunderstanding of the word burlesque? Were they there to be truly entertained with open minds? It was almost too much to think about.
I called out to everyone backstage, “One minute, ladies and gentlemen!”
You could see everyone take a breath and steady themselves. I wanted to
vomit. I was concentrating so hard on not puking that I found myself standing
in the middle of the stage before I was really aware of where I was. Suddenly,
the spotlight hit me. Then, the most amazing thing happened. Something
I would have never expected in a million years. The entire audience let
out a roar so loud that I could not hear myself on the microphone. The
audience’s energy came flooding over the stage like a tsunami of
joy and exuberance. All doubt was instantly erased and I came to life.
The energy lasted all night long. From my first words to the grand finale,
the audience sent forward waves of acceptance and love. They were truly
enjoying what we had to offer. There has never been a moment in my life
that could rival that first five seconds on the stage of that nightclub.
It was then that I knew that burlesque could be accepted by people from all walks of life and that there was a real chance for the art form to make a name for itself again in America. Since that night, I have seen many stages and many different audiences and I’ve always met with the same result. People who had no idea what burlesque was, were personally thanking us for entertaining them in such a different way. It is my firm belief that, even though burlesque still has a long way to go, it will find a second golden age in this country. American performers are dedicated despite their egos and various flaws. The vision remains vivid in the hearts of everyone associated with the genre. It is that unconditional love that will breathe new life into this truly lost art and stitch it back into the fabric of American culture.
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