How I Got Involved With the
Burlesque Community
It was
the night before my first project proposal was due. I was kind of new at this.
“Pick a group of people in New York that interests you,” was pretty much the
core instruction we had been given as fledgling anthropologists. I thought okay, what interests me? Swingers interest
me. Didn’t work. It was Valentine’s Day, I guess they were busy. So with the gnawing recognition that I was
just about screwed, I went with a good friend to “Sex and Taboo: A Valentine’s
Day Massacre; Burlesque Dance*” at La Poisson Rouge. I had never been to a
burlesque show., and honestly had no idea what was in store. I tried to keep my
cool, but that was sort of hard with Cassandra Rosebeetle portraying a bloody
virgin victimized by XX and Miss Rosewood – well, being Miss Rosewood. I was hooked. The next morning I handed in a
paper topic with the title “Burlesque in the City.”
A week
later I wound up at Joe’s Pub on the suggestion of another student (Grace
Patterson, you ma grrl). It was there that I got my first real taste of the
community, from the costume to the striptease; from the slow reveal to the wild
cheers in the audience. Afterwards I worked my way around the bar, striking up
conversation with some of the performers. I was met with friendliness and an enthusiasm
I honestly didn’t expect. It was then
that I met Bastard Keith, the hilarious and charismatic show host whose job it
is to introduce the dancers and keep the energy sexy. “I would love for you to
meet my wife, Madame Rosebud. We’ll talk burlesque,” he said. Uh, yes!!
After writing a short paper
about burlesque as an avenue for performers’ personal expressions and
explorations, the semester was over. My interest in burlesque was not. I hung
around shows, meeting people, cheering and jeering , notebook in hand, simply
because I loved it. For thirst of knowledge, for a good time, for unforgettable
acts, for beautiful women, for the relationships I had formed in the community,
and for hope of diving in deeper one day, I stuck around long after my mini
project was over. I tagged along with Madame Renee Rosebud and Bastard Keith to
the Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekend in Las Vegas. In between meeting all kinds
of fascinating, sexy people; in between acts stretching well into the night,
every night; in between the leather and the latex and the nudity and the gowns
there was some beautiful, enlightening conversation. Strung out in a weird New
Orleans-immitation hotel, in the heart of a city that doesn’t make any sense
whatsoever, I realized that the burlesque community, however that may be
defined, is a lot like the land inside a snow-globe. A reality inside of
reality; not exactly “real,” but happening.
In
April, 2012, I got down with it and applied for my first grant. I was going
legit on NYU’s budget. Score. So from
now until the end of the summer, I’ll be going to shows, talking with people on
the scene, and burying my little nose in all the burlesque and
burlesque-related literature I can get my nerdy hands on. I’ll be exploring that
idea which my friend Tony pointed out so clearly; that in every woman there is
a little burlesque, yes. I’m
especially interested in performers who identify and perform – on and off the
stage – as FTF, or female-to-female. Simply put, these are women who are
hyper-stylized in their acts, speech, and/or appearance, so that they are effectively
in drag (For more on this, see my post, Girls Who Think Like Boys Who Act Like Girls, a
rumination on Esther Newton’s Mother Camp
and FTF performance). Ultimately I want to argue that, indeed, there are
performance elements woven throughout every intricate level of gender identity,
no matter how one identifies.
I want
to thank Rosebud and Keith for – well, a lot more than words can say. You’ve
been and continue to be truly amazing, as performers and as friends. Also to
Professors Lynn Sally and Rayna Rapp, for your guidance and support. Really the
entire burlesque community here in New York deserves a big thanks, for
welcoming me in and um, totally rocking.
XOXO
-SS
* I learned later that the show I
saw, though it did incorporate some burlesque acts, was not a burlesque show proper. While it did incorporate variety
and some other basic elements we would expect at a burlesque show (boobies, provocation,
and punning), not all of the performers considered themselves burlesque
dancers, stating that “what they do is not burlesque.” Tossing the word “burlesque”
into the show title is a great advertising method, though, as evidenced by the
overfull house that night.
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