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Tits, arse and tassels
13 October 2008 23:29:40
 Tits, arse and tassels Or how I learned to love the nipple When former stripper Dita Von Teese finished off Sydney fashion week earlier this year by riding a giant bucking lipstick, cowboy style, the verdict was clear: burlesque is making a serious comeback.Strange as it might seem that sequin-covered grandma knickers are the next big thing in art, the genre is kicking off with a vengeance in theatres, clubs and dance studios around the world. With an emphasis on theatrics, curves and costume, watching burlesque is like attending a strip club for beginners. If you’re not sure where to look, there are plenty of things to distract you. On the other hand, if you’re hoping to see flagrant nakedness, you may be sorely disappointed. Burlesque performer and teacher Rebecca Gale, whose credits include offending an entire room of government scientists with her Mrs Crabopple-esque balloon-popping routine, says that nudity is rare in her shows. ‘What I was getting frustrated with is that people are showing up expecting to see naked people, but the girls only ever get down to nipple tassels and full briefs’. ‘To me, that’s not stripping,’ she says.  to nipple tassels and full briefs" The art of tease began long before pin-up girl, Von Teese traded her pole for frilly pants and feathers, starting out as a cheap gimmick used by jaded performers in run down North American theatres when audiences, struck down by the depression era, began to disappear? Pioneering the art form was young actress Gypsy Rose Lee, whose sub-standard singing talents made her a poor stage attraction in the vaudeville clubs she frequented, leading her to turn to alternate ways of making a buck. Among her strengths were stand up comedy and cross dressing, but she quickly found her most profitable performances came by ‘accidentally’ flashing some flesh beneath her costumes. Lee, whose lack of singing talent incurred the wrath of her stage-manager mother, locked onto peep show-style burlesque as a way of abandoning the family stage show and forging her own independence. She combined her artful strip tease with a quick comedic wit and some clumsy musical backing to forge a new style of stage show. Burlesque, to Lee, was freedom. So successful was the venture that a flood of copycats appeared on the West Coast vaudeville circuit, cementing the act as a theatrical staple. Although it fell somewhat into recession during the 1950s, the modern revival seems to draw on a similar vein of freedom, with the modern world increasingly turning its attention turning to the glamour and sensuality associated with erotica. Burlesque dancers claim that the tease is liberating and sexual without being pornographic. Rebecca agrees, saying that her class teaches dancers to feel good about themselves as well as how to dance, strip and perform on stage.? ‘I encourage my students to use their faces and to feel sexy, rather than just to act. It’s not trying to be sexy, it’s actually being sexy. You have to believe it to really let that show through’. The recent rise in popularity has in part been brought to the world’s attention by glittering celebrities such as the Pussycat Dolls, capitalizing on the use of kinky props and highly choreographed stripping. The fashion industry has also taken inspiration from old world glamour, with high waists, ornate trims and kinky footwear all getting a whirl on the catwalk this year. But despite all the glamour Burlesque claims to offer, are modern interpretations still a case of more ‘sleaze’ than ‘tease’? Australian burlesque dancer Cass Wall, who is also, a singer and lead vocalist of Brisbane band Tan Tan Tanuki, says modern forms of the genre can be a mixture of both. ‘Most troupes at the moment are performing just the act of stripping and choreographed dancing, which is fun, but it’s not really what Burlesque was originally about.’  Cass believes there is strong market for more classic style of burlesque dancing. ‘I want to start my own troupe that incorporates traditional acts, which caters to all kinds of audiences – not just those who want to see some tits and arse’. She says, adding that what was missing in today’s version of the dance was an element of humour. ‘The term ‘burlesque’ actually means to satirize, to parody, and the shows were overall quite witty. It has roots much deeper than just stripping!’ She says. Given its comedic history, it’s hardly surprising to learn that the term ‘burlesque’ itself refers to an obscure form of slapstick comedy where actors hit each other on the bum with a wooden stick. How this bizarre act transformed into a legitimate form of dance that leaped decades to land firmly in the present is unclear, but one thing that is certain is that the performance has claimed its place in the present. Burlesque is something of a backlash against the modern world, where the public are no longer shocked and easily aroused by the simple revelation of nudity. Stripping, then, is seedy and boring, while burlesque is naughty but nice. It’s the kind of show you could see with mates without pretending you’re just after cheap beer, where the audience is half women and you don’t need to fill your wallet with fake cash. It’s the type of dance you’d want your girlfriend to do – without feeling the need to call her by someone else’s name.  |
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