Burlypedia: Ballyhoo

Today's burlypedia is brought to you by the apologetic Senator Vitter, his Bobbitt-threatening wife and the DC Madam because apparently the culture wars just aren't the same.

In burlesque, the ballyhoo was the spiel used to advertise the show by the pitchman outside the theater. The word has come to mean blatant advertising or a clamour or outcry. According to Wikipedia, "The term Ballyhoo is used to indicate that one is using any means necessary to inflate an object or idea to a status to which it does not rise."

Burlypedia: Banned in Boston

The Puritan-founded city of Boston maintained strict censorship rules when it came to theatrical performances, movies and concerts. From the 19th century on Boston officials regularly banned anything they found to be objectionable, salacious, inappropriate or offensive. The phrase Banned in Boston was used to describe the books, movies and other performances that were prohibited in the city. In burlesque, dancers around the country would perform the Boston or clean version of their routines when cops or vice officials were known to be in the audience. The last of the Boston city censors was Richard Sinnott. After banning Marvin Gaye and the Jackson Five, the appropriately named censor left the post in 1982 when the city elminated the position. In the words of the banned R&B singer, Boston was finally free to get it on.

Burlypedia: Merkin

Today's burlypedia is inspired by Zumanity, an amazing show that gives audience participation a whole new meaning. There was at least one performance in the sexy Cirque du Soleil spectacle where the dancers used merkins, a wig for the nether regions. It's been used by burlesque dancers as a way to comply with censors and the law while still giving the illusion of complete nudity. Today they can be an obvious part of a costume like the bright, pink one at left, or as in the case of Zumanity, realistic enough to make you wonder that maybe, just maybe you're seeing the bare essentials.

When The Candy Pitch returns from Vegas tune in for all the dish on Exotic World, Forty Deuce, Zumanity and the Playboy Club.

Burlypedia: Lydia Thompson and the British Blondes

In the late 1860s Lydia Thompson and her British Blondes introduced burlesque to Americans. The troupe's first show was Ixion, a mythological spoof that had the performers playing men's roles in tights and what were then considered skimpy costumes. In an age when women hid their figures underneath bustles and big skirts, the British Blondes scandalized Americans and sold out theaters. Now, they look overdressed.

Burlypedia: The Candy Pitch

So what is the candy pitch? Well, in burlesque theaters it was the spiel the candy butcher would use to hock his tasty treats and delectable confections in between acts as he walked up and down the aisles. Besides promising a prize in every box, he would offer a salacious preview of the next act.

Here, it's a sweet morsel of burlesque news.