Talking with Dita: Part Four

In the October issue of the Canadian magazine Glow, I wrote a piece about the history and revival of burlesque. Not all of my interview with Dita Von Teese made it into the story so I've been serving up occasional outtakes. Here's the final one.

How can women look to burlesque in order to tap into their sassier side?
Play dress up. Try new things like garterbelts and seamed stockings, and lingerie with a bit of red and black lace.

Try performing a striptease at home for your lover.

Have fun with sex. Burlesque was fun! Get in touch with the playful and fun side of sex! Laugh a little, tease a little, and don't take it all so seriously (except when it comes to safe sex, of course!)

Have fun with glamour. Try a bit of red lipstick, a sexy full lash, and put some sexy Veronica Lake waves in your hair. Play!

Dance around your house to your favorite music for 30 minutes as exercise. I do it all the time! I even bounce around on a little trampoline in my underwear, and that's a heck of a workout!

Have a burlesque-themed party. Everyone loves an excuse to wear a feather boa to a party, trust me.

Think about this. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so that means what makes you unique and different is what makes you sexy and beautiful. To me, this is an important aspect of burlesque. Don't think about what you think other people perceive as being sexy. You can only be sexy when YOU are confident and happy, so do what it takes to make you feel that way.

~Part One of Talking with Dita
~Part Two of Talking with Dita
~ Part Three of Talking with Dita

Talking with Dita: Part Three

In the October issue of the Canadian magazine Glow, I wrote a piece about the history and revival of burlesque. Not all of my interview with Dita Von Teese made it into the story so I'll be serving up occasional outtakes.

Why do you think the neo-burlesque movement has gained momentum in the last few years? What's behind the increased interest?
The media gave it a lot of attention, and so the interest grew.

What is burlesque's appeal for people today?
I think a lot of women see it as a way to feel beautiful and sexy without fitting into the typical modern day standards of beauty, where the emphasis seems to be on natural, bikini-model, so-called healthy looking tanned slim bodies. Burlesque embraces artifice and fantasy and it's an image that can be created and emulated. It's about sensual freedom, and the enjoyment of sex and fun of a playful nature! Seduction and feminine prowess! And I would say that the men, for the most part, are enjoying the benefits of this.

Is that different than its appeal to audiences fifty years ago?
I think that the emphasis was more on titillation for a predominantly male audience, but I think its also quite interesting that it was more acceptable back then in many ways than it is now in the United States. I perform a lot more often in Europe, and there is an entirely different attitude toward burlesque as art, whereas in the US, sadly, most people don't know the rich history of burlesque in America, where it was truly invented and perfected. Americans have taken steps backwards with regard to sex and nudity, and that's a shame.

~Part One of Talking with Dita
~Part Two of Talking with Dita

Talking with Dita: Part Two

In the October issue of the Canadian magazine Glow, I wrote a piece about the history and revival of burlesque. Not all of my interview with Dita Von Teese made it into the story so I'll be serving up occasional outtakes.

How is today's burlesque different than burlesque fifty years ago?
Well, burlesque was basically dead fifty years ago! The golden age of the burlesque theatre ended in the late 1940s when nightclubs became more popular. But in the '30s and '40s, when burlesque theatres were thriving, burlesque audiences were mainly working class men looking for a thrill. You had the grand theatres, like Minsky's, and the audiences of men AND women came out to see the really big stars, like Gypsy. But in your average burlesque show, in the golden age of burlesque, you would have seen a lot of men.

Now, we have a much more diverse audience. I can say that the majority of my own fan base is comprised of young women who are embracing glamour and are getting in touch with their inner bombshells by either performing burlesque in their hometown or for their lovers, or simply enjoying the style of dressing that was popular at the time. And I also think that many of today's dancers are performing for their own empowerment rather than to please their audience and make a living.

What is the difference between stripping and burlesque?
Well, if you ask me, I would say that there isn't technically a difference! Burlesque dancers WERE strippers! They used this term in burlesque. So burlesque is the show, and the dancers were strippers. Okay, so I know that what you really want to hear is what makes me different from a modern day pole dancer/stripper. Well, we are all one in the same, but burlesque is where this whole idea of removing clothes to music in front of an audience started, and pole dancing is where it has evolved to. I refuse to say that I'm "classier" or "better" than any other exotic dancer. I essentially do the same thing - perhaps with more spectacle, and with retro flair. I like the fact that burlesque alway has been risque, and I am confident with myself enough to say that I am proud to be a stripper.

Who are your burlesque role models? What is it that appeals to you about them?
Gypsy is a big role model for me, because she managed to become a major mainstream star, against the odds. Anyone can be an actress or a singer - it's acceptable. But to be a world famous stripper is an entirely different feat! So she did it, and that gave me the hope that if did my very best work, and stuck by my dream and didn't falter or change my path according to what the modern "formula" for success is, that I may have a chance to succeed as a burlesque dancer. I always understood that what makes someone unique is what makes them stand out, and I think that there are a lot of people that don't get that concept. They think that they should follow someone else's game plan.

~ Part One of Talking with Dita

Talking with Dita

In the October issue of the Canadian magazine Glow, I wrote a piece about the history and revival of burlesque. Not all of my interview with Dita Von Teese made it into the story so I'll be serving up occasional outtakes.

How would you define burlesque?
I usually describe burlesque as a form of live entertainment that was popularized in the 1930s and '40s in America. It was a bit like Vaudeville, which was a variety show, but in Burlesque, the comedy sketches were more sexual in nature, and in burlesque, the headliners were striptease artists. You had all kind of burlesque queens, some were very elegant - like Gypsy Rose Lee, Sally Rand and Lili St. Cyr - and then again you had some really racy dancers too.

How did you get into burlesque?
I was obsessed with films from the '30s and '40s. When I was a teenager, I worked in a lingerie store, and I became very interested in the history of lingerie, and began collecting vintage lingerie and clothes. I wore my hair and makeup in vintage style, and later, when I was 18, I wanted to be photographed pinup style for my boyfriend. It became a hobby for me, making these cheesecake pics, and I started one of the first adult websites on the internet in the early '90s, and it was all retro fetishism and pinup. I was also working in a strip club in 1991, and of course, wearing my corsets and stockings and that is basically how I learned about burlesque. I always wanted to to know the complete history of everything I loved. I developed my profile over the years, so basically, it took me over a decade to get where I am now.

What are the trademarks of a good burlesque performer?
Individuality has always been a key factor, along with charisma and stage presence. But I think the real trick is when it looks effortless and fun, and when the dancer doesn't look like she is trying to be sexy. And above all, because the great burlesque stars were all self-made, I think that it's key that a burlesque dancer creates her own act. It takes some major ambition and desire behind a burlesque act to make it great. It doesn't work when it's just a girl being put in a costume and learning choreography, you lose that individuality and the power behind the performance when it's contrived like that. It's the biggest mistake I see in some of the commercialized burlesque clubs. It looks sanitized and cheesy and there is no heart in the act. It just becomes a pretty girl dancing around, and that isn't enough to be a star. With any performance, this is true, actually. Historically, the best entertainers aren't always "technically" the best when you think about it.