Bring on the Burlesque!

(I'm paraphrasing) that a naked woman in our society is acceptable, but a naked woman talking is unacceptable. Even though most burlesque is set to music, I look at it as naked women talking.  The performers are expressing themselves, their creativity AND their sexuality, and sensuality all in one swoop.

What does butch burlesque look like? What was your inspiration for the class?

We'll see what Butch Burlesque looks like as it's my first time teaching it this May-June. But, to me, there's nothing sexier than a butch woman. So, I can't wait!  I don't want to fall into stereotypes or expectations though. That's what I love about burlesque. Truly, anything goes. So, if a butch woman wants to do a very masculine strip tease, great.  Maybe she'll want to do something crazy feminine and explore another side of her. Or perhaps a combination of both or maybe a piece that has nothing to do with gender at all. My inspiration is I know so many butch women that have told me they would take my workshop if I had it for butches. I'm also opening it up to FTM.  So, we'll see how it all shakes out.

How is burlesque not just another way of exploiting women's sexuality? 

Good question.  In some venues, and with some performances I've seen, I do think it can be just another way of exploiting a woman's sexuality.  To me, what makes burlesque liberating and empowering is when there is absolutely no compromising of one's self.  Burlesque is at its best when it's the woman expressing her individuality and celebrating her sexual power and physicality through movement, often humor and grace.   She is not doing it to please or embody some put-upon concept of womanhood, but doing it for own sense of accomplishment in creating and performing one's own work, and expressing one's individuality both physically and on a soul level.

What do you do when you're not burlesquing, so to speak? 

Well, I rarely perform burlesque these days unless it's for a lot of money or a really good friend.  I'm focused on creating my new solo show as part of my second year as a BAX/Brooklyn Arts Exchange Artist in Residence. It's called Girl Meat (going up this April 23-25!) and is about the most prolific serial killer in history: Countess Elizabeth Bathory. Of course, most people haven't heard of her because there's even a glass ceiling for females when it comes to serial killers! Obviously, I also teach performance and burlesque. I also love curating variety shows and doing my Liza Minnelli impression when I emcee. And then, I do intuitive readings, which is a whole other conversation.

Thanks, Vic! You can check out all her work and upcoming classes (there’s a series in April, May and June) at www.howlingvic.com.