“Burlesque, in its basest form…is an exaggeration of what it’s like to be a woman,” explains Burgundy Brixx. As you can glean from her stage name, Brixx—real name Kirsten Hogan—is quite the burlesque authority. Brixx and her partner, the Purrfessor (Doug Thoms), are royalty in the Vancouver burlesque scene and co-founders of Kitty Nights, Vancouver’s longest-running weekly burlesque show. With 12 troupes performing regularly around the city, several weekly events and an international festival entering its sixth year, Vancouver may well become a burlesque hotspot.

A grand old revival

Burlesque dancing has enjoyed a revival in the past few years and has entered the mainstream in ways that are troubling to purists like Brixx. A trained dancer, she got her start in New York performing with the Rockettes, creators of the now iconic chorus line. She and the Purrfessor moved to Vancouver in 2008, founding Kitty Nights shortly thereafter.
Most people think of burlesque in one of two ways. Some picture iconic pin-up girls: vintage hairstyles, garter belts and feather fans; curvy women bumping and grinding to the growl of sax-driven jazz. Then there are modern interpretations, a la the impossibly toned Pussycat Dolls, dancing hip-hop in lingerie and singing suggestive pop music. And with the release of the controversial film (in the burlesque community, anyway), Burlesque, starring Cher and Christina Aguilera, this confusion about what burlesque truly is will grow even further.

Brixx says these two conceptions of burlesque are fundamentally opposed to one another. “It can be argued that people like the Pussycat Dolls are burlesque in that they do exaggerate some aspects of being female, but it’s very limited what they do. It’s not inclusive in terms of body type, in terms of comedy; it’s not inclusive as an art form. It’s a very slim section on the grander scale of what burlesque is.”

The Pussycat Dolls and the Burlesque film represent a mainstream grab at a recent resurgence in burlesque culture. A 2008 New York Times article called it “neo-burlesque,” with new troupes and events of all shapes and sizes taking root around that city. According to Kate Valentine, founder of one of New York’s first neo-burlesque troupes, interest in burlesque has grown exponentially since around 2002. “A single current seems to characterize all these incarnations of burlesque,” said the article. “An exasperation with the corporate blandness of modern mass entertainment…to satisfy audiences jaded by Hollywood blockbusters, and seeking personalized, nervy and unpredictable shows with homemade authenticity.”

“What the revival has done is brought back the original elements of burlesque and combined them with the elements of striptease to create an art form that is really unique and empowering and performance art-based,” said Brixx. “It can be social and political satire…and what it always is, is original and individual as well as being an art form that embraces all different female body types!”

Said performer Fawna Fontaine, who requested that only her stage name be used, “Burlesque is so much more than getting onstage and looking like a Pussycat Doll…it’s got no boundaries. It can be showy and beautiful…but getting to the bluntness of burlesque is what makes it beautiful.”

This ‘blunt’ authenticity is what made burlesque so popular in the first place. Burlesque has been around since the 1890s, but became extremely popular in the first half of the 20th century. Early burlesque was notable for its provocative performances, which combined the sensuous, the farcical and the political—often parodying the refined sensibilities of the upper class.

To strip or not to strip?

Though it varies from show to show, there is usually nudity in burlesque. This has led some to argue that burlesque is not an empowering art form. This became an issue when the city of Glasgow, Scotland, put forward a bill requiring burlesque clubs acquire “sexual encounter” entertainment licenses or shut down, according to a BBC article dated May 29, 2009. Laurie Penny, a feminist journalist and burlesque dancer, described the situation in that city. “Some club owners may think, ‘Let’s have a burlesque night. We’ll put some strippers in corsets,’” she said. “I don’t think the ultimate symbol of feminist empowerment is for women of any size to be sex-objects.”

Club owners interviewed in the article indicated that typically roughly 60 per cent of the audience for their burlesque nights was female.

“If people are going solely to see a girl take off her clothing…you’re there for the wrong reasons. There’s more of an artistic value there,” said Fontaine. However, the nudity often is an integral part of the show. In Brixx’s opinion, “I think it’s important to be able to show people that nudity does not have to be dirty and vulgar but that it can be fun and playful and that people should embrace their sensuality rather than pushing it aside. What burlesque always was in the golden age was a comment on people’s hang-ups about sex and body types.”

Although they are both in the category of “exotic entertainment,” burlesque dancers see a difference between what goes on at a stripclub versus a burlesque show. Said entertainer Maggie Pie, who also requested only her stage name be used: “Burlesque is for the gratification of the performer. Strip clubs are for the gratification of the audience.”

“They’re not doing it for the money,” added Brixx. “They’re not doing it because they need that guy in the audience to go with them into the back room and give them money for a lapdance. It’s a completely different objective. Burlesque is more sensual than sexual. Our gestures may be suggestive, but they’re not vulgar.”

Putting the ‘va va voom’ in Vancouver

Vancouver’s introduction to burlesque came in the early 2000s with the formation of troupes like Sweet Soul Burlesque and Screaming Chicken Theatrical Society, many of which are still around.

“Vancouver gives me the vibe of New York in the 80s where it was full of bohemians and artists and all these great musicians and people who were really doing something with their art because they didn’t have money to do anything else…you have to make your own fun,” said Brixx. “Artists come out of those dire straits communities. Vancouver just retains its sort of raw power and I believe that’s why there’s so much creativity that comes out of it. Also because it’s Hollywood North, the influx of makeup artists and special effects people and costuming people here are a huge contribution to the burlesque community.”

Numerous Vancouver burlesque troupes and performers have taken home awards for their work. Last year, several Vancouver troupes performed in the Miss Exotic World Pageant—generally considered the top honour for a performer in the world of burlesque. Melody Mangler, head of Screaming Chicken, won Best Debut in 2009 and competed for the title of Miss Exotic World this year.

Brixx and the Purrfessor are also founders of the Vancouver International Burlesque Festival, which ran four nights in early May to a sold out audience.

Brixx and the Purrfessor’s time as the burlesque barons of Vancouver may be coming to a close. They are currently fighting a deportation notice after their work permits were denied renewal. However, they remain positive and hopeful about the development the burlesque scene in Vancouver will go through in the coming years. Said Brixx, “In the next five years, I would like to see burlesque in Vancouver become much larger and be respected—not as underground, but as a legitimate part of the arts scene in Vancouver.”

Siri Williams is involved in the Vancouver  burlesque scene, performing as Holly Allnightly.

CORRECTION: In the November 22 issue of The Ubyssey, the article “Burlesque! The Feature” incorrectly stated that Cheesecake Burlesque, Naughty and Spice and Girls on Top Cabaret were Vancouver burlesque troupes. The first two troupes are from Vancouver Island, and the latter no longer exists. It also incorrectly identified the author Siri Williams, who is a solo performer, as a member of a burlesque troupe. This was an editorial mistake. The Ubyssey regrets these errors.

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