Noel Toy
Ed. note: This blogpost originally appeared on Soft Film as as “Noel Toy: Our Lady of Feathers.” It is a reprint of an article that first appeared in the cheesecake tabloid CO-EDS (May 1942). The photos are accompanied by their original captions. U. OF C.’s NOEL TOY NOBODY’S PLAYTHING CHINA GIRL CAN DISH
Performance Archetypes: The Half-and-Half
While I’ve yet to find conclusive proof of its origin, the Half-and-Half—in which a solo performer utilizes clever, vertically divided costuming and skillful choreography to create the illusion of a duet—has long been a staple of classic burlesque performance. Most commonly associated with dichotomous male/female numbers (like Zorita’s racy “Bride & Groom,” top),