Built to Bare: The Art of Engineering Clothes Designed to Come Off

Taking it off is the simple part. A striptease costume is the culmination of countless hours of labor- designing, drafting, testing, fitting, repeat - to…

Becoming Burlesque

In 1927, struggling vaudevillean Rose Louise Hovick stepped onto a burlesque stage for the first time, transforming herself into the urbane, sophisticated stripper Gypsy Rose…

Dancing the Revolution: Feminism in Burlesque History

Most burlesque dancers throughout history would not have considered themselves “feminists”. In fact, many clashed with the feminists of the day who were attacking their…

Spectacular, Erotic, and Slightly Shocking: A Timeline of American Burlesque

With roots in the tragicomedies of ancient Greece, American burlesque first emerged in 1860s. Driven by the industrial working class’ hunger for entertainment, an individualistic…