"An intoxicating mix of private thoughts and public behavior, A Wink and a Smile exposes more than the human body by putting gender, power, sexuality, and social identity under the glittery spotlight as it follows the lives of ten "ordinary" women who do something extraordinary — learn the art of burlesque dancing and striptease.

"Through their adventures, we see how a homemaker, a reporter, a doctor, an opera singer, a taxidermist, and a college student join the American cultural revival of burlesque, as it moves from fringe fascination to mainstream obsession, engaging a world where performance art and showgirl spectacle, music, theater, and sensuality crash into over-the-top glamour — a world where many want to go but very few dare."

On Saturday, May 2, I performed with some of the subjects of this film at Quad Cinema in New York, so I took it upon myself to interview the director.

Tell us a bit about your history as a filmmaker.

My film-making career began with acting school at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts when I was 19. I wanted to be an actress but gave up on those designs when my family made it perfectly clear that acting was bad, like stripping!

It turns out that they were wrong on both counts, but I listened to them anyway and instead became a reporter for newspapers, magazines, and online publications. But you can't control fate.

I started dabbling around with screenwriting a few years ago, and that was the beginning of the end — or the end of a false beginning, perhaps. I wrote script after script. And then I took film classes to learn how to turn those scripts into reality.

After making 15-some short films, I set out to make a feature-length movie on something that was sweet, funny, edgy, sexy, female oriented and true. And when you add all that up, it equals a documentary on burlesque!

How did you get interested in the subject of burlesque?

A little embarrassing disclosure here: I did not know what burlesque was back then. There. I said it. I was rearing a child as the "burlesque renaissance" was ramping up, so somehow I missed its emergence from the fringe world to the mainstream clubs and cabarets.

When I met a woman who was studying burlesque at Miss Indigo Blue's Academy of Burlesque in Seattle, however, I almost fell over.

I knew burlesque would contain everything that would make a film I could be proud of: cultural revolution, fantastic music, beautiful costumes, true tales, and sex appeal that would speak to every age, race, gender and size.

What drew you to the Academy of Burlesque?

After first hearing of the Academy of Burlesque, I contacted the headmistress, Miss Indigo Blue, and I told her that I wanted to make a film about burlesque. I also told her that I'd never made a feature-length film before and that I would be flying by the seat of my pants with her, if she were to be involved.

She listened but certainly didn't respond as if this were the best coffee date she'd ever had. When I settled on an angle that I found interesting — the journey of becoming a striptease artist — I asked her if I could cover her 101 class.

She didn't answer my request for a long time. Then she sent me an e-mail that just said, "Yes."

How did the students respond to your presence?

It's certainly awkward having cameras and lights in your face with some stranger asking you intimate questions about your body image, your sexual journey, and your basic life motivations — not to mention that you're stripping for the first time in your life with cameras recording every angle. Can you imagine?

So in the beginning, I'd say that the ladies were more reserved with the cameras and my questions. But at some point, everyone just let go, gave me their trust, opened up, and ran with me.

That was very exciting. That's when I knew we were going to reach some epiphanies that would not only help the film but would help the film's audience in reaching their own life epiphanies.

What was the most surprising thing about filming the students? About filming the shows?

Two things about filming the students: I was surprised at how loving the whole process was, and I felt very maternal toward the women and the project all the way through.

And I was oddly surprised at how sex and self-image were so entwined in the process of learning the art of striptease. Looking back, that seems like a major "duhhhhh," but really, I was so fixated on the glamour of burlesque that I hadn't thought much beyond that.

As far as filming the shows, the professionals were mind-blowingly professional. Most of them didn't receive their music until right before the show.

But they showed up and they blew us away with their creativity, their beauty, and their great senses of humor. I just want each and every one of them to receive the acknowledgment (and remuneration!) that they deserve considering the high level of entertainment that they bring to fans.

Did you ever take a class? If so, what was it like?

Yes, I did. I'm a ham from A to Z and I was only too happy — at the age of 42 and having nursed for more than two years — to get on stage, be funny, and strip. And I don't even like to be naked!

I'll never forget the first time that I stood on stage twirling tassels, looking out into the audience and seeing about 20 friends — men and women — laughing and holding up their drinks. I thought, "Well, so much for being self-conscious." It was extremely freeing.

In the long run, it has also made daily dressing and just walking down the street a lot more fun! I feel like it's something everyone should try once in their life, even if it's in the privacy of their own home.

Do you think you'll stay interested in burlesque?

Yes. Our company, Golden Echo Films, shoots burlesque shows whenever possible. Burlesque performers are smart, hard-working, focused, fun, talented, and experimental.

As I shift into making narrative musical films, I will continue to tap into this fantastic pool of talent. The burlesque community definitely feels like family to me.

Tell us about what's next for A Wink and A Smile.

Wink is hitting theaters in May and June. Then it will probably go to cable. And then it will be available on DVD. Stay tuned at www.firstrunfeatures.com or www.winkthemovie.com.

What's next for you? Any other subjects catching your eye?

We're now editing our second documentary, Pretty Funny Women, which will be completed this year. It's about a particular group of female stand-up comediennes in LA.

It will be funny, perhaps a little sad, and peppered with snippets of ridonkulous dancing. And I'm now writing scripts for narrative musicals. Stay tuned!

Trailer on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjDNZJYuQAY
Find us on Facebook under A Wink and a Smile
A Wink and a Smile: www.winkthemovie.com

- Jo Weldon

Jo Weldon is headmistress of the award-winning New York School of Burlesque and is a regular burlesque performer. Visit burlesquedaily.blogspot.com to read her daily blog.

Biel told Access Hollywood that her preparation for the role gave her new appreciation for the job. We look forward to seeing Jessica Biel's heart of gold, and in the meantime, here are the top ten movie strippers, according to PopEater.

A similar article appeared in Entertainment Weekly a while ago.

I love the articles, but they're not so very burlesquey, and they didn't include my personal favorite.

- Jo Weldon

Jo Weldon is headmistress of the award-winning New York School of Burlesque and is a regular burlesque performer. Visit burlesquedaily.blogspot.com to read her daily blog.

If you've ever seen Immodesty Blaize perform, you don't have to ask what burlesque is; she's it. With a larger-than-life stage presence and a smoldering charm offstage, Immodesty leaves a warm, curvy, sensual impression wherever she goes, and leaves every person she encounters with a happy yearning. Without further ado, I present the neo-legend that is the UK's gift to modern burlesque, Miss Immodesty Blaize.

When did you first see burlesque?
I blame my mother. We watched Gypsy [Lee Rose] together when I was very young, 5 or 6, I think. Obviously, Natalie Wood was beautiful, but I thought Mazeppah was the coolest lady I had ever seen. I liked her humor and even then I knew she was HOT.

Were you a performer before you began doing burlesque?

I never went to stage school; however, I used to travel the country as a little girl doing national dance competitions with modern, disco, and rock 'n' roll styles. It was all very "solid gold," but I loved the sequins, spandex, and the smell of hairspray!

I racked up an impressive shelf of trophies, but it was tough doing the elimination rounds. Once you had experienced being knocked out of the competition and having to leave the dance floor with your tail between your legs, you quickly found more inventive ways of really sparkling for the judges and letting your personality shine — along with ratting a bigger bouffant.

During my late teens, I took up both Latin and Arabic dance. I often find even now that I incorporate some of my Arabic shimmies, or a salsa step into my acts.

When I first performed burlesque circa ’98, there was no great awareness of the genre in London, or any kind of performance community yet. I had to literally bang down doors for stage space, and explain every five minutes what burlesque was and what my act was.

There wasn’t that much footage of the legendary performers readily available at that time either, just books mostly. I used to be inspired as much by Hollywood movies and actresses, Busby Berkeley musicals, and kitsch icons like Liberace, Divine, Grace Jones, Betty Page, and Dalida.

I also remember studying the "great effect" scene in The Graduate for hours, hoping I’d somehow master the dynamics of twirling a tassel by osmosis.

I don’t like to look at other performers’ acts for ideas unless I am consciously creating a tribute like my reverse striptease bath-time tribute to Lili St Cyr. Even then, I’ll add my own interpretation and choreography. Instead, I find ideas on my travels — maybe a new piece of music, or a piece of amazing fabric for a costume, or a scene in a book — anything, really.

My act with the six-foot vintage telephone came from listening to Blondie’s "Hangin’ on the Telephone" in my dressing room. I had a brainwave, then dismissed it as ridiculous.

After my show, I realized I had been sitting, staring at my autographed picture of Betty Page talking on a small black telephone and decided that it was a sign. I scribbled some drawings on the back of a napkin and sent it straight to my propmaker to see if my idea was possible.

Then came the fun part of watching every film noir movie I owned to distill the ultimate femme fatale. It took about a year to complete the act through concept, research, design, construction, and choreography before it was ready to unveil.

Where did you learn classic moves?

I owe that to my mentor, Basil –- a true show boy with a pedigree par excellence. He’s the real deal. He was on the road from the age of 14, performing with all the European burlesque greats from the '50s onward, in notorious theatres such as The Windmill, the Leeds City ("Titty") Varieties, the Talk of The Town, the Friedrichstadtpalast, etc.

He even performed with Liberace for three months when he came to UK to do The Palladium.

Basil tracked me down at one of my shows. His stories were amazing and we just clicked right away. He cracks the whip over me if he sees me holding my hands in the wrong way.

He even gave me special tips that he learned from Marlene Dietrich. He can parade as well as any model on the catwalk and fan dance as well as Faith Bacon, but with ten times more camp. He’s a gem.

I also really pay attention to the movement styles of legends like Lili and Blaze. They all had such different, diverse, and unique ways of moving. And whilst it’s good to learn tricks of the trade from them, I also think it’s absolutely essential to develop your own unique body language, style, and "isms" -– little moves special to you. That’s what makes you individual and is part of your unique persona.

I have been extremely lucky to work with some of the best musicians in burlesque. I've been performing, or at least dancing, to live music all my life, including one glorious night with Spinal Tap, but most of the time I was just dancing along to the music.

In burlesque with live music, there's real collaboration. The dancers rehearse their numbers with the bands, and the musicians watch the dancers to see if they need to give them a drum hit when a glove drops to the floor, if the music needs to be sped up or slowed down, or if they need to repeat a form until the dancer is ready to finish her number.

In New York, we have live music at the Slipper Room every Wednesday night with amazing musicians, including Brian Fisherman, with whom I've been performing for over 10 years. Le Scandal has featured The New York City Blues Devils and the Le Scandal Orchestra; Big Apple Burlesque features a live band every week.

Brian Newman produces a burlesque show with his trio at Duane Park, and there's more, including pianist and arranger Albert Garzon, who seeks out old burlesque music and creates shows based on burlesque legends like Lydia Thompson, Georgia Sothern, and Gypsy Rose Lee.

We have a wealth of live music in our burlesque. Most cities that have a burlesque scene have a swing band or two that will collaborate with dancers in some burlesque shows, and more and more shows are working with their own bands.

In this city, we have long had a wealth of extremely talented and devoted musicians that are specifically interested in collaborating with burlesque shows and doing music intended specifically for burlesque dancers.

At the moment, we're fortunate to have our own native son, Brooklyn-born Ronnie Magri, in his hometown. While living in New Orleans, he helped to create a scene that fostered dancers who would become The Atomic Bombshells of Seattle, who recently performed in Shanghai.

I know Ronnie from another life, when he was in a rock band called The Throbs. I also showed my photographs in a group show about burlesque with his amazing and beautiful wife, painter Charlene Lanzel.

More recently, I've had the privilege of using his music on my instructional DVDs produced by World Dance New York, and of discussing a long-term project I have in mind to promote appreciation of the music historically used in burlesque striptease and the musicians who choose to collaborate with burlesque dancers today.

Several months ago I interviewed him for this blog, and we decided to save the interview for the release of the DVD. So here it is, at long last, an interview with one of the legends of the burlesque revival!

I love, love, love the company, World Dance New York, with which I worked on Honey & Spice.

I also love that they are primarily a bellydance company, because there's some historical synchronicity: the company that released Ann Corio's How to Strip for Your Husband also produced bellydance music, and at one point released Ann's album as part of a set with a bellydance how-to album.

The music on How to Strip… was mostly by Sonny Lester and is a large portion of the music on the ubiquitous Striptease Classics.

The music on my DVD is by Ronnie Magri. I'll be posting my interview with him shortly. Ronnie is AMAZING!

Jo Weldon is headmistress of the award-winning New York School of Burlesque and is a regular burlesque performer. Visit burlesquedaily.blogspot.com to read her daily blog.

]]> http://alarmpress.com/8075/blog/columns/weekly-burlesque-honey-spice-dvd/feed/ 0 http://alarmpress.com/7927/blog/columns/weekly-burlesque-new-theater-in-denver/ http://alarmpress.com/7927/blog/columns/weekly-burlesque-new-theater-in-denver/#comments Tue, 03 Mar 2009 13:00:22 +0000 Jo Weldon http://www.alarmpress.com/?p=7927

"For the first time since the 1930s, a theatre is being built specifically to house burlesque, headed up by Reyna Von Vett and Michelle Baldwin.  Von Vett partook in last fall's acclaimed Leadville or Bust — a playful romp through 1880s burlesque (she also played Tanya for two years in the Las Vegas company of Mamma Mia!).  Baldwin, a.k.a. Vivienne VaVoom, is the mother of neo-burlesque in Denver and creator of one of the first neo-burlesque troupes in the US, Burlesque As It Was.

Converting the space recently known as the Black Box Cabaret in the Denver Civic Theatre (721 Santa Fe Dr.), Von Vett and Baldwin aim to bring burlesque back while paying homage to the great tradition of burlesque that began in the late 1800s and all but disappeared in the 1960s."

Burlesque Theatre Opens 3/13 At The Denver Civic Theater

Michelle Baldwin is the author of Burlesque and the New Bump-n-Grind, which is the perfect companion to my upcoming book.

I'm FROM Denver and I've never done burlesque there. You hear me, Michelle? I'm coming!!

- Jo Weldon

Jo Weldon is headmistress of the award-winning New York School of Burlesque and is a regular burlesque performer. Visit burlesquedaily.blogspot.com to read her daily blog.

Comments like this are why I encourage students to try stripping to the tunes that originally inspired many of the neo-burlesque performers who began in the 1990s, even though some of those performers may be over and beyond Ultra-Lounge by now. New audiences shouldn't be deprived of this amazing music.

Even though it's not burlesque, enjoy the following music history video, a tribute to a few of the versions of this amazing tune.

- Jo Weldon

Jo Weldon is headmistress of the award-winning New York School of Burlesque and is a regular burlesque performer. Visit burlesquedaily.blogspot.com to read her daily blog.

Get your application here!

- Jo Weldon

Jo Weldon is headmistress of the award-winning New York School of Burlesque and is a regular burlesque performer. Visit burlesquedaily.blogspot.com to read her daily blog.

This is a clip from the documentary No Strings Attached by Lisa Whitmer. She and her crew filmed me at Tease-O-Rama while teaching a version of my glove-and-stocking-peel class.

I love this clip because it shows the view I usually see — all the smiling faces and playfulness. I'm a lucky woman to get to do this for a living, and I know it!

See the trailer (which shows me as a bumping Godzilla among the goddesses) at http://www.lisawhitmer.com

"Bursting with sex appeal and kitschy charm, No Strings Attached is a playful romp through the world of burlesque, from its origins in the late nineteenth century to its contemporary revival. The film provides a peek through feathers and glitter at the Scenic Sisters, a San Francisco duo, as it prepares for the annual, international Tease-O-Rama convention."

Tease-O-Rama:
http://www.teaseorama.com

- Jo Weldon

Jo Weldon is headmistress of the award-winning New York School of Burlesque and is a regular burlesque performer. Visit burlesquedaily.blogspot.com to read her daily blog.

Dita proves that for a burlesque performer, it's what's underneath that counts — like $5 million worth of diamonds. And best of all, she didn't have to pay for them. However, as she said in the first part of this interview, she had her days of schlep while building her business.

Has your website been a relevant part of developing your career? Was it originally a lot of work and expense to create the site?

I started the site in the very early '90s. My boyfriend was really into this new thing called the "World Wide Web," and he had this idea that we would make a page and it would have pictures on it, and if someone sent us a check for like $10 or something, we would send them back a package of 3×5 prints of me in lingerie.

Gradually, as the Web evolved, so did this little site. At the time, there were no fetish or pinup websites; in fact, there were about 20 of us nude glamour models with little websites.

I regret that I didn't do like Danni Ash and make a big, giant, thousands-of-girls website. She became a multi-millionaire by studying how to build a site on her own. She paid girls to appear, and she pulled in about $5 million a year in profit. Amazing. And she was basically a stripper that bought a book and studied it and was brave enough to go for it!

My website now is more of a labour of love for me, and a source of income for those that work on it. The profit that I make from it is significant Web-wise, but it's a drop in the bucket compared to my other jobs.

I keep it going because it's important to me to have this connection to my fans. I don't have time to shoot special things for it like I used to, but I take scrapbook pictures from my travels, I write in a journal, I e-mail with members, I am always available on the message board to answer questions, and I'm around now and then for chats. I put all the video and pictures of my shows and photoshoots up there.

You are always so kind and generous with the members on your website — you seem very loyal to them. Would you like to comment on what it's like to have such lovely and devoted fans?

Well, I never thought that I would have so many female fans! I saw this big swing around, and suddenly I realized one day how many women were getting into the spirit of pinup and burlesque, and that there was some kind of comaraderie amongst us girls that couldn't or didn't want to fit into that typical supermodel, beach bade, natural kind of sexy.

It really hit me once when I was doing a book signing at Harrod's a few years ago, and I stepped out to see thousands of people and an army of glamour girls with their red lips on!

And I was fighting back the tears…seeing that I had those kinds of fans, and that they felt sexy and glamorous and were finding the same kind of empowerment I did when I made myself up.

It's amazing to me. It gave me a whole new outlook on what I do, and made me feel like I could do more to get across a good message about individuality. When I started working with The MAC Aids Fund and then Amfar, it really made me feel like I could turn this silly hobby into something that could make a little difference.

I made $150,000 for Amfar's HIV research by doing a couple striptease lessons, and that felt terrific to be able to do something. Okay, so maybe I am not a genius and I can't get in there and cure HIV, but at least I can help in my own way, even if it's in a ridiculous way.

What did you think of feature dancing? Did it help you learn to develop numbers? I remember that you were listed on Continental's website as a "novelty act" — do you think that's a signifier as to how different your style was from that of most features on the circuit at that time?

I think that it's not for everyone. It's a hard life, and it's not glamorous. But yes, it did help me develop a grander show, and I did have fun seeing the country, and I am glad that I did it.

But there were some really tough moments, and it was sort of depressing, especially if you think that all the clubs are big, beautiful places and that there are limousines and fancy stages. There certainly were some, but just when I would start enjoying and settling into these upscale clubs, there I would be, in the next city, in some hell-hole of a club, in the tiniest dressing room ever, in a gross motel.

I would trek out to the department store and buy my own sheets, towels, and bathmats to make a path to walk on the dirty stained carpets. But I had this "that's showbiz!" attitude that kept me going, and I knew that this was somehow going to be "character building!"

And I do have to say, sometimes I miss hitting that strip-club stage where there isn't a journalist, a camera crew, paparazzi, or even a camera phone in sight! It's so freeing to let loose and do a good show without worrying about all that other stuff. I just love being on stages now where there are no cameras.

The Crazy Horse Paris is great. It's a real theatre, and no one would dare pull out a camera phone. They have someone at every single show watching the audience. I hate that people can't just sit and enjoy the show anymore; everyone has to document everything they see.

When I see a show, I want to drink in every second of it and remember it as it really was. Cameras can't capture that feeling you get when you see a great show. [I understand that! Sometimes I feel a little off when I'm performing and I can't see the audience for the cameras. But I'm super grateful for pictures of shows that I wouldn't get to see at all otherwise. And, of course, I love to take pictures. - Jo]

What makes up the largest part of your workday?

I don't really have a typical workday. It all depends on what I have going on at the time. Sometimes I get to work on shows, like making new ones, or rehearsing, and sometimes I am in full-press mode, doing days and days in a row of interviews. They work you like a machine.

I did a few 17-hour-long days recently for all the press for Wonderbra, and there comes a point where no amount of flowers, champagne, free shoes and clothes, and fabulousness that comes your way can help! Sleep is all you want!

I know it seems impossible, but believe me, it's like my eyeballs are going to fall out and I can't even talk  or answer one more question about how I got my start or what burlesque actually is. But one good night of sleep and I am ready to go, go, go again! It's not a complaint; it's just that you can't imagine how crazy it can get, and I can see why some celebrities snap.

I haven't snapped yet, thank goodness. I would say that when I'm not performing or doing appearances and press for my projects, I'm at home, answering e-mails, talking with my manager about what's going on, taking meetings for possible projects, and doing pilates and taking ballet classes, reading books, or watching films that inspire me, and just doing the day-to-day stuff.

I love just being home, wearing no makeup, washing the dishes, doing the laundry and hanging out with my animals. They never ask me what burlesque is and how I define it!