What's the greatest compliment a viewer can give to a performer?

-

"I don't want to be on the list, I want to pay to get in and support the show."

Just kidding! Actually, the best compliment is always a straightforward expression of appreciation--"I loved your number" or "I was really moved by your number." And of course my favorite compliment in the world is, "Watching you made me want to do burlesque too!"

Occasionally people accidentally insult me or one of my friends when they are complimenting; they'll say, "That was so much better than that skanky pole dancing" (I love to watch pole dancing), or some compliment about liking my number better than a number someone else did. Any comparison should be left out, it's just not necessary! Just say what you like.

I performed a burlesque fan dance number at the 2009 Pole Dancing Championship, after which Carmit Bachar of the Pussycat Dolls came up to me and said how lovely my number was. The pole dancer and the fan dancer should be friends!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qkk0ZmBfoYs

Ask me anything about Burlesque!

Comments

Gaina said…
I agree with you 100% on pole dancing. I can't believe people are getting so uptight about the prospect of it's inclusion in the Olympics!

Cirque Du Soleil do it and nobody would bats an eyelid, so what's the difference between them and the women in that video? People are such hypocrites.
May 14, 2010 at 12:20 PM
Unknown said…
I agree Gaina; I've told some of my family and friends that I've taken a class (hard as SHIT by the way, oh my GAWD!)and there's not much enthusiasm but I'm gonna keep it up anyway, just to be able to do maybe half of what I just saw here. And Jo, I wholeheartedly agree that fan/lap/pole/belly should be friends, as NONE of us are "good girls" by society's lame standards. :)
May 14, 2010 at 1:23 PM
shimarella said…
I love this video...I do some aerial silk work but am not sure I have the core strength some of these women do!
May 15, 2010 at 11:59 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Girls in Giant Champagne Glasses

-
Image
Today I received this question from a reader: "[I] was wondering if you might know where one could purchase an oversized champagne glass, like the one dita von tease or catherine d'lish uses????" Venus Delight in her Giant Champagne Glass circa 1989-1994. Photo Property of Venus Delight. Catherine D'Lish in her champagne glass at Tease-o-rama 2002. Photo Copyright Jo Weldon. Honestly, I probably can't afford a giant champagne glass, and if I could afford it, I probably couldn't afford to store or transport it, and even if I could, I couldn't afford stage hands to get it onto the tiny stages I usually occupy. It just so happens, however, that I do know how to purchase one. What I know is that you have to have one made, unless you can find one used, as they are not mass-produced. If you want to have one made, you first have to locate a prop maker or custom acrylic fabricator. The same prop makers who make props for movies, theater, and events a
Read more

How to Get Started as a Performer in Burlesque

-
Image
Above: Jo Weldon performing at The Burlesque Hall of Fame. Photo by Tigz Rice. Many students come to my classes with the intention to perform professionally. Not all who want to perform want to become fulltime performers, but they'd like to get onstage now and then. I work in the field of what I call "Independent Burlesque," where most performers are creating individual acts that then get booked into variety or burlesque shows. People also sometimes hear about a theme for a show and then create an act based on that theme, or start producing a show for which they then create acts. There are as many different approaches as there are people to come up with them. However, for this article, let's focus on what most of my students are asking me about, which is how to get booked as a solo performer in a burlesque show that already exists. I'll also be focusing mostly on how things work in New York. Traveling to work is a separate topic, but I'll have an article
Read more

Tami Roche

-
Image
Image courtesy of Skinnergy . When I was growing up in Atlanta, I saw the strip joint signs and old burlesque signs; I was also aware of Atlanta's burlesque star, Tami Roche. Because I started working the clubs in 1980, there were still some dancers who had done burlesque in the 50s and 60s around, some of them still dancing but most of them not interested in the full nude table dance format (and sometimes not so nice about us doing it), still working in the clubs as costumers or managers, wearing fabulous hair and nails and giving us great advice about showmanship and terrible advice about how to make money. I didn't get to meet Tami Roche but her name came up frequently as one of the last great tassel-twirlers. She appeared in Russ Meyer's Beneath the Valley of the Ultra Vixens with Kitten Natividad (one of the most lovable and darling people ever born) And she appeared in Ann Corio's revival of This Was Burlesque in 1981. Available on VHS as "Here It
Read more