Julie Atlas Muz and the Zombie Burlesque Controversy: Originality and Intellectual Property

-

Above: The Hand, performed by Julie Atlas Muz.

Students have been asking me about what’s up with this situation, and asked about some scenarios. To make it clear, responding to those questions, this situation is NOT about being inspired by someone, not about two people who used to work together disagreeing about who should still be using the work, two people coming up with the same idea independently, or lifting a signature move, composition element, or gimmick. While those situations can be annoying, they are not the same as wholesale copyright violation. It is about a stranger watching and then lifting a performer’s entire routine, then teaching it to another performer. Seeing it, then doing it. The entire thing.

I lived with Julie, and before that I toured with her, and before that I saw her do this act many times. I refer students to it as a an example of how to commit to a performance, and how to make the most of a small prop. I also describe it to students as the inspiration for my "possessed glove" class exercise. Julie has been doing this act, and it has been known to a wide international audience, for many years before it was performed at Zombie Burlesque in Las Vegas.

What I've been told: The producers of Zombie Burlesque are reported to have watched a video of her, taken the costuming, prop, and choreography, and had their dancers watch a video of her performing it to get the choreography down. A friend of Julie's saw it and alerted her; Julie confronted the producer; they agreed that it was so; then continued to produce the act.

Gossip can beget lawsuits, and defamation lawsuits are a lot of work and a huge expense for the defendant. Be careful how you talk about this story, and remember that anything that can be screenshot can be used against you, even in supposedly private messages. However, I saw Julie's number with my own eyes and heard from her that she had not known they were using her act and she had not granted them rights to the act.

Curious about originality in burlesque?
Read Practicing Originality as Part of the Learning Process: Originating from The Heart.

Comments

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