Jo Weldon's New York School of Burlesque

Above: Archival photos of Camille Above: Photo by Marie Baronnet “ Burlesque legend Camille 2000 ( Camille Sands ) passed away today after a lengthy battle with cancer. “The Girl for Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow” was awarded ou r 2019 Living Legend Award for her contribution to burlesque. Her work, like her signature "Marquis de Sade" act, consistently pushed against and expanded the boundaries of the art. More than that, she was an active supporter of today's neo-burlesque performers, with a vocal online presence and a steady stream of performances at festivals and local events. She will be deeply missed.” --From The Burlesque Hall of Fame, July 28, 2019 Somewhere on my old phone I have photos from a few years ago of Camille in the bathroom at the Orleans Hotel shoving redhots down the back of my pants. If I find them, I'll add them, but for now I'm sure you can enhance this memory gloriously in your imagination. My birthda...

Lots of bangin' burlesque from Boo Bess, Cheeky Lane, Fem Appeal, Gal Friday, Jonny Porkpie, Twatley Crue, Veronica Viper, gogo and stage kittening by Quantum Physique, student troupe The Titillations, and special reading by Slutist Kristen Korvette from her upcoming book CatCall!  Plus I'll be hosting and telling sordid stories of my years as a stripper and groupie in the 1980s. Not your usual night of burlesque -- this is a one-time-only event! Details and Tickets

Above: Gypsy Rose Lee's memoir. Do you hate writing your bio? Everybody does! But I've done it many many times, for myself as well as for others, and there are ways to make it easier. Your bio serves several functions. In an application, it helps to convince producers you're interesting or qualified. In show promotion, it gives press interview topics and it makes potential audience members curious to see you. During production, it gives the emcee something to say about you before you perform. Thinking about these functions helps you understand what to put into your bio. It's not a resume or CV; it's a snapshot of you, an entertaining teaser about your style. It's ideal if it's fun to read, but professional and realistic. The goal is to get people interested. Quick summary 1-10: 1) Write it in the third person. 2) Since this is a general bio, write it about you rather than about your character or persona, unless you have a specific reason to wr...

Top: Toni Elling by Mike Albov. Below: Camille 2000 by Camille 2000 Camille 2000 and Toni Elling are both under medical care right now. We have lost so many of our legends, and this is a hard day. A burlesque legend is a gift to us all. There have been many discussions about what a burlesque legend is, what eras they should have worked in, what experiences they should have had, what recognition they should have received before they earn the appellation. I understand these concerns and would be willing to have conversations about those details another time (though emphatically not now, at this time I will delete or refuse to respond). Either you get it or you don’t. What’s important to me right now is not what a legend is, but how a legend is. I made a list of just a few of the qualities I have admired in many of our legends, and why they are so important to me. Irreplaceable History. Legends know what it was like to perform burlesque in the eras that infl...

I Wish We All Were Nude  By Jo Weldon Photo: Prince on the $19.99 dollar bill. Source unknown. Also, me in my feature dancer days, photographed by the late great J. Stephen Hicks. Thinking of my stripper sisters on Prince's birthday. This is an article I wrote when I heard he had passed. I’ve been stripping for decades, and I’ve literally–and by a large margin–made more money dancing naked to music by Prince than by any other single artist. 
 I started working in strip joints in 1980, at the age of 18. I was eager to get out of my parents’ house and start living the sex drugs and rock n roll life of my dreams. Stripping was certainly a fast track to all of that. Who knows why we want what we want? Lots of people experienced similar influences to mine, similar traumas and privileges, and didn’t want the same. But I knew what I wanted and was hellbound from the minute I got my first set of car keys. 
 I got my chops in Atlanta, which even at the time h...

Photo c. Stereovision I first got to know Jacqueline Boxx when I was teaching a workshop while on tour, and our relationship has perfectly represented how wonderful it is to get to know people while traveling as a burlesque teacher and performers. The intimacy of getting to know students and fellow performers while on the road, sharing backstages and hotel rooms, is more important to me than the glamour, and I've gotten to spend some quality time with people I consider friends and peers. I was honored to be invited to host the Essential Tease Showcase she co-produced in Baltimore. I had mostly stopped doing interviews, but our conversations after that show lit a fire under me, and I'm excited to be doing new interviews for my blog. If you haven't already met Jacqueline Boxx, prepare to fall in love, and if you already know and love her, prepare to be very proud of your good taste! Stage Name: Jacqueline Boxx Locality: Baltimore, MD Years Pe...

See the freshest burlesque in the city! New York School of Burlesque Headmistress Jo Weldon, author of The Burlesque Handbook, will introduce new acts by students who are preparing to take the burlesque world by storm. These debut performers have created routines based on their own ideas, choosing their own music, designing their own costumes, and mapping out their own choreography. Come be part of their adventure!  Details and Tickets    Performances by: Kizzy Lewdlow Lilith Lamore Lou Renoir and Belle DeVere  Marlena Magdalene Mary Midnight Rosie Tulips Roxie Maisel Valdeth Vava Valentina Vera Safire Vivienne Von Foxy with Juno Stardust, Stage Kitten   And a few special surprises!   Hosted by Headmistress Jo Weldon, Author of The Burlesque Handbook http://www.schoolofburlesque. com