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A '''striptease''' or [[exotic dance]] is a form of erotic entertainment, usually a [[dance]], in which the performer, known as a "stripper", gradually undresses in a teasing, sexually suggestive manner, to music.<ref>Richard Wortley (1976) ''A Pictorial History of Striptease'': 11.</ref>
A '''striptease''' or [[exotic dance]] is a form of erotic entertainment, usually a [[dance]], in which the performer, known as a "stripper", gradually undresses in a teasing, sexually suggestive manner, to music.<ref>Richard Wortley (1976) ''A Pictorial History of Striptease'': 11.</ref>
[[[[[[www.youtube.com/davidzhao8]]]]]]

Stripteases are now performed mostly in [[strip club]]s and (especially in the UK) [[public house|pubs]], though theatres and [[music hall]]s have also been used as venues. The "[[teasing]]" part involves the slowness of undressing, while the audience is eager to see more [[nudity]]. Delay tactics include additional [[clothes]] being removed or putting clothes or hands in front of just undressed body parts, such as [[breasts]] or between the legs. Emphasis is on the act of undressing along with sexually suggestive movement, rather than the state of being undressed. In the past the performance often finished as soon as the undressing was finished, though today striptease artists usually continue dancing whilst in a state of nudity <ref>Richard Wortley (1976) ''A Pictorial History of Striptease''.</ref> <ref> Lara Clifton (2002) ''Baby Oil and Ice: Striptease in East London''.</ref>.
Stripteases are now performed mostly in [[strip club]]s and (especially in the UK) [[public house|pubs]], though theatres and [[music hall]]s have also been used as venues. The "[[teasing]]" part involves the slowness of undressing, while the audience is eager to see more [[nudity]]. Delay tactics include additional [[clothes]] being removed or putting clothes or hands in front of just undressed body parts, such as [[breasts]] or between the legs. Emphasis is on the act of undressing along with sexually suggestive movement, rather than the state of being undressed. In the past the performance often finished as soon as the undressing was finished, though today striptease artists usually continue dancing whilst in a state of nudity <ref>Richard Wortley (1976) ''A Pictorial History of Striptease''.</ref> <ref> Lara Clifton (2002) ''Baby Oil and Ice: Striptease in East London''.</ref>.


Revision as of 01:40, 14 April 2008

For other uses, see Striptease (disambiguation).
Private dancer redirects here; for the Tina Turner album and song, see Private Dancer and Private Dancer (song)
A "fully nude" stripper at the end of her performance, though note that she is still wearing high heeled shoes—for practical and aesthetic reasons.

A striptease or exotic dance is a form of erotic entertainment, usually a dance, in which the performer, known as a "stripper", gradually undresses in a teasing, sexually suggestive manner, to music.[1] [[[[www.youtube.com/davidzhao8]]]] Stripteases are now performed mostly in strip clubs and (especially in the UK) pubs, though theatres and music halls have also been used as venues. The "teasing" part involves the slowness of undressing, while the audience is eager to see more nudity. Delay tactics include additional clothes being removed or putting clothes or hands in front of just undressed body parts, such as breasts or between the legs. Emphasis is on the act of undressing along with sexually suggestive movement, rather than the state of being undressed. In the past the performance often finished as soon as the undressing was finished, though today striptease artists usually continue dancing whilst in a state of nudity [2] [3].

Though today, the stripper sometimes ends the performance "fully nude", (see picture), in historic and contemporary circumstances not every item of clothing has always been removed: due to legal and cultural prohibitions and other aesthetic considerations. For instance in some parts of the USA there are laws forbidding the exposure of female nipples, which have thus to be covered by pasties by the dancer (though no such taboo applies to the exposure of male nipples) [4]. Such restrictions have been embodied in venue licensing constraints and local laws. Also certain jurisdictions (chiefly in the USA), have forbidden postures considered "indecent" (such as spreading the legs).[citation needed] Shoes (often high heeled) are usually kept on (see picture), for practical and aesthetic reasons. The costume the stripper wears before disrobing can be an important part of the act. These are often fantasy themed: such as a schoolgirl uniform, maid's dress, policewoman's outfit etc.

Along with physical attractiveness and appropriate clothing, the main asset and tool used by the exotic dancer in recent years is the stripper pole.

In addition to night club entertainment, stripping can be a form of sexual play at home between partners. This can be done as an impromptu event or—perhaps for a special occasion—with elaborate planning involving fantasywear, music, special lighting, practised dance moves, and even dance moves that have been previously unpractised.

H.L. Mencken is credited with coining the word "ecdysiast", using a Greek phrase which means "a person who stripteases". He did so in response to a request from a stripteaser who requested a "more dignified" way to refer to her profession[5].

Off-stage

Main article: lap dance

A variation on striptease is private dancing, which often involves lap dancing or contact dancing. Here the performers, in addition to stripping for tips, also offer "private dances" which involve more attention for individual audience members. Variations include private dances like table dancing where the performer dances on or by customer's table rather than the customer being seated in a couch. For certain events, including bachelor/bachorette parties, the stripper's job often involves holding games or contests with sexual themes.[citation needed]

The contact between a performer and a customer is regulated in ways that vary in response to local laws and club rules, ranging from "air dances" with minimal or no contact to "friction" lap dances at the dancer's discretion.[citation needed]

History

World origins

The dance of Salome - painted by Franz von Stuck in 1906. The model was the dancer Maud Allan who performed the dance for real in her own show

The origins of striptease as a performance art are disputed and various dates and occasions have been given from ancient Babylonia to twentieth century America. In terms of myth the first recorded striptease is related in the ancient Sumerian story of the descent of the goddess Inanna into the Underworld (or Kur). At each of the seven gates, she removed an article of clothing or a piece of jewelry. As long as she remained in hell, the earth was barren. When she returned, fecundity abounded. Some believe this myth was embodied in the dance of the seven veils of Salome, who danced for King Herod, as mentioned in the New Testament. However, although the Bible records Salome's dance, the first mention of her removing seven veils occurs in Oscar Wilde's play of 'Salome', in 1893: which some have claimed as the origin of modern striptease.[6]. After Wilde's play and Richard Strauss's operatic version of the same, the erotic 'dance of the seven veils', became a standard routine for dancers in opera, vaudeville, film and burlesque. A famous early practitioner was Maud Allan who in 1907 gave a private performance of the dance to King Edward VII.

Other possible influences on modern striptease were the dances of the Ghawazee "discovered" and seized upon by French colonists in nineteenth century North Africa and Egypt. The erotic dance of the bee performed by a woman known as Kuchuk Hanem, was witnessed and described by the French novelist Gustave Flaubert. In this dance the performer disrobes as she searches for an imaginary bee trapped within her garments. It is likely that the women performing these dances did not do so in an indigenous context, but rather, responded to the commercial climate for this type of entertainment. Middle Eastern belly dance, also known as Oriental Dancing, was popularized in the US after its introduction on the Midway at the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago by a dancer known as Little Egypt.

The French tradition

The People's Almanac credited the origin of striptease as we know it to an act in 1890s Paris in which a woman slowly removed her clothes in a vain search for a flea crawling on her body. At this time Parisian shows such as the Moulin Rouge and Folies Bergere pioneered semi-nude dancing and tableaux vivants. One landmark was the appearance at the Moulin Rouge in 1907 of an actress called Germaine Aymos who entered dressed only in three very small shells. In the 1930s the famous Josephine Baker danced semi-nude at the Folies and other such performances were provided at the Tabarin. These shows were notable for their sophisticated choreography and dressing the girls in glitzy sequins and feathers. By the 1960s "fully nude" shows were provided at such places as Le Crazy Horse Saloon.[7]

The American tradition

American striptease nurtured its roots in carnivals and Burlesque theatres featuring famous strippers such as Gypsy Rose Lee and Sally Rand. The vaudeville trapeze artist Charmion performed a "disrobing" act onstage as early as 1896 , which was captured in an Edison film, "Trapeze Disrobing Act" in 1901 . Another milestone for modern American striptease is the possibly legendary show at Minsky's Burlesque in April of 1925: The Night They Raided Minsky's. The art and business enjoyed prosperity as the United States economy grew out of the depression of the 1930s through the 1950s. The sixties saw the birth of topless go-go dancing. This eventually merged with the older tradition of striptease. Carol Doda of the Condor Night Club in the North Beach section of San Francisco is given the credit of being the first topless go-go dancer.[8] The club opened in 1964 and Doda's première topless dance occurred on the evening of June 19 of that year.[9][10][9]The large lit sign in front of the club featured a picture of her with red lights on her breasts.The club went "bottomless" on September 3, 1969 and began the trend of explicit "full nudity" in American striptease dancing.[11]

In the seventies, with changing cultural expressions of sexuality, striptease declined in profitability and status. In the technology boom of the eighties and nineties, those in the profession enjoyed increased acceptance and better working conditions.

The British tradition

In Britain the Windmill Theatre, London, pioneered the art of striptease, from 1932 onwards (closing in 1964), though, in accordance with British law the nude girls were not allowed to move: appearing in stationary tableaux vivants. The Windmill girls also toured other London and provincial theatres, sometimes using ingenious devices such as rotating ropes to move their bodies round, though strictly speaking, staying within the letter of the law by not moving of their own volition. According to the film Mrs Henderson Presents, mice were also employed to get the nudes to move. Another way the law was bent was the fan dance, in which a naked dancer's body was concealed by her fans and those of her attendants, until the end of her act in when she posed naked for a brief interval whilst standing stock still. The Windmill girls were a major morale booster during wartime London as was the cartoon-strip stripper Jane, modelled on one of the Windmill girls, who appeared in the Daily Mirror.[12]

By the 1950s touring striptease acts were used to attract audiences to the dying music halls. Changes in the law in the 1960s brought about a boom of strip clubs in Soho with 'fully nude' dancing and audience participation[13]. Pubs were also used as a venue, most particularly in the East End with a concentration of such venues in the district of Shoreditch. This pub striptease seems in the main to have evolved from topless go-go dancing.[14]Though often a target of local authority harassment, some of these pubs survive to the present day. An interesting custom in these pubs is that the strippers walk round and collect money from the customers in a beer jug before each individual performance. This custom appears to have originated in the late 1970's when topless go-go dancers first started collecting money from the audience as the fee for going "fully nude"[15]. Private dances of a more raunchy nature are sometimes available in a separate area of the pub [16].

Striptease in Japan

Striptease became popular in Japan after the end of World War II. When entrepreneur Shigeo Ozaki saw Gypsy Rose Lee perform, he started his own striptease revue in Tokyo's Shinjuku neighborhood. During the 1950s, Japanese "strip shows" became more sexually explicit and less dance-oriented, until they were eventually simply live sex shows.[17]

Recent history

A stripper using a stripper pole to dance around.

Recently pole dancing has come to dominate the world of striptease. This form of dancing can trace its origin to a performance by one Miss Belle Jangles at Mugwumps strip club in Oregon in 1968[18]. From here it spread to Canada where, in the late 20th century, the exotic dance club grew up to become a thriving sector of the economy. Canadian style pole dancing, table dancing and lap dancing, organised by multi-national corporations such as Spearmint Rhino, was exported from North America to the United Kingdom, Central Europe, Russia, and Australia etc. In London, England a raft of such so-called 'lap dancing clubs' grew up in the 1990s, featuring pole dancing on stage and private table dancing, though, despite media misrepresentation, lap-dancing in the sense of bodily contact was forbidden by law[19]

In America a notable contemporary practitioner of striptease is the rock singer Courtney Love. In one notorious incident in March 2004, she disrobed on prime-time American TV in front of host David Letterman while standing on his desk.[20]

In December 2006, a Norwegian court ruled that striptease is an art form and made strip clubs exempt from value added tax.[21]

New Burlesque

In the latter 1990s, a number of performers and dance groups have emerged to create New Burlesque, a revival of the classic burlesque of the early half of the twentieth century. New Burlesque focuses on dancing, costumes and entertainment (which may include comedy and singing) and generally eschews full nudity or toplessness. Some burlesquers of the past have become instructors and mentors to New Burlesque performers such as Velvet Hammer, Hope Talmon or Cyrelle St. James Co. and the Pontani Sisters. The pop group Pussycat Dolls began as a New Burlesque troupe.

Male strippers

Male performer Tigger, at the 2006 Neo-Burlesque Miss Exotic World Pageant. Photo Michael Albov

Until the 1970s, strippers in Western cultures were almost invariably female, performing to male audiences. Since then, male strippers, performing to female audiences, have also become common. Male and female strippers also perform for gay and lesbian audiences respectively, as well as for both sexes in pansexual contexts. Before the 1970s dancers of both sexes appeared largely in underground clubs or as part of a theatre experience, but the practice eventually became common enough on its own. One of the more well-known troupes of male strippers are the Chippendales. Male strippers have become a popular option to have at a bachelorette party.

The record-holder for Guinness World Records "oldest male stripper" is Bernie Barker, who was 63 at the age of his induction.[22]

For gay males

Gay male strip clubs feature men who appear initially in skimpy undergarments (which may be removed if full nudity is allowed) and socks. Many mainstream gay bars and nightclubs employ Go-Go boys, who gyrate and dance in little more than a G-String and pair of shoes, and often strip completly naked for the pleasure of other men, typically for tips, they keep themselves erect by taking pills before they begin.[citation needed]

In Film and other media

Film

TV

Theatre

  • Jekyll and Hyde (1997). The character of Lucy Harris (originally portrayed by Linda Eder) works as a prostitute and stripper in a small London club called The Red Rat, where she meets a multi-dimension man named Doctor Henry Jekyll, who turns into his evil persona Mr. Edward Hyde. Lucy performs the song ‘Bring on the Men’ during a show at the Red Rat (which was later replaced with ‘Good ‘n’ Evil’ in the Broadway production, some claiming ‘Bring on the Men’ was too ‘risqué’.).

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Striptease.

Bibliography

  • Toni Bentley, 2002. Sisters of Salome
  • Lara Clifton, 2002. Baby Oil and Ice: Striptease in East London.
  • Shteir, Rachel, 2004. Striptease: The Untold History of the Girlie Show. Oxford University Press.
  • Murray Goldstein, 2005. Naked Jungle - Soho Stripped Bare. Silverback Press.

References

  1. ^ Richard Wortley (1976) A Pictorial History of Striptease: 11.
  2. ^ Richard Wortley (1976) A Pictorial History of Striptease.
  3. ^ Lara Clifton (2002) Baby Oil and Ice: Striptease in East London.
  4. ^ Richard Wortley (1976) A Pictorial History of Striptease.
  5. ^ "adama pubs" (PDF).
  6. ^ Toni Bentley (2002) Sisters of Salome: 31
  7. ^ Richard Wortley (1976) A Pictorial History of Striptease: 29-53
  8. ^ Nudity, Noise Pay Off in Bay Area Night Clubs, Los Angeles Times, February 14, 1965, Page G5.
  9. ^ a b California Solons May Bring End To Go-Go-Girl Shows In State, Panama City News, September 15, 1969, Page 12A.
  10. ^ "NAKED PROFITS". The New Yorker. 2004-07-12. Retrieved 2007-07-30.
  11. ^ "1964". Retrieved 2007-07-30.
  12. ^ Gavin Weightman (1992) Bright Lights, Big City: 85-90
  13. ^ Murray Goldstein (2005) Naked Jungle - Soho Stripped Bare. Silverback Press
  14. ^ It Started With Theresa
  15. ^ It Started With Theresa
  16. ^ Baby Oil and Ice: Striptease in East LondonLara Clifton (2002).
  17. ^ Shteir, Rachel (2004). Striptease: The Untold History of the Girlie Show. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. p.264. ISBN 0-19-512750-1. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  18. ^ International Pole dancing Day August 8th 2006
  19. ^ Vlad Lapidos (1996) The Good Striptease Guide to London. Tredegar Press.
  20. ^ Hollyweird's deadly love affair, Michelle Malkin, March 24 2004
  21. ^ BBC News. Stripping is art, Norway decides. December 6, 2006.
  22. ^ Guinness World Records. Oldest male stripper. Accessed August 19 2007.
  23. ^ "Ichijo Sayuri: Nureta Yokujo". All Movie Guide. Retrieved 2007-06-26.
  • The Naked Truth (support and information website by and about exotic dancers in Canada)
  • Stripper Web (United States based exotic dancer community offering support and advice)
  • Striptease bookmark (European striptease bookmark page)
  • Strippers (Resource of information about strippers)
  • Dancer Dolls (Resource of information from real strippers)
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