Burlesque:The Unknown Cultural Phenomenon History 394 Essay

In the late 1860s, as post-Civil War business boomed, there was a sharp increase in the number of working- and middle-class people in New York, and the wealthier people desired entertainment. Theaters became more popular, and Niblo 's Garden, which had formerly hosted opera, began to offer light comedy. “The Black Crook” was at first simply a melodrama by Charles M. Barras that retold the Faust story and borrowed liberally from other plays with similar plots and themes. William Wheatley, who was the manager of Niblo’s was concerned that the play would fail. The script was poorly written and the acting was not much better. Then something oddly magical happened. There was a theatre fire at the Academy of Music in New York. A French ballet

They dance across the stage beginning at ten in the evening and doesn’t end until early the next morning. The production is lavish and extravagant. The orchestra plays the cabaret’s signature Mambo (Afro-Cuban) music nonstop. In 1957 the Tropicana arranged for Cubana Airlines to fly to Miami which it would be loaded with wealthy white American that were ready to gamble, dance, drink, and enjoy the music of Cuba and enjoy a weekend at the cabaret and casino. The pane featured a wet bar and live entertainment from the orchestra and the show

During this period, musicals (which were labeled “musical comedies” at the time) were in the form of acceptable of guilty pleasures - the appeal of women and their sexuality, silly characters that made fools of themselves, or the goofy country girl dancing through the chores of the day. Ziegfeld’s Follies, Marx brother shows, and Al Jolson playing his character in blackface are great examples of these shows that focused on showing off the stars and gave little care to the

Vaudeville was a theatrical paradigm in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance consisted of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill. Types of acts included popular and classical musicians, dancers, comedians, trained animals, magicians, female

Broadway was one of the first forms of entertainment. Before there were television programs, or movies, there was Broadway. Broadway originated in New York in 1750, when actor-manager Walter Murray built a theatre company at the Theatre on Nassau Street. A musical would show about once every weekend. The shows were very male based, and would commonly show a relationship between young boys and their fathers. Women were slowly integrated into Broadway, and as society changed its point of view on women, so did theatre.

The “striptease” is still very much relevant and alive today as it was when it was first introduced to the world nearly 80 years ago. This timeless and provocative dance was the product of Gypsy Rose Lee, but by no means should one refer to her as a “stripper”. Doing so would be a great injustice to this iconic figure; it would be sacrilegious. Gypsy, born Rose Louise Hovick, brought more than sensual allure to the stage; Gypsy was intelligent, funny, and witty. An example of her immense wit and improve skills can be seen in how the striptease came into being. When the strap to Gypsy’s costume came undone during a performance, rather than run off stage in embarrassment, Gypsy noticed the positive audience reaction, causing her to implement the act into the focus of her performance.

Before vaudeville even got its name it was called variety shows in previous years. Variety shows had been around for a long time but as years progressed it became more diverse and had more acts included in it. Tony Pastor (known as the father of vaudeville) was one of the men credited for these variety shows. In 1881 Pastor established a variety theater in New York (“Vaudeville”). He had many different acts performed in his theaters, especially for family entertainment. He focused on very high standards of

Nevertheless, during the 1860’s and before, “variety” shows were strictly for-men-only and were performed in boats, concert saloons (also known as honky-tonks and dive bars), tents, churches, and just about anywhere a troupe could set up a stage and proscenium (Gilbert 10-15). The Second Great Awakening, a time in America when fundamentalism was being played out on a political scale that would shape America’s future, made its mark on theatre (D. 46). An early theatre owner, actor, and promoter Tony Pastor is considered to have transitioned variety shows in the 1860’s from what were considered to be “dirty” shows to “clean” ones. Moreover, this also brought in both male and female patrons which essentially doubled the income (Stein 3). Whether

As far as the development and demise of vaudeville, there is much to be said. But to truly understand its rise and fall, first one must understand what vaudeville is. Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of entertainment that was popular in the United States from the early 1880s until the mid 1930s. Each performance consisted of a series of unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill. Types of acts included classical musicians, dancers, comedians, trained animals, magicians, impersonators, acrobats, illustrated songs, jugglers, scenes from plays, athletes, lecturing celebrities, and movies.

Roaring means loud, noisy, busy, active, deafening, or thunderous these words define how the 1920’s was, this era was the most significant to the U.S. history. In what other era do women have the right to do what most men do, or where entertainment improved to what we basically have today. This was also a big significant to the U.S history due to the economics, taxes, and job increasing. After WWI America had a lot of money to invest.

Congratulations, you have been invited to participate in the “Roaring Twenties Dance Expose” featuring the illustrious staff of Family Life Academy Charter School 2. Each of you must work as a group to learn a dance style that you will perform during our Expose’. Inside your box, you will find a USB that includes your dance style from the 1920s, one or more instructional videos, and songs from the era. To complete this task successfully, you will choose a song and create a routine for your performance. Be sure to have fun and think about the learning process as you complete this task. Good

The reading claims that nudes throughout artistic history have been an important source of beauty and controversy. Nudes began to spike during the Baroque period as they were used for the more expressive and emotional arts of the time. In the nineteenth century, nudes became more common, yet became more sensitive. Artists would train by drawing nudes of ancient Greek statues and figures from myth. However, many artists would then move on to create works depicting prostitutes or peasant naked women. This would not please patrons as they were extremely societally taboo. However, this did not start artists from making them, as they moved into the twentieth and twenty-first century. This shows the importance of artistic nudes and their impact

In New York, Fanny Brice, a young Jew from the Lower East Side, dreams of becoming a Broadway star, despite her ugly appearance. When she loses her chorus line job at Keeney's Oriental Palace, she enters a roller skating number and is a comedy hit. After the performance,a gambler visits her backstage and helps get her a raise. Soon Fanny's comedy routines come to the attention of Florenz Ziegfeld, and she is hired for his Follies at the New Amsterdam

The word “burlesque” comes from the Spanish or Italian word "burla" which means to mock, trick, or joke. The original use of the word burlesque was seen in the 16th and 17th century to describe parodies, and grotesque or ridiculous imitations, often of authors or artists of the time (Belle Phenomene, 2012) The striptease in traditional and neo-burlesque differentiate from that of a stripper. Burlesque performers are known to spend their earnings investing in glamourous costumes that may be covered in rhinestones, diamantes, tassels, feathers and anything that might add some pizazz. Common burlesque props include large feathered fans in which performs dance with, and use to hide/reveal parts of their bodies in their act.

A pronounced American personality was introduced in the burlesque-extravaganzas produced and written by Ed Harrigan and Tony Hart known as the "Mulligan Guard." The format was the European burlesque and extravaganza, but the material was considered American. These Mulligan farces presented a caricature of life in New York with such racial or national groups as the Irish, Germans, and Negroes. Their individual speech patterns, behavior and mannerisms contributed to these plays most of their