bombshellbetty

BURLESQUE 101:

Lesson 1: What the hell is burlesque, anyway? Here's Merriam-Webster's definition (emphasis is mine):

burlesque
Pronunciation: (")b&r-'lesk
Function: noun
Etymology: burlesque, adjective, comic, droll, from French, from Italian burlesco, from burla joke, from Spanish
Date: 1667
1 : a literary or dramatic work that seeks to ridicule by means of grotesque exaggeration or comic imitation
2 : mockery usually by caricature
3 : theatrical entertainment of a broadly humorous often earthy character consisting of short turns, comic skits, and sometimes striptease acts
synonym see CARICATURE
- burlesque adjective
- burlesquely adverb

Here's more.

Now read this. Please.

No wonder Mistress Cleo Dubois recently told me she "was in burlesque when burlesque was burlesque." I think I may need to come up with a new name for what I do, since the word burlesque has been so thoroughly misappropriated and everyone assumes that my show is all about stripping, when in reality we only go down to pasties in approximately one out of every 5 bits, and only when it's appropriate to the schtick. The Voodoo Dollz Vaudeville Revue? Hmm.