Risqué moves are empowering the dance
By Paul Ransom
It is perhaps no surprise in a post-feminist world to find that dance forms which either implicitly or explicitly embrace or celebrate female sexuality should be undergoing a serious suburban revival.
The boom in burlesque, belly and pole dancing continues apace in Australia and, despite a few raised eyebrows, is gaining genuine credibility as a reinvigorated frontier of dance art.
As Adelaide based burlesque star Cherry Valens observes, “I think that burlesque nowadays has come to mean risqué entertainment that’s not tacky, not kind of ‘Big Brother’ style entertainment.”
All of which means it seems to remain worthy of the arts festival circuit. Indeed, Cherry’s company, (A Wink & Smile Burlesque), is fresh from sold out successes in this year’s Adelaide Fringe and Cabaret Fringe festivals.
Over in Melbourne the scene, it’s fair to say, is massive. Klara McMurray, who fronts the critically lauded Mayhem Cabaret Company, notes that the revival has been bubbling away for at least five years. “The dancers love it,” she notes, “because it’s such a beautiful opportunity to dress up in things that you would never wear down the street. You would never wear feather boas and frilly knickers unless you were on stage.”
Indeed, the thing that comes out loud and clear here is the powerful sense of empowerment that women get from this kind of dance. “From a female point of view it allows you the opportunity to really play dress ups and express your femininity,” Klara adds.
Cherry agrees. “There’s a bit more mystery in Burlesque, more emphasis on tease. We live in this society of over exposure and it’s almost like showing less has become a novelty,” she says. “I think also it’s a chance for women to express their sexuality in a way that’s a long way from pornography.”
Xenobia, a 24 year old who started bellydancing ten years ago and who now works for a Melbourne based company called Bellacize doing private shows in burlesque, Bollywood and belly styles, believes that all three forms offer an outlet.
“Girls who want to do the more raunchy stuff would already be more open to expressing their sexuality. They’re more comfortable with it and want to do your burlesque, your chair dancing, pole dancing, show girl kind of stuff,” she explains. “But then there are girls that are a little more reserved who still want to feel sexy but they don’t really know that that’s what they want. They want to feel feminine, and that’s where your bellydance and Bollywood oriented stuff comes in.”
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