Vancouver's Burlesque Revival

Burlesque once belonged to dim bars and back rooms. In Vancouver it gradually moved onto proper stages, appearing in theatres, community halls and cultural centres, and a local audience grew around it. Observers at the time described the trend as a revival. This article describes how that local scene took shape during one stretch of its history rather than listing what is on today.

Classes and training

Enough people wanted to try the craft that several schools in the city began teaching it. Lessons covered stage presence, costume construction and building a routine from first idea to finished number. Men joined in through boylesque, in which male performers use the same traditions of tease, glamour and humour. Fitness found its way in as well, with burlesque-inspired yoga classes that borrowed the confidence and styling of the stage for a workout.

An international festival

Vancouver became home to a burlesque festival with an international roster. It was created through a partnership between a theatrical society and a burlesque troupe, and editions of the event brought in performers from several countries. The event gave local artists a chance to share bills with visitors and gave audiences a concentrated look at many styles.

SHINE, a burlesque musical

From this pool of talent came a stage musical built around burlesque performers, called SHINE. It grew out of a short piece that combined a comedy duo with the festival organizers and was later stretched into a full-length production, with festival organizers also involved in costumes and choreography.

The story follows a worn-out burlesque house and the makeshift family of gifted misfits who try to rescue it from demolition. After its festival debut, the show moved into a longer theatre run in the city, which illustrates how a festival-built community can feed scripted theatre.

Touring beyond the city

Plans were reported at the time to take the musical to other cities. Artists who work with sexual themes often describe difficulty finding public funding and institutional support, which is one reason touring and festival partnerships matter to them.

The path of SHINE reflects a pattern seen in other Canadian cities. A festival builds a community of performers, and some of them move into scripted theatre that may travel.