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The Burlesque Hall of Fame: Miss Exotic World

A Weekend Long Celebration of the Best of Burlesque

Aug 20, 2009 Karen Dion

Every June hundreds of burlesque performers and fans descend upon Las Vegas to witness the crowning of the new Queen of Burlesque and to pay their respects to the legends

For close to twenty years the biggest event in the burlesque calendar has undoubtedly been the Burlesque Hall of Fame Pageant. On the first weekend in June burlesque dancers and their fans take over a hotel in Vegas, most recently Palms and The Orleans.The four-day event schedule is filled with performances, parties, exhibitions and workshops, all leading up to the Main Event: the crowning of the Queen of Burlesque.

History of the Burlesque Museum and Pageant

The Burlesque Hall of Fame Museum had humble beginnings in an abandoned California goat farm just off Route 66, halfway between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Former burlesque dancer Jennie Lee, the “Bazoom Girl”, founded the museum with the intention of displaying artifacts collected throughout the history of striptease.

After Lee’s death from breast cancer in 1990, her friend Dixie Evans, former “Marilyn Monroe of Burlesque” took over the operation. That same year Evans initiated the pageant as a way to raise funds for the museum, now rapidly filling up with burlesque memorabilia donated from around the world.

Evans sent out a press release stating that legends Tempest Storm, Lili St Cyr and Blaze Starr had all been invited to attend. While it was true that the stars had been invited, none of them actually came. However the publicity garnered from the press release was enough to make the show a success and it has taken place every year since.

Highlights of the Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekender

Besides Saturday’s main event; the competition for the title 'Queen of Burlesque' (formerly known as ‘Miss Exotic World’), performers compete in a variety of other categories such as Best Group, Best Newcomer and Best Boylesque.

The highlight for many, however, comes on Friday night: ‘The Titans of Tease Reunion Showcase’. This is the event in which performers from decades past are reunited with the stage, their fans and each other. The most recent event included Satan’s Angel, April March and Ellion Ness. Past events have seen icons like seventy-something Tempest Storm strut across the stage as if they owned it. And they still do.

Asked in an LA Times interview about her motivation for putting the show on every year, Dixie Evans stated that she wishes for burlesque to receive the credit it deserves: "We saved America in the '30s" She said. "It was the depression, a sad time. but men could come in to the theater and see a flamboyant, gaudy show, with a wild sense of humor, and we put smiles on their faces."

Sources:

Burana, Lily; Strip City
LA Times Burlesque era remains alive in hall of fame April 5th 2009

The copyright of the article The Burlesque Hall of Fame: Miss Exotic World in Musical Theatre is owned by Karen Dion. Permission to republish The Burlesque Hall of Fame: Miss Exotic World in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.