Burlesque
• A satirical treatment of usually revered subject
matter which is made ridiculous through use of
caricature [lampoon, spoof, mock, parody]
• In theatrical usage, it originally referred to a play
that parodied some contemporary dramatic
fashion or event
• Later applied to a bawdy genre of variety
entertainment that eventually came to feature
striptease as its main attraction (late 19th cent)
Victorian Burlesque
• British theatrical form popular from 1830s-1890s
• A burlesque in the original sense, to parody a well-known
opera, play, or ballet in a risqué style
• Light entertainment with music, the plots of which were
frivolously modeled on those of history, literature, or
classical mythology
• 1840s – Lydia Thompson and the British Blondes tours
the U.S. to great acclaim
• American performers adapt it and meld it with the
minstrel show format
Format
Borrowed the structure of the Minstrel show
Three Parts:
• Part One – a series of songs and comic
sketches & monologues
• Part Two, the “olio” – assorted variety acts
such as acrobats, jugglers, magicians, and
instrumental & vocal soloists
• Part Three – chorus numbers or sometimes a
burlesque of a current play or politics
Characteristics
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Designed exclusively for an adult male audience
Slapstick sketches
Comedians
Chorus numbers
All jokes and humor were (pick one): coarse,
rude, vulgar, crass, bawdy, ribald, crude.
• “Daring” or “Sensational” solo dances
– Daring in their titillating nature and boundary
pushing costumes…or lack thereof.
Metamorphosis
• Over time, strip tease dancers became the
main featured attractions in Burlesque shows
• Minsky’s National Winter Garden became the
most famous of NYC Burlesque Theatres
– 1st in U.S. to add a runway into the audience
– “Burlesque As You Like It – Not a Family Show”
• Prohibition hurt business immensely
• Essentially out of business by the 1940s (NYC)
Famous Performers
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W.C. Fields
Al Jolson
Fanny Brice
Mae West
Bert Lahr
Jackie Gleason
Phil Silvers
Gypsy Rose Lee
Margie Hart
Vaudeville
• Another iteration of variety entertainment
• Consisted of a series of unrelated acts, such as:
Singers
Dancers
Comedians
Magicians
Acrobats
Trained animals
Jugglers
Where’d That Name Come From?
• The term “vaudeville” is believed to be a corruption
of the 15th century vaux-de-vire, which were
satirical songs sung to popular tunes
• Originated in the Val-de-Vire, or Vau-de-Vire, in
Normandy, France
• Eventually developed into a form of light musical
drama, with spoken dialogue interspersed with
songs known as comédies de vaudeville
• Became popular throughout Europe
Metamorphosis (redux)
• The term vaudeville is appropriated by American
producers of variety shows in order to lend an air of
sophistication to their productions…after all, it’s a
French word, so anything its applied to must be
classy, right?
• Develops as a cleaned up version of burlesque
Tony Pastor
1837–1908
• Considered the Father of Vaudeville
• A professional performer since the age of 6
• P.T. Barnum’s American Museum
• minstrel shows
• the circus
• First performed in a variety show in 1861
• Opened his own variety theatre in 1865
• Advertised his show as “the first specialty and vaudeville
theatre of America, catering to polite tastes, aiming to
amuse, and fully up to current times and topics.”
Keith and Albee
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B.F. Keith (1846-1914) and E.F. Albee (1857-1930)
Individual careers as impresarios before teaming up
Built Boston’s extravagant Bijou Theatre (1885)
Created the “continuous performance” model
Like Pastor, emphasized “clean” entertainment
Won support and funding from the Catholic church
Established the most powerful circuit of theatres
throughout the NE and midwest
Revue
• Another variation, or sub-genre, of variety
• Derived from French medieval street fairs at which
events of the year were passed in comic review
• Consider obvious connection to modern satiric
presentations of “The Year in Review”
• Very popular at Paris’ Folies-Bergère
• The Passing Show (1894) is considered the first
successful American "review“
• The French spelling was adopted by Ziegfeld to lend
an air of European chic to his productions
Florenz Ziegfeld
(1869-1932)
• Impresario who created The Ziegfeld Follies
• The Follies were a series of spectacular revues
• über-sophisticated, visually ambitious variety show
• “Editions” of the Follies ran from 1907-1931
• The Follies were characterized by:
• Lavish spectacle in both scenery and costumes
• An emphasis on “Glorifying the American Girl”
• Costumes occasionally revealing, but always stunning
• A-List talent of starring singers, dancers, actors, comics
• Also produced the landmark musical Showboat in 1927