Author: Iona Fortune
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Belle Howitt: Icon of British Burlesque
Belle Howitt was a celebrated soubrette of the British Blondes troupe. She appeared in productions such as Ixion, Poll and… Read more.
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Alice Oakes & The Oakes Company: Comic Opera on Tour
“In the early seventies the only travelling opera company of a comic character was that headed by Alice Oakes. She… Read more.
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The Hyers Sisters: Early Burlesquers
American burlesque history is usually traced to Lydia Thompson’s “British Blondes” in New York, but the Hyers Sisters were already… Read more.
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History of Burlesque in Council Bluffs, IA
Council Bluffs has always been a city of crossroads — a place where travelers, traders, and dreamers converged along the… Read more.
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Big Earl’s Goldmine & the Battle for Burlesque
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Des Moines, Iowa, found itself at the center of a heated cultural and… Read more.
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Iretha “Pepper Pot” Tucker
Born in 1926 in Kansas City, Missouri, Iretha Tucker—née Greer—was a firecracker on stage and a force in midcentury Black… Read more.
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The Ebony Dancers of Kansas City
In the heart of Kansas City’s vibrant Black entertainment scene, a dazzling troupe emerged in 1950 that blended rhythm, spectacle,… Read more.
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Early Burlesque in Des Moines, IA
Long before Des Moines embraced its modern burlesque revival, the city played host to a vibrant, complicated legacy of tease… Read more.
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Sahji: Queen of the Shake Dancers
In the golden age of jazz and burlesque, Madeline Jackson, professionally known as Sahji, emerged as one of the most… Read more.
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Aida Overton Walker: Queen of the Cakewalk
Aida Overton Walker (1880 – 1914) was a transformative figure in American performance history. As a dancer, singer, choreographer, and… Read more.
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Uncovering the Lost Legacy of Saidie Sellyna
In a sepia publicity portrait dated circa 1911, a poised young woman named Saidie Sellyna (Thompson) gazes confidently at the… Read more.
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Lin Chan: Chinese Dancer
In the late 1930s, as tensions escalated in East Asia and the United States edged toward war, a young woman… Read more.
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Jayne Mansfield: A Bombshell in Burlesque
Jayne Mansfield didn’t grace the stage of Minsky’s or twirl pasties under marquee lights, yet her influence on burlesque—and vice… Read more.
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Florence “Dainty Dotty” Jensen
In the dust and dazzle of America’s mid-century circus culture, Florence Jensen — better known as “Dainty Dotty” — stood… Read more.
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Burlesque in Falls City, NE
Long before Falls City became known for quiet streets and prairie charm, it played host to a livelier, more provocative… Read more.
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Carmen Holiday
Carmen Holiday was a Mexican-American dancer whose career blurred the lines between striptease, theater, and social commentary. Born and raised… Read more.
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Burlesque at the McDaniel’s Theatre | Cheyenne, WY
Cheyenne, Wyoming has been the frontier of entertainment since the mid-1860s. At the heart of it all stood McDaniel’s Theatre,… Read more.
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10/3/25: The Velvet Verse
A Literary Burlesque Show at the Reading Room Join Iona Fortune and her cast of teasers for The Velvet Verse:… Read more.
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Lestra La Monte
In the world of mid-century burlesque and drag performance, few figures were as visually arresting and artistically daring as Lestra… Read more.
