Genre Burlesque Founder Pixie Truffle Compère Rosie Lugosi | Show type Lesbian Cabaret Co-Founder Kitty Liquor | |
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Location Manchester, London, United Kingdom | ||
Lesburlesque is a British troupe of over thirty burlesque performers that perform on the cabaret circuit. They are notable for being the first and only burlesque troupe in the UK that performs lesbian burlesque. Following on from the success of Los Angeles-based girl band and dance troupe, the Pin Up Girls, Lesburlesque appeared on the burlesque scene in September 2010. They came to wider public attention in 2012 for having performed at a former church and continue to incorporate traditionally lesbian specific cabaret entertainment, such as drag kinging to broadening its appeal to the wider cabaret circuit.
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History
Lesburlesque is a British burlesque and dance troupe, founded by lesbian cabaret performer Pixie Truffle in 2010. The troupe began as a duet burlesque routine idea, but following favourable responses from established burlesque performers Kitty Liquor, Mona Von Chrome, Isobella Lash and March Violets vocalist Rosie Garland, aka Rosie Lugosi, Pixie dedicated herself to making Lesburlesque into a fully fledged cabaret group.
Performing at a former place of worship, Platt Chapel (now Unique Manchester), Lesburlesque garnered scathing attention from the British Tabloid press. However the press in Manchester seemed supportive of their efforts to expand the concept of burlesque to the LGBTQ community and to render sapphic art forms such as drag kinging available to a larger audience.
The troupe continue to use established drag king performers The Dyke Kings and Juan Kerr. Lesburlesque and Pixie continue to spearhead the rise to equality of drag king performance art. In an exchange between Pixie and actress and feminist writer Rhona Foulis, Pixie claims it is "...her personal mission to bring lesbian performances to a mainstream audience, in exactly the same way as drag queens have been accepted."
Associations
The troupe continues to be associated with the Lesbian Community Project, a charitable organisation that helps to put lesbians in touch with each other across Manchester and to provide counselling and fun activities.
On their first year anniversary Pixie Truffle formed a one off partnership with Bella Besame, the founder and promoter of The Slippery Belle Presents...BURLESQUE! revue in Manchester.
On their second year anniversary Pixie announced a partnership with The Singapore Burlesque Club, a well-known Burlesque revue in Singapore. Singapore is a country with stringent controls on public nudity and the Burlesque Club's stance, and association with a Lesbian Burlesque troupe, would at the very least be at odds with the state of women's rights and gay rights in its native Singapore.