Stories by Meaghan Isaacs  /  Photography by Jonathan Lorange

The lights are dim and a red glow fills the room. The crowd is jittery with anticipation. A tall, dark-haired girl enters from the left, slowly sauntering to centre stage. She plays with the garter at the top of her stockings and winks over her shoulder while slowly removing them, one leg at a time. An old jazz song wafts through the venue as she lifts up her skirt, only for a moment, to display a flash of colour and ... is that a tattoo on her ass?!

A new generation of burlesque-style performance art has arrived: they smoke, they swear, they sport hidden and not-so-hidden tattoos and piercings. They embody the classic glam of burlesque but bring a much needed burst of energy, comedy, and edginess to the age-old art of the tease.

Three Ottawa troupes gaining ground in this diverse genre—Sin Sisters, Rockalily, and Sexual Overtones—were photographed and interviewed for Guerilla. While relatively few of the performers have professional dance backgrounds and their routines may lack the polish of old-time burlesque, they're bringing it back their own way and they're proud of the results.

Motivation for this kind of performance is certainly not rooted in money or fame. It's about empowerment—about owning the stage and making a statement and being proud of one's body. Classic burlesque has come and gone, but the evolution of the art form is evidence of the enduring human desire to artfully see and be seen.

The Sin Sisters: We are family

Attached at the hip, the Sin Sisters foursome causes a commotion wherever they go: arriving in a blur of polka dots, red lipstick, and throwback hairdos, chatting, laughing, and leaving with a trail of cigarette smoke in their wake.

The stage names are Cherry Chase Sin, Maggie Sue Sin, Scare-ah Lynne Sin, and Headmistress Holly, who says the troupe is “really like a little family.”

They started out go-go dancing for a friend's band—the Bible All-Stars,—just over a year ago before their reputation and increasing, er, exposure led to gigs all on their own. Sin Sisters events have some unique quirks, such as a kissing booth and “bite for a buck,” in which audience members can nibble candy that's adhered to the girls' bodies. They also feature guest performers, including Tarah, who expertly spins hula hoops while managing to down a few shots in the process.

Though Headmistress Holly can command an audience with cracks about disciplining the other girls, she wasn't always so comfortable in the spotlight.

“I've always been shy,” says Holly, but since forming Sin Sister, “now I'm the most social person I know.”

Cherry Chase, meanwhile, is completing a masters degree in sexuality—“I've always been interested in the subject”—while Maggie Sue grew up admiring Bettie Page for having “the balls” to perform so brazenly.

Scare-ah Lynne likes having two personalities: the brash, sultry woman she plays on stage, and the reserved person she is in her day-to-day life. “I always respected the art of the tease, and we're keeping it tasteful,” she explains.

The Sin Sisters perform next at Mercury Lounge on July 19th.

Rockalily: The fruits of social media

Formed in January 2007, Rockalily are a high-energy mix of styles that resulted from a casting call  sent out by Verotika, the troupe's manager, after a chat with a friend about how Ottawa “needed something a little more sexy.”

“Facebook has been our greatest marketing tool,” says Verotika.

“I started spamming groups of women I met or was friends with,” says Verotika. She ended up with 25 girls, though now “it's boiled down to a core of about eight.”

With stage names like Lindsay Lovetunnel and Thundercunt, it's clear the girls don't take themselves too seriously and like to have fun on stage.

Despite a lack of dance experience, troupe member Vixen Vega joined Rockalily after attending a performance to support troupe member Jezebelle James. Her stage name is a play on the Vincent Vega character from the film Pulp Fiction; she brings the same wit and charm as the Travolta character.

“For me, it was the idea that you can get up on stage and be sexy ... it was the traditional Bettie Page stuff I was drawn to,” says Vega.

A newer member of the group, Miss Allura Hindsight, saw a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in the world of burlesque: “It sounds counter-intuitive, but there's really not any pressure to look sexy in any conventional way, and because of that it's that much easier to feel sexy because you're not overly self-conscious.”

Rockalily performs next at the 2nd Annual No Pants Dance Party at Babylon on June 26 and on August 8, also at Babylon.

Sexual Overtones: Neo-naked vaudeville

“We're not so much about the sexy thing,” begins Cream Puff, a performer and board member with Sexual Overtones.

Eschewing the term burlesque, Cream Puff describes the group as “neo-naked vaudeville” or “a sexual satire troupe,” although she assures that there still is some nudity involved. Staging more elaborate group performances than seen in traditional burlesque, the Overtones combine singing, dance routines, and a healthy dose of humour in choreographed and comic skits that feature women and men.

Cream Puff moved to Ottawa from Halifax in August of 2008. After working with two troupes on the east coast, the itch to perform remained so she founded Sexual Overtones. Some 30 people are involved in putting on the shows, with specific committees responsible for details such as decorations and venue.

Overtones performer Aristotle O'Nasty, who created a “gangster rapper persona” for his shows, got involved through his backyard neighbours, who were some of the first members of the troupe.

O'Nasty also likes how Sexual Overtones is “widening the spectrum” and “challenging what people view as burlesque.”

Says another Overtones performer Rusty Star: “It's really sex-positive and open and fun.”

Next up for Sexual Overtones: an August 22nd fundraising show supporting the Venus Envy Bursary Fund in conjunction with Lady Fest Ottawa.