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American Burlesque Costumes, 1899

Entitled: "Women wearing brief costumes, holding veils, with feathers in her hair" lithograph poster created by Courier Litho. Company, 1899. American burlesque is a variety show derived from elements of Victorian burlesque, music hall "leg shows" and minstrel shows. American burlesque adopted the minstrel show's three part structure: part one was composed of songs and dances rendered by a female company, interspersed with low comedy from male comedians. Part two featured various short specialties and vaudeville acts in which the women did not appear. The show's finish was a grand finale. By the 1880s, the four distinguishing characteristics of American burlesque had evolved: 1) minimal costuming, often focusing on the female form, 2) sexually suggestive dialogue, dance, plot lines and staging, 3) quick-witted humor laced with puns, but lacking complexity, and 4) short routines or sketches with minimal plot cohesion across a show. Much of the humor and entertainment of later American burlesque focused on lowbrow and ribald (lewd) subjects. The uninhibited atmosphere of burlesque establishments owed much to the free flow of alcohol.
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Title:
American Burlesque Costumes, 1899
Caption:
Entitled: "Women wearing brief costumes, holding veils, with feathers in her hair" lithograph poster created by Courier Litho. Company, 1899. American burlesque is a variety show derived from elements of Victorian burlesque, music hall "leg shows" and minstrel shows. American burlesque adopted the minstrel show's three part structure: part one was composed of songs and dances rendered by a female company, interspersed with low comedy from male comedians. Part two featured various short specialties and vaudeville acts in which the women did not appear. The show's finish was a grand finale. By the 1880s, the four distinguishing characteristics of American burlesque had evolved: 1) minimal costuming, often focusing on the female form, 2) sexually suggestive dialogue, dance, plot lines and staging, 3) quick-witted humor laced with puns, but lacking complexity, and 4) short routines or sketches with minimal plot cohesion across a show. Much of the humor and entertainment of later American burlesque focused on lowbrow and ribald (lewd) subjects. The uninhibited atmosphere of burlesque establishments owed much to the free flow of alcohol.
Credit:
Album / LOC/Science Source
Releases:
Model: No - Property: No
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Image size:
3183 x 4200 px | 38.2 MB
Print size:
26.9 x 35.6 cm | 10.6 x 14.0 in (300 dpi)
Keywords: