#vickybutterfly

Adventures in Burlesque Costuming -- With Vicky Butterfly

Photo: Vicky Butterfly by Maria S Varela. Please do not use without source and photo credit.

This is the beginning of a new feature on our blog! We will be talking with some of the most accomplished burlesque performers on the planet about their experiences with costuming and staging. We hope Adventures in Burlesque Costuming will give burlesque fans and performers insight into all the work behind the magic. Enjoy this first installment!

“ "The Spider's Kiss" is one of my favourite pieces but one that I feel is still a work in progress. Usually when I create an act, I have a few themes and ideas swirling about in my head before a moment of inspiration channels them into a "story" with a beginning,  middle and end. I like moments of transformation and creating shapes with fabric and feathers - it's very much about movement for me, so that often determines the nature of the design. So this one has been a bit more of a challenge. I make a lot of outfits for myself that aren't costumes  - I like to experiment with how things drape and move but they don't always translate to stage: some of the more elaborate things I make and wear wouldn't give me total freedom to move or might tangle  (I have a whole drawer of impractical bits ditched from acts and most headdresses end up perched on my dressing table). I just wanted to see if I could make it and if it would look like I pictured it.  It was much, MUCH harder than I thought!  I think I was making it to wear to a party, but it took five times as long as I  thought  (note: my rule of thumb is to double the time I think I need  - if nothing else just to give time to buy more materials as something is always a bit short ). I think the challenge was to see what the maximum impact I could make on a budget. Although time consuming, I think there was a sale on bias  (maybe 100m for £25). This photo was shot backstage before a show in Munich by Maria S Barely for fun,  but people liked it so much I ended up creating an act around it!  My personal taste can often run to very voluminous, flowing  costumes with a lot of texture but a lot of my more popular costumes, like this and  "When the Hard Rain Falls... The Night Flowers Bloom" rely more on boldness and silhouette so, although I love them too, I know you don't always need expensive materials and lots of costume elements for it to have an impact. I even have a costume made of plastic rubble sacks... “