Dita Von Teese, the internationally acclaimed super heroine and fashion icon is the author of the bestselling double book “Burlesque and the Art of the Teese / Fetish and the Art of the Teese” (2006). She has appeared in the likes of Vanity Fair, Vogue, Elle, and Harper's Bazaar, as well as graced the cover and pages of Playboy. Her fashion opinions are respected by nearly every fashion magazine. She will be reinventing glamour and fetish fantasies galore while channeling the spirit of original pin-up and burlesque performers such as Betty Page, Dixie Rose Lee, and Sally Rand when her elaborate burlesque show “Strip, Strip, Hooray” comes to the New Orleans House of Blues on Tuesday, July 26th.
Miss Von Teese is known as the international “Queen of Burlesque.” Her shows present larger than life props, erotic costumes and retro pin-up fashion as well as play to the allure of submission. She has performed burlesque since 1993 and has the honor of being the first guest star in the history of the famous Crazy Horse Paris. Dita is professionally respected, having made endorsements and appearances at many elite fashion events such as Louis Vuitton, Christian Louboutin, Marc Jacobs, Roland Mouret, Chopard, Elton John’s Life Ball, Victoria Secret’s Fashion Show, and the Cannes Film Festival.
Dita has loved vintage clothing, sexy lingerie and burlesque all her life, and over the last decade has almost singlehandedly revived the glories of 1940's and 1950's retro fashion. She studies historic costuming and, along with her friend Catherine D’Lish, designs lingerie and costumes which frequently evoke cultural icon Bettie Page, one skill setting her apart from other fetish models. She has achieved recognition as a “tightlacer” with her tiny corseted waistline and has appeared in many fetish magazines as well as in movies, music videos, television and books.
Dita Von Teese sums it all up by saying, “I'm a good dancer and a nice girl, but I'm a great showgirl. I sell, in a word, magic. Burlesque is a world of illusion and dreams and of course, the striptease. Whether I am bathing in my martini glass, riding my sparkling carousel horse, or emerging from my giant gold powder compact, I live out my most glamorous fantasies by bringing nostalgic imagery to life.” - Intro by Kim Welsh
“THE DITA VON TEESE INTERVIEW” by Jeff Teachworth
This interview was conducted on the red carpet preceding Cointreau presents Dita Von Teese at Tales of the Cocktail, performed at the New Orleans House of Blues on July 20th, 2010. Be sure to catch Dita Von Teese there again on July 26, 2011 performing her new show “Burlesque: Strip, Strip, Hooray!”
(Audio of interview in mp3 - listen here. Interviewer’s words in white, Dita’s words in red.)
I know you’ve been asked a lot of questions in interviews, so I have tried to come up with some that are a little different... A lot of people joke about how men don’t understand women and women don’t understand men. As a cultural icon of sexuality, can you shed some light on this enigma?
“I think that’s definitely true. Part of the goal is that we’re just trying to find someone else in life that we can come close to understanding, you know? I don’t expect every man to understand me, nor do I want every man to understand me. The goal in life is to find that one man who can understand me 90 % of the time... and likewise for men. If you can just find someone you can deal with their ‘crazies’ a little bit.”
A friend of mine once told one reason he loved his wife, “She knows how to put up with my bullshit.”
“Right. I think that’s the goal in relationships. You’ve got to find the person that’s OK with your kind of crazy and your kind of lunacy, because we’re all crazy.”
Wow, that can help me a lot.
“If you keep looking for the perfect person, you’re screwed.”
It seems that women are empowered in modern burlesque. Do you agree and if so, what is the root of this phenomenon?
I think the root of it is that burlesque really always was about self creation, and that burlesque dancers were self created. they didn’t have like a choreographer, a stylist, all these people putting their act together. There was really about their desire to build an act and be a star. That’s what I love about burlesque. It’s not like “Hollywood”, where it’s a team of people making you and putting you together and telling you what to do. Style-wise and performance-wise, it’s really like an individualistic thing, and that’s empowering. You can take control and build a career that way.
That reminds me of what you tweeted. I think it was yesterday that you were on the plane. You watched Marilyn in the movie “Niagara” twice and said you’d rather watch that than the new stuff...
Yes, more than the other options which were blockbuster guns, fire, car chases. I really felt like watching her on screen. Plus, you don’t see anyone like that - at all - on screen. When you watch Marilyn Monroe again, you sit down and watch it again for real, when you really sit down and watch it again, you’re like, “Wow! There’s not another woman on this planet, in Hollywood, or anywhere that has or conveys what she did. It’s incredible!
We disagree.
We do?
You.
(Smiles) No... That’s very kind, but thank you.
Dita’s manager to us: We’ve got time for one more question.
One more? OK...
Or two more. I’m going to give you two. I’m going to try to talk faster. (She stole my heart here. No wonder I lost my car later that night!)
Tell me something secret, or little known about your “Art of the Tease”.
I never divulge any of my secrets... Ask another one.... But practicing might be safe to say...
OK... How is burlesque different because you’re involved in it?
How is it different? Oh, that’s a complicated question. (Blushes) That’s an embarrassing question. I’m embarrassed. (She’s stealing my heart again, because she’s so humble.) I’ll let you answer that. (Note: see my comments below for my answer...)
I’m going to take that as a sign of your sensitivity.
Yeah...
Because you do show a lot of sensitivity.
Ask another one. Haha! Since I’m giving you the one-liners.
You’re the best! All right... Are there any tips? We have a lot of burlesque performers who are just getting into the business. Are there any tips for the aspiring burlesque performer, a way for her to find her inner burlesque “zen”, or as you called it in your book, “that special je ne sais quoi”?
I think that’s important. You know, when I started performing burlesque, there was no internet. I had no reference whatsoever except for photographs. So I had to make it up in my mind of what I thought it was. By the time I got to study cool footage of other performers, I was like “Wow! It’s different than what I was doing really, in a lot of ways”. And I was grateful that I had to use my imagination rather than look and think that’s how it’s done. So I think what’s important more than ever is not to watch a show. Not to watch me or anyone else and say “that’s what burlesque is. But to think more deeply about it, about the spirit of it, and what makes it great.
You don’t have to have black hair and pale skin to be a burlesque dancer. It’s very difficult sometimes for people to see outside of what is popular. But what people really need to see is how they can further change it, and how they can make their own market.
Well said. Thank you so very much, Dita, from Burlesque Scene and our readers.
Visit the Home of Dita Von Teese - this ad courtesy of Burlesque Scene
Dita Von Teese after the interview with Burlesque Scene Editor Jeff Teachworth, at her 2010 New Orleans show.
Now I’d like to answer my own question as Dita redirected me to do during her interview, about what she personally adds to the burlesque field:
Dita Von Teese is the pinnacle of beauty. It took a lot of concentration to maintain my professional composure around her, as she was so stunningly beautiful. Dita was quite possibly the most beautiful woman I had ever had in my presence. Her hair is as black as a forbidden night, and her pale skin looks as delicate as museum porcelain. Dita is 5’4” tall and her measurements are 32-21-33. She wears a C cup bra, but her waist can be corseted down to 16 inches. Her body has more curves and dips than a roller coaster. Her eyes are seductive and deep, like looking into a sparkling sea. Her bold red lips are soft and sexy. She speaks to you, not at you, in a friendly voice that makes you feel like you’re the only person in the room.
Dita Von Teese is smart and savvy, yet very down to earth. She was born for show business. She’s very charismatic and every bit a star. The fact that she shares so much of herself, both inside and out, with her fans, constitutes a very loving gift. Dita Von Teese’s gift to us is not only the beauty she shares on the outside, but also something very special that comes from inside her heart.
Don’t miss the return to New Orleans of Dita Von Teese on July 26th at the New Orleans House of Blues, with her burlesque show, “Strip, Strip, Hooray!” featuring MC Murray Hill, Dirty Martini, Lada (from The Crazy Horse Paris), Monsieur Romeo and Medianoché. Buy your tickets before they sell out, at LiveNation.com
This was Part One of our Scene Diva feature (Read Part Two...)
This page: Profile by Kim Welsh. Interview by Jeff Teachworth. Photos by Jeff Teachworth, Kaylin Idora, Wonderbra, and Jennifer Mitchell/Cointreau. Graphics and layout by Jeff Teachworth. All work copyright by respective owners.
“Right. I think that’s the goal in relationships. You’ve got to find the person that’s OK with your kind of crazy and your kind of lunacy, because we’re all crazy.”
We do?
