Dirty Martini (burlesque)
Encyclopedia
Dirty Martini is a New York City-based Burlesque
dancer, pin-up model and dance teacher.
She is best-known for her over-the-top performance acts, which mostly incorporate various classic burlesque styles such as the fan dance, balloon strip tease, the Dance of Several Veils, and shadow stripping, as well as her 50s styled pin-up images.
Martini regularly performs in New York City and extensively throughout North America and Europe in a wide range of venues from Carnegie Hall
to weekly burlesque venues to gay leather bars. She was crowned Miss Exotic World
2004.
. She studied dance since she was six. Martini honed her choreography skills when she attended SUNY-Purchase
, where she graduated with a BFA in Dance Performance.
and started out working in collaborative theater and modern dance groups. She then viewed some old burlesque reels when she was searching for a style that was conducive to performing solo and showcasing her voluptuous figure. Martini started with developing and performing a fan dancing act.
In May 2001, Martini performed in the first new burlesque convention, "Tease-o-rama", in New Orleans. Later that year, at the Miss Exotic World
2001, she won the Sally Rand
Award for Fan Dance. She was also the first runner-up at Miss Exotic World
2003 and was awarded the main title as well as the Jennie Lee award for tassel twirling at Miss Exotic World
in 2004.
Martini has worked with comedian and drag king personality, Murray Hill
, playwright/performer Taylor Mac in Red Tide Blooming, follow burlesque performer Julie Atlas Muz
, and Penny Arcade
in Bad Reputation and New York Values. She also performed in Margaret Cho
's 2007 burlesque-style variety show, The Sensuous Woman.
's 2006 film Shortbus
, and in Mitchell's video for "Filthy/Gorgeous
" by the Scissor Sisters
.
She has been the featured subject in two documentaries. One is the 2009 short film Dirty Martini by Iban Del Campo, which won the best documentary film award at the 2010 FreeNetWorld International Film Fest
held in Serbia
. The other is the 2010 feature length Dirty Martini and the New Burlesque by Gary Beeber, which is about Martini and her colleagues in the Neo-Burlesque
scene.
Martini also appears in the Burlesque Undressed documentary with Immodesty Blaize
, Catherine D'lish
, Satan's Angel
, and Michelle L'amour
, and in Exotic World & the Burlesque Revival, which focuses on the history of Dixie Evans' Burlesque Hall of Fame Museum (formerly The Exotic World Museum).
Martini along with burlesque performers Mimi Le Meaux, Kitten on the Keys, Julie Atlas Muz
, Evie Lovelle and Roky Roulette were featured in Mathieu Amalric
's 2010 Cannes
-award winning film, Tournee
. A drawing of her is used the film's poster.
For the Spring 2010 edition of V Magazine
, she was featured in a fashion spread shot by Karl Lagerfeld
at the House of Chanel
.
Burlesque
Burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects...
dancer, pin-up model and dance teacher.
She is best-known for her over-the-top performance acts, which mostly incorporate various classic burlesque styles such as the fan dance, balloon strip tease, the Dance of Several Veils, and shadow stripping, as well as her 50s styled pin-up images.
Martini regularly performs in New York City and extensively throughout North America and Europe in a wide range of venues from Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
to weekly burlesque venues to gay leather bars. She was crowned Miss Exotic World
Miss Exotic World Pageant
The Miss Exotic World Pageant is an annual neo-burlesque pageant and convention, and is the annual showcase event the Burlesque Hall of Fame...
2004.
Biography
Dirty Martini, born to an opera singer/visual artist mother and a band director father, had grown up in New JerseyNew Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. She studied dance since she was six. Martini honed her choreography skills when she attended SUNY-Purchase
State University of New York at Purchase
Purchase College, State University of New York, is a public four-year college located in Purchase, New York, United States. It is one of 13 comprehensive colleges in the State University of New York system...
, where she graduated with a BFA in Dance Performance.
Performance
Martini moved to New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and started out working in collaborative theater and modern dance groups. She then viewed some old burlesque reels when she was searching for a style that was conducive to performing solo and showcasing her voluptuous figure. Martini started with developing and performing a fan dancing act.
In May 2001, Martini performed in the first new burlesque convention, "Tease-o-rama", in New Orleans. Later that year, at the Miss Exotic World
Miss Exotic World Pageant
The Miss Exotic World Pageant is an annual neo-burlesque pageant and convention, and is the annual showcase event the Burlesque Hall of Fame...
2001, she won the Sally Rand
Sally Rand
Sally Rand was a burlesque dancer and actress, most noted for her ostrich feather fan dance and balloon bubble dance. She also performed under the name Billie Beck.-Early life and career:...
Award for Fan Dance. She was also the first runner-up at Miss Exotic World
Miss Exotic World Pageant
The Miss Exotic World Pageant is an annual neo-burlesque pageant and convention, and is the annual showcase event the Burlesque Hall of Fame...
2003 and was awarded the main title as well as the Jennie Lee award for tassel twirling at Miss Exotic World
Miss Exotic World Pageant
The Miss Exotic World Pageant is an annual neo-burlesque pageant and convention, and is the annual showcase event the Burlesque Hall of Fame...
in 2004.
Martini has worked with comedian and drag king personality, Murray Hill
Murray Hill (performer)
Murray Hill is a well-known New York City comedian and drag king entertainer persona of Betsey Gallagher although this persona is maintained even in private settings...
, playwright/performer Taylor Mac in Red Tide Blooming, follow burlesque performer Julie Atlas Muz
Julie Atlas Muz
Julie Atlas Muz is a New York City-based performance artist, dancer, burlesque artist, stage director, and actress....
, and Penny Arcade
Penny Arcade (performer)
Susana Ventura , better known by her stage name Penny Arcade, is an American performance artist, actress, and playwright based in New York City.-Career:...
in Bad Reputation and New York Values. She also performed in Margaret Cho
Margaret Cho
Margaret Cho is an American comedian, fashion designer, actress, author, and recording artist. Cho is best known for her stand-up routines, through which she critiques social and political problems, especially those pertaining to race and sexuality. She has also directed and appeared in music...
's 2007 burlesque-style variety show, The Sensuous Woman.
TV and film appearances
Martini has appeared on the AMC TV series, "Into Character", in the 2004 documentary The Velvet Hammer Burlesque, in John Cameron MitchellJohn Cameron Mitchell
John Cameron Mitchell is an American writer, actor, and director. He is best known for his motion pictures Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Shortbus and Rabbit Hole.- Early life:...
's 2006 film Shortbus
Shortbus
Shortbus is a 2006 comedy-drama film written and directed by John Cameron Mitchell. The plot revolves around a sexually diverse ensemble of colorful characters trying desperately to connect in New York City. The characters converge in a weekly Brooklyn artistic/sexual salon loosely inspired by...
, and in Mitchell's video for "Filthy/Gorgeous
Filthy/Gorgeous
"Filthy/Gorgeous" is a song by American disco group Scissor Sisters and is the seventh track on their self-titled debut album . It was released as the last single from that album in the UK and despite this, it was surprisingly successful commercially, peaking at #5 in the UK Singles Chart in...
" by the Scissor Sisters
Scissor Sisters
Scissor Sisters are an American band "spawned by the scuzzy, gay nightlife scene of New York" who took their name from a sexual position between two women also known as tribadism...
.
She has been the featured subject in two documentaries. One is the 2009 short film Dirty Martini by Iban Del Campo, which won the best documentary film award at the 2010 FreeNetWorld International Film Fest
FreeNetWorld International Film Fest
FreeNetWorld is annual film festival held annually in Niš, Niš Fortress, Serbia.FreeNetWorld is an international film festival which aims to support and promote the creativity of film and authors from all over the world, primarily through the Internet that we think is the basic kind of...
held in Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
. The other is the 2010 feature length Dirty Martini and the New Burlesque by Gary Beeber, which is about Martini and her colleagues in the Neo-Burlesque
Neo-Burlesque
Neo-Burlesque is the revival and updating of the traditional burlesque performance. Though based on the traditional Burlesque art, the new form encompasses a wider range of performance styles; Neo-burlesque acts can be anything from classic striptease to modern dance to theatrical mini-dramas to...
scene.
Martini also appears in the Burlesque Undressed documentary with Immodesty Blaize
Immodesty Blaize
Immodesty Blaize is a British burlesque dancer who performs internationally. She was crowned Reigning Queen of Burlesque in June 2007 at the Las Vegas Burlesque Hall of Fame formerly known as Exotic World.- Rise to fame :Her ethnic heritage is Croatian, Russian and Irish...
, Catherine D'lish
Catherine D'lish
Catherine D’lish is an American performance artist specializing in classical strip tease and burlesque. Elaborate costumes and decorative props are part of her show. She has been the headlining performer at multiple events in the genre including the 50th anniversary celebration of Playboy...
, Satan's Angel
Satan's Angel
Angel Cecelia Helene Walker is an American exotic dancer specializing in stripping and burlesque under her stage name Satan’s Angel. She started dancing in San Francisco in 1961, after winning an amateur strip contest at North Beach nightclub Moulin Rouge...
, and Michelle L'amour
Michelle L'amour
Michelle L'amour is an American neo-burlesque performer who grew up in Orland Park, Illinois. In 2006, she performed stripteases on NBC's America's Got Talent, Showtime's , and small touring performances. Her tagline is "The Ass That Goes POW!" and she sells related promotional products...
, and in Exotic World & the Burlesque Revival, which focuses on the history of Dixie Evans' Burlesque Hall of Fame Museum (formerly The Exotic World Museum).
Martini along with burlesque performers Mimi Le Meaux, Kitten on the Keys, Julie Atlas Muz
Julie Atlas Muz
Julie Atlas Muz is a New York City-based performance artist, dancer, burlesque artist, stage director, and actress....
, Evie Lovelle and Roky Roulette were featured in Mathieu Amalric
Mathieu Amalric
Mathieu Amalric is a French actor and film director, perhaps best known internationally for his performance as the lead villain in Bond film Quantum Of Solace and for his role in The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, for which he drew critical acclaim...
's 2010 Cannes
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
-award winning film, Tournee
On Tour (2010 film)
On Tour is a 2010 French comedy film directed by Mathieu Amalric. It stars Amalric himself as a producer who brings an American Neo-Burlesque troupe to France, played by genuine performers Mimi Le Meaux, Kitten on the Keys, Dirty Martini, Julie Atlas Muz, Evie Lovelle and Roky Roulette...
. A drawing of her is used the film's poster.
Print media
Martini has been featured in the books, "Striptease, from Gaslight to Spotlight" by Jessica Glasscock, "Burlesque, The New Bump and Grind" by Michelle Baldwin and Katherina Bosse's "New Burlesque".For the Spring 2010 edition of V Magazine
V (American magazine)
V magazine is an American fashion magazine published since 1999. The magazine is printed seasonally and highlights trends in fashion, film music and art. A men's fashion quarterly entitled VMAN started as an offshoot in 2003.-History:...
, she was featured in a fashion spread shot by Karl Lagerfeld
Karl Lagerfeld
Karl Lagerfeld is a German fashion designer, artist and photographer based in Paris. He has collaborated on a variety of fashion and art related projects, most notably as head designer and creative director for the fashion house Chanel...
at the House of Chanel
Chanel
Chanel S.A. is a French fashion house founded by the couturier Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel, well established in haute couture, specializing in luxury goods . She gained the name "Coco" while maintaining a career as a singer at a café in France...
.