Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1536052
as an opportunity to educate them. Be patient with their questions and make room for their awkwardness." I have been told that burlesque "isn't stripping—it's 'classy,'" to which I reply, "that's classist! What's the difference between a stripper, me, or an actress geing paid to do a job we love?" So much resistance comes from only knowing about the world of stripping and burlesque from the male-gaze perspective that has been prevalent in film and television. There are those who do not want to come forward about performing for fear of geing hired in the first place. Lisa Luxe has frustration about keeping that side of her life on the DL, "A coworker said I wasn't a real Costumer, just a bikini model." But Rebecca adds, "I don't oen talk about my theater and burlesque experience unless there's a costume that needs to be rigged to be removed quickly, or quick-change choreography is necessary, or to explain to a performer how to put on pasties or nipple covers." Doing vaudeville has made us all beer Costumers. As Custom Made, I've worn some crazy costumes, so I'm very aware of how an actor can move and breathe in a costume I'm making for them. For others, it has brought a deeper empathy for what an actor/actress might go through wearing modesty garments for love scenes. And the same personality that makes us carry that extra pair of false eyelashes in our gig bags translates to being prepared on set. The Los Angeles vaudeville scene is still struggling aer the pandemic and now being hit by the economic austerity of industry- wide slowdowns. Venues have closed and audiences have fewer dollars to spend on live entertainment. But keep an eye open in the future for a local burlesque, drag, or circus show—it might even star one of your coworkers. 38 SUMMER 2025 Rebecca Graves, aka Veranda Swing. Aja Morris Smiley, aka Asha Smiley, catwoman.