Burlesque dancers communicate with audience members and fans on a regular basis, and let me be the first to say that your intentions are often not as cleverly masked as you think. The way you communicate with someone you respect is vastly different than when someone is testing the waters for their personal gain in some regard.

Between my anxious prayers to some sort of stripper god that people would attend a burlesque show at a Humboldt Park bar on a Tuesday night, there was that horrible little voice (strangely in my tone and register) that kept echoing in my head that I had no idea what I was doing, that I was going to look like a complete idiot, and maybe being a producer wasn't my bag, after all. 

Show information for the "Southern Snakeover" tour, featuring shows in Nashville and New Orleans in advance of the Snake Oil Festival 2016. 

I feel like if you need to employ such a two-dimensional, unoriginal, and uncreative device to make your artistic statement, then I question if you're really making art. If you can't stand up and defend your artistic choices and explain what original thoughts you were trying to present, then what are you doing?

Performers, your actions have repercussions. The decisions you make affect the show as a whole and the stress level of the individuals running it who are doing everything possible to ensure your experience is the best it can be so you can deliver your best work. (Photo by Greg Inda)