Shake Dancers

1 day ago4 min

The "White Fantasy" of Black Movement

While Shake Queens mainly focuses on femme shakers, there was a straight cis male shaker named "Snakehips" Tucker that revolutionized...

Nov 19, 20211 min

Rest in Peace, Miss Topsy

Yesterday, Miss Topsy's family friend commented on an older blog post I wrote about her, letting me know that she had recently passed...

Jan 24, 20212 min

Black Burlesque History Timeline: 1880-1929 (Part I)

Originally published on Patreon. All proceeds go towards the publication of the forthcoming book "AMERICAN SHAKE QUEENS". I wanted to...

Jan 10, 20215 min

Loving Burlesque & Pinup Culture as a Black Femme

Hello out there!! It's a not-so-shiny but totally-brand-new year, and I recently realized I'm slowly inching up on my four-year burlesque...

Apr 4, 20203 min

Quarantease and Chill: Rare Photos of 1930s Shake Dancers in D.C.

For the past few weeks, much of the world has been on lockdown due to coronavirus. There are no gigs since most bars, restaurants, and...

Mar 11, 20204 min

A New Kind of Neo-Burlesque: Egypt, "Shakedown," and the History of Black Lesbian Strip Clubs

In the burlesque community, we typically use the term "neo-burlesque" to describe a historical movement that occurred during the late...

Feb 12, 20203 min

Spotlight On: Shake Dancer Carlett Angianlee Brown

As I continue researching and teaching the history and practice of shake dancing, I've found so much information that it's sometimes hard...