The Great Boston Burlesque Exposition

Photos by Ed Barnas

Produced by the newly formed Professional Burlesque Society, the 2007 debut of The Great Boston Burlesque Exposition took place at the John Hancock Hotel & Conference Center over the frigid President’s Day weekend in February. In addition to a trio of evening showcases, the weekend featured a wide array of daytime classes Saturday through Monday covering a variety of topics from business practices and self-promotion through costuming and performance. There was also Vendor Room packed with multiple purveyors of accessories, jewelry, corsets, costumes, lingerie, and shoes as well as a sketch artist, naughty candy treats, and a dance studio with a portable pole in place for impromptu demonstrations.

The performances kicked off with a showcase of local talent in The New England Review on Friday night hosted by the inimitable Miss Astrid.

The Main Event was hosted by Jai Rodriguez on Saturday night and featured over twenty performers and groups competing for the Howards – and the evening was capped off with a mass tassel twirl.

On Sunday David Lawrence and Scratch hosted the Newcomers’ Showcase and Sideshow Ball featuring an array of burlesque, clowning, juggling, hoping, and a bit of fire.

Scroll down on the large images to see the complete image and view the identifying captions. [Note that some performers requested that no photos be taken during their performance.]

NOTE to PERFORMERS: I have tried to caption the photos as accurately as possible based on the program and my notes.  Please advise me of any errors so that I can correct them.  Note also that I have posted a fraction of the images from the weekend; contact me if you would like to see other images of your performance.

Back to Ed’s home page or to Ed’s Burlesque page or e-mail ED@BARNAS.ORG

Page updated 21 March 2007