Thread: Narrative in performance

I've been having a bit of a stress lately, worrying about the lack of 'story' and 'narrative' in a couple of my acts; (as in fuuuuck, my fan dance doesn't have much of a narrative, it's just me, and some fans, and then I take my clothes off, but there's no real reason why, and arrrrgh!)

But, when I got to thinking about it, some of my favourite ever performances I've seen haven't really had much of a logical or sequential 'story' to them as such... they're just beautiful and inspiring to watch.

With my fan dance, for example, my intention was to create something which conveyed some level of sultriness and grace, as well as (hopefully) the skill of being able to teasingly 'just' cover myself. But, I'll admit, there isn't much of a narrative to it. But is this such a bad thing? What's the general consensus? Do you tend to think less of an act if it doesn't follow some kind of story?

x GLR x

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I like performances that are well-crafted, and often that involves some idea of a narrative. It doesn't have to be explicitly storylike (beginning middle end etc), just evocative of a mood or concept or idea. I'm not a big fan of the gratuitous-stripping, unless there's some other major production value that makes up for it (like fabulous choreography or set design - Vivi Valentine's good with this). Also I have a taste for the subversive and political, though you'd get that from watching me perform ;P

I suppose it's up to you. Beatrix von Bourbon recently did this excellent article on being a headline act that included a great section on characterisation and storytelling. One of the best acts I've seen was this simple poetic Little Match Girl-esque act with a fire lamp, threadbare rags, Hallelujah, and not a lot of stripping...it made me cry!!

What sort of acts do you like to watch? What is it about those acts that grab you?

I think a fan dance doesn't need a narrative as much. If its a beautifully done dance then that is enough to keep my attention.
My favourite routines to watch though are ones with added comedy but that is just my personal taste.x

I think the real question is why do you feel your acts NEED narrative?

Think about what burlesque means to you.
Think about your research.
Try to understand why you're feeling this pressure to add a more narrative dimension to your act.

...and *then* re-evaluate.

yeah - dont sweat it hun!

Originally Posted by Ginger La Rouge

But, I'll admit, there isn't much of a narrative to it. But is this such a bad thing? What's the general consensus? Do you tend to think less of an act if it doesn't follow some kind of story?

x GLR x

I'll go with the others here and say absolutely not, I've seen far too many good routines with no story and bad routines with too much story (and every combination in between) to judge any performance on what narrative it does or does not have, it's whether or not its entertaining/enjoyable to watch that counts.

Moreover burlesque is a very individual artform, everyone's got their own style and ways of expressing themselves. If you would not normally go out of your way to add a narrative to a routine but feel forced to do so simply because you think you should your routine is likely to suffer from having something that you are not comfortable with shoehorned in where it wouldn't naturally be, if that makes sense.

Originally Posted by Lilly de Lure

If you would not normally go out of your way to add a narrative to a routine but feel forced to do so simply because you think you should your routine is likely to suffer from having something that you are not comfortable with shoehorned in where it wouldn't naturally be, if that makes sense.

That makes perfect sense, thank you

BVB, the very reason I started thinking about narrative (or the lack of it) was when I decided to do a bit more research! I think the reason I'm feeling the pressure for there to be a narrative is that, like Tiara, I'm not really one for gratuitous stripping, and I don't want people to be thinking, "Oh, she's stripping, because that's what's expected".

I'm glad everyone seems to so far feel that a good narrative isn't a prerequisite to a good act. I agree too, I was just starting to worry I was the only one

X GLR X

Originally Posted by Ginger La Rouge

I'm glad everyone seems to so far feel that a good narrative isn't a prerequisite to a good act. I agree too, I was just starting to worry I was the only one

X GLR X

Weirdly I've been feeling exactly the same way recently, only the other way around! I normally have very narrative driven routines and have been trying to get away from that for a couple into more dance/spectacle based routines. That worked really well for one faerie-based routine but when I tried the same trick with my nun/angel routine the whole narrative thing just wouldn't go away. As a result what started out as being an Isis Wing/ dance routine wound up full of narrative and cheesecake, as well as sporting possibly the single most obscene prop I've ever seen used in a burlesque routine!

sometimes you just have to go with the flow of what works for you and the routine - if it's screaming out to go in a particular direction, that's the direction you should go in I suppose, no point in trying to make it something it isn't just for the sake of it . . .