Life & Work with Miss Spent Youth

Today we’d like to introduce you to Miss Spent Youth.

Hi Miss, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today. 
I’ve been producing high-end burlesque shows in Los Angeles since 2016. I trained under the Los Angeles godmother of Burlesque, Lili Von Schtupp, who started the Hollywood Burlesque Festival in 2013. The pandemic put a hold on most live performance, but I started have talks with Lili about taking over the festival from her. She’s had ongoing health issues, and a festival of this size is a lot of work, so she knew she could not continue to give it the energy it needs. I took over just in time to bring the festival back in 2023 for a revamped 10-year anniversary. It’s my passion to not only preserve the art of the classic striptease but to support the artists that are taking the artform to new heights. So much is changing right now, and burlesque performers of all shapes and sizes are breathing new life into this art form, and I love giving them a big stage to do it on. I learned so much from working with Lili and the burlesque boss Audrey Deluxe who produces all the burlesque at the world-famous Viva Las Vegas, it gave me the knowledge and experience to hit the grown running with the Hollywood Burlesque Festival. Last year was a blast; I got so much support from performers from around the country who believed in my vision. This year is 2024, and we are going even bigger with performers from across the world hitting our stage.

The Hollywood Burlesque Festival is March 8-10th at the Bourbon Room in Hollywood.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Putting on 4 shows, classes, and a vendor bazaar in 3 days is always going to be a challenge. Surprisingly though it’s gone very smooth. I have an amazing business partner, Gustavo Rojas, who brings some great business know-how to the equation, and an incredible team working behind the scenes to make this happen. My Production manager, Veronica Voss is incredibly organized, she has spreadsheets for our spreadsheets, and I cannot tell you how helpful it is. The festival is run by volunteers from the local community, and they kick ass!

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am also a burlesque performer. I came into it knowing I wanted to produce because I have a production background in my day job, but as soon as I took the stage, I fell in love with performing just as much as producing. I dress vintage, live in a vintage house, don’t have a microwave, etc., so I came to burlesque with a love for the vintage aesthetic but was surprised to find I enjoy doing some modern acts, too – with a vintage twist! I am known as a classic style performer or what we call in the biz Parade and Peel, which is exactly what it sounds like. You’re not going to see me drop in to the splits or do a ton of fancy footwork, my style is focused on the tease. That is the style that I teach, and my students are probably what I am most proud of. Walking onto a stage in front of 500 people is an incredible feeling, but it honestly doesn’t compare to seeing my burlesque babies take the stage for the first time. I had never planned on teaching, but I was asked to do a workshop back in 2018, and I fell in love with giving women the confidence and tools to channel their inner burlesque babe! I absolutely love teaching the next generation of burlesque performers and seeing where they take the art to.

In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
I have watched burlesque become more inclusive of performers of color and different shapes and sizes. Now, we are seeing a big push to be more inclusive of different gender expressions and identities. Change takes time, and as burlesque becomes more mainstream and more popular is has to become more flexible to survive. Change is hard, and it takes time, but what really gives me hope is the people who are willing to take the time to have conversations. It’s so easy to jump on someone and point out everything they did wrong (especially from the safety of a screen), but what actually creates lasting change is patient and understanding conversations, and I am seeing them happen more and more. I’m a cis-gendered white woman, so how could I know how it feels to be a non-binary performer or a performer of color? I can’t, but what I can do is listen and learn from them, understand and accept that I might not fully comprehend their experience, and that’s ok, too. I don’t have to be able to relate in order to accommodate. I really hope the trend of listening continues. Online bullying and cancel culture rarely solves problem, instead it just alienates and isolates people, I’m really happy to see the burlesque world moving away from that and focusing more on education and understanding. Our legends forged this art form in a very different world than we live in now, it up to us to honor the past while creating a more inclusive future for burlesque.

Pricing:

• Hollywood Burlesque Festival 3-day passes start at $200
• Hollywood Burlesque Festival single-day passes start at $50

Contact Info:

• Website: www.Hollywoodburlesquefestival.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hollywoodbqfest/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HollywoodBurlesqueFestival

Image Credits
C.B. Summers