Customer Reviews

Strip Show: Performances of Gender and Desire (Gender in Performance)

5 star:		(1)
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3 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in learning more about the intriguing worlds of male and female strip shows as well as about the complexities of sexual desire. Among the topics it covers are: How strip shows simultaneously uphold and break traditional sex roles; the symbiotic relationship between performers and spectators; why New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani was incorrect in his assessment that strip shows, by their very nature, produce negative secondary effects; and why strip shows allow both men and women the freedom to explore roles denied to them by traditional society.
Through logically reasoned arguments, careful field work, and fascinating examples, the book's author makes a solid case that there a lot more to strip shows than mere titillation and the removal of clothing.

This book had a lot of interesting content and would be recommended (though not highly...) for those who are interested in the gender roles involved in strip shows. It's analysis of the separate components of the strip show (a chapter each for physical location of the venues, interior decorating, clothing of the dancers, dance moves, audience involvement) offers something that other books covering the same topic don't touch on. However, a lot of the book gets repetitive. Don't waste your time reading the introduction of the book: it is echoed (and sometimes even copied exactly) in other parts of the book.