Born Kelly Fletcher, she is popularly referred to as Immodesty Blaize. The British Burlesque dancer was crowned the Reigning Queen of Burlesque in June 2007. Known for her performance in Burlesque, which is a theatrical entertainment of broad and earthy humour, including comic skits and short turns, she has worked with the ilk of Grace Jones, Marc Almond, James Brown, Roxy Music, and a host of others. She was in Nigeria penultimate week for the Butterscotch Evening, a musical concert, held in Lagos
How was your trip to Nigeria?
It was exciting. I just left the rain in London and it was pouring when I arrived at the airport in Nigeria. The hospitality here is tremendous.
How did you emerge the Queen of Burlesque in Las Vegas?
I competed with about 300 other contestants. Among the panel of judges, there was an old Burlesque performer who performed in the 50s. The judges assessed the dancers based on several factors including costume, dance technique, stagecraft and other factors. It was a humbling experience to win and be recognised. The old judge was an old performer and for him to have given me that seal of approval meant he had made me a torchbearer of Burlesque dancing in the modern world.
You are originally from Croatia?
I am British; my family has its roots in Croatia and Russia.
What in your background prepared you for Burlesque?
I was drawn to it at a time when it was very unfashionable to have curves in Europe; the fashion at the time was to be a skinny supermodel. I found that Burlesque was a form of entertainment that I could express myself and be curvaceous. I discovered that people loved the art. The crowds responded very well to it; they found it refreshing that a girl with curves was performing. I have always wanted to win over the women as much as the men because they love the glamour. They appreciate the fact that it is a piece of theatre, a sensual and erotic way of presenting a very strong idea of women and their femininity.
Compared to when you started, has anything changed about the art?
Yes. The market for it has grown enormously in the last 15 years. Before now, I had to explain to people what Burlesque was, but now everyone knows what it is. There are now a lot of Burlesque performances in Europe, made up of a fusion of actual theatre, musicals and serious plays. In the past, people had this idea that it was a low-brow form of entertainment but the art has been elevated to the same level as other kinds of dance or ballet. I would say the demand has grown massively and I am honoured to be able to bring the live experience to Nigeria.
What’s the difference between it and stripping?
When I first began to perform, people thought what I was doing was for a male audience, something that was just about sex. But Burlesque is a theatrical performance; it has theatrical extravaganza and costumes. I take my clothes off, and that is an important part of it but it is a piece of theatre.
You take your clothes off?
I never do nudity, I have my own boundaries.
But you remove your brassiere
I always have my body covered with pasties; you won’t ever see me naked. Quite often, I wear underwear and I have fabrics that create the illusion of nudity. I have to do that a lot for television. For me, it is about the journey, the tease and it is about how to draw your audience in, deny them and draw them in again. It is a piece of theatre, about women with personality and character and individuality. Every performer is unique and the whole philosophy is that you have to get the gimmick, which is finding the thing that makes you unique and sets you apart from other people, so the style of your performance, costume and everything is what sets you apart and makes you unique.
With your global performances, have you ever encountered culture challenge especially with striptease?
No. I have never experienced any resistance based on culture. I have been fortunate that so far. Wherever I perform, there has been amazing reception from audiences all over the world.
When you perform on stage, how do men react to you?
Sixty percent of my audience is female because they love the glamour. They love to see other strong women on stage and I have curves. I am not trying to present something that is indecent, I mean my name is Immodesty but there are rules of modesty that I follow very strictly.
How did the Nigerian audience receive you?
Women in Nigeria are fun-loving people. My performance here teaches them to embrace their curves more, they are to realise that what God has given to them is beautiful and they are not to think the only way to be beautiful is to be thin. I got invited to Nigeria when a lingerie line, ‘beautifully undressed’ was unveiled. The manager of the line felt that Nigerians would love to see Burlesque so she persuaded me to come here. I think the women had quite a ball. I just feel very honoured that they have allowed me to come and do the classic 1950s act that I have done for them which I did with a lot of drama and diamonds.
Did you have to do any audience research to know how to change your art to fit the Nigerian scene?
Even if I did, I would still give them what I do in Europe because Burlesque is universal. I had no intention of changing anything because if I changed something, then it would not be Burlesque. I know Nigerians love Burlesque. I have also checked out a few African dances because I know I am going to learn a few things from them.
[Punch]