Today we’d like to introduce you to Heather Wilson.
Hi Heather, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
I moved to The Twin Cities in 1991 because of the ultra-happening theatre scene here, specifically because of Mixed Blood Theatre. A company that at the time was casting “against type,” and I thought that is exactly what I needed, someone somewhere who is willing to look past what they think they see on the surface. I worked with multiple professional theaters for the next 5-6 years, including Tony award-winner Theatre de la Jeune Lune. I toured the nation doing environmentally focused children’s theatre and hustling to make a living. Theatre doesn’t pay that well! In 1997, I was tired of trying to be what other people wanted me to be and decided to be who I wanted to be. Foxy Tann was birthed that year in Foxy Tann’s Superior Lounge, featuring a majority female cast in the mold of camp, cabaret, and drag. As far as I know, it was the first “female impersonator” show in Minneapolis! And I thank the Blooms (former owners of the Gay ‘ the 90s) for helping a bunch of crazy, progressive, inclusive women realize their dreams. I have been performing as Foxy Tann ever since. I had NO idea that this was how I would use my theatre degree! I was the first, and as far as I know, the only female emcee at The 90’s for The La Femme Show Lounge. I have been dubbed The Boss of Burlesque by The Star Tribune and also crowned the Queen of Summer for my perennial hosting at the multitude of block parties every year for over a decade, performing for 16 years straight in Las Vegas at The Burlesque Hall of Fame (called the Super Bowl of Burlesque) winning best troupe in ’06 and competing for Queen of Burlesque Miss Exotic World in ’19 as the oldest competitor ever at 50!
I came to burlesque by accident. I had no idea it was still being performed, much less in a more modern context. I was taken to Le Cirque Rouge at the old New French Bar and was utterly enthralled. I knew that this was what I would be doing for the foreseeable future. I had found my home. A fledgling performance industry was taking shape before my eyes, and I wanted to be a part of making and supporting that industry Built by women, for women, run by women, and produced by women. That didn’t exist then, and it was so ironic that I was so dedicated to the performance that hadn’t been considered “art,” that was seen as just a step away from prostitution and as a misogynist. But it was never any of those things to me. Burlesque is the most empowering performance movement that I have ever seen. It changed my life, and I have seen it change other people’s lives, an art form that encourages the auteur. When you see a burlesque act, you see the product of a person’s complete concept, the costuming, the choreography, the music – all from that artist’s vision. How many other places do you get to see that?!? And the other thing I love is the absolute diversity of burlesque, which means diversity in every possible way. Race, gender, sexuality, bodies, age, style, experience, all of it! I am dedicated to that diversity because I saw so little of it in my early career, so I put my money where my mouth was.
10 years ago or so, I created The Nudie Nubies Show – An Amateur Reveal as an inclusive space for newer “burlesquers” to perform in front of a live audience. No one has ever turned away. No auditions. Just a space for a person to grow! And now Nudie Nubies is the longest-running burlesque competition in the country, housed at the Black Hart in St. Paul! We have helped to launch some of the hardest working burlesque performers in The Twin Cities and grown the “BQ” community from a few aficionados into a bonafide movement and dance genre. I am proud to be a pioneer in burlesque, not just locally but nationally! I am an ambassador of tease. I am here to say that, yes, you can, that being naked in public in front of strangers is the most empowering thing a person can do. They say it is good to bare one’s soul. I just took it a little further and found my liberation!
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I was constantly trying to convince someone that my chosen art form is not misogynist and that, in reality, it is the most feminist thing a person can do. Presenting a different vision of burlesque was not always appreciated in a tiny little underground sub-genre mostly populated by thin, white women with a vintage wardrobe and a definite idea of what burlesque is. As a Black woman, who happens to be loud, proud, and opinionated, the vision I had for myself didn’t look like their idea. I had different “vintage” eras that I wanted to present. I didn’t look like burlesque and never would, and convincing people that I had a right to be there was exhausting. Having to “be undeniable” was exhausting. Watching career building and significant opportunities go to people with far less experience was (and still is) exhausting.
An attitude of scarcity was prevalent, and knowledge hoarding was the norm. Venues were considered “owned,” and other shows were discouraged from trying to book the same space. Marketing was difficult because our content was considered too risque, usually leading to the media just ignoring you. Social media platforms ban your content from advertising even though you meet all the community standards. Theaters are saying no to booking burlesque shows because it “doesn’t fit in with our mission statement.” Outdated laws from the 20s-30s were used to force new venues that wanted to present burlesque to sign “no nudity” clauses to receive their liquor license—vigilante city council members appointed themselves as a moral compass and actively campaigned against burlesque as immoral. Made character judgments about me because of burlesque; lost day jobs because of burlesque. Teaching and working with kids was no longer possible because Foxy Tann was one google search away from a parent saying, “I don’t want a stripper near my children.” Grants organizations don’t recognize burlesque as art and won’t fund you. I have had to kick, scream, struggle, beg, compromise, ignore micro-aggressions, endure blatant racism, moderate my tone, and suppress my anger to pave a road for myself and those who come after me. And I will continue to do so. If I don’t, who will? I can only hope it is recognized somewhere, sometime in the future.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you, and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
Which one? Existence is fragile; being poor makes your existence fragile; rights are fragile. The rich keep getting richer; the opportunities keep going to the same people, their families, and their circle of friends; a person can buy fame and credibility. Most people cannot afford a house; generational wealth is going down the toilet. Kids can barely afford to get an education. We are being conditioned to expect less out of our housing space. Black people and people of color are still being killed at a staggering rate. Half of the government doesn’t seem to care about anything other than corporations’ rights. Half the government doesn’t seem to care that their corporate-friendly policies are harming the earth. That big business prioritizes money over people. That people will die from preventable causes because they don’t have insurance. The Supreme Court, for the first time in history, has taken away rights. The Christian Nationalists scare the shit out of me. The blatant lying and misinformation on all platforms are endemic. They lie, and there are no consequences; Truth is no longer the day’s currency. That is what I have learned.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @foxytann
- Facebook: facebook.com/foxytann
Image Credits
Barb McClean all photos
