Is it a hobby if you still get paid to do it?
At the heart of my desire to be a sex worker (besides the cash) is my ability to be seen, worshipped, and admired; dually important is the ability to show others that the everyday confines of reality are riddled with made-up rules and, just like in The Matrix, can be bent and even broken.
I’ve been dressing up for as long as I can remember, and performing femininity for just as long. Growing up, I took to the stage in various theater and choir roles, and did some informal cosplay at conventions, but never quite had the right space to express the things I had in my heart, mind, and body until I found burlesque. To be more precise, it wasn’t until I found the weird, erotic, untethered type of burlesque that embraces larger or differently-abled bodies and expresses the darkness that I feel: the kind that you see with burlesque legends Ms. Briq House, Mx. Pucks a’Plenty and various drag artists like Willow Pill and Jinx Monsoon.
I started doing burlesque precisely at the moment I realized I could, taking my first official class in 2023 and diving head-first onto the stage in 2024. Since then, I’ve been creating kink and fetish-oriented acts, as well as “nerdlesque” acts that make geeky references to video games, comic books, and other-worldly characters. My acts often include elements of drag to fuel the character development and inform the design of the act. Sometimes I lip sync, sometimes I strip, sometimes I sing and fling, and sometimes I crack a whip – or use nunchucks. I dance to hip hop, to metal, to sensual R&B, and even classical music. Burlesque has been an incredible outlet to showcase my talents and passions on stage while having cash money thrown at me in praise. It really feeds my praise-kink.
I’ve been dressing up for as long as I can remember, and performing femininity for just as long.
Burlesque is as diverse as drag and theater, and situated in a fun gray area of sex work. Not all burlesque performers identify as sex workers, though the lineage seems pretty clear to me. Burlesque, after all, is “the art of striptease,” making us strippers! We end our nights with handfuls of 1’s, we have way too much lingerie, and we get to deal with club and bar circuits parallel to that of the stripper. Our clientele overlaps and is also entirely different, but nonetheless our liberations are tied together with strippers and other sex workers.
Noticing how I move through burlesque spaces, I realize that “Mona Notte” has actually been a drag queen this entire time, performing femininity and facilitating experiences for folks that mimic longform theatrics. The evolution of Mona is deeply tied to this exploration of gender and expression, and I am excited to see where it takes me.
If you ever find yourself in the Twin Cities, please come to a burlesque show! We have one of the greatest scenes in the country, following Seattle, San Francisco, and New York City. See burlesque wherever you are and support the performers as you would your favorite escort.
Are you a sex worker with a story, opinion, news, or tips to share? We'd love to hear from you!
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