Interview by Holli-Mae Part I (since it won't let me post the whole thing at once!)
Everyone has an opinion on Dita Von Teese, some of which are unapologetically judgemental or negative, but there are those who are big enough to admit, none the less, that if it were not for Dita, they would never have discovered burlesque, cheesecake, even erotica. They would not be part of the communities they enjoy, they would not have made the friends they now treasure, they would not be performing and growing in confidence and creativity. Their entire lifestyle and focus would be so drastically different if it were not for the woman who introduced them to the sequin and feather world we love. I could have questioned Dita all night long; there are so many things that the mainstream press never seem to think to ask or discuss, but I hope the interview that has taken shape reveals a little of what Dita Von Teese is really like. Not the icon, not the Barbie doll, not a 2D image, not a press-byte. Just Dita.
Dita - did you ever have the smallest sense early on, working in the lingerie boutique or dancing in the clubs, that you could, or would, achieve what you have achieved?
Never. Absolutely never! Listen, I was a girl working in rave clubs and a strip club in the early 90’s, and in my mind, I was a just a girl having fun, enjoying an elaborate game of “dress up and put on a show”. I always thought I was just going to have some fun, save a little money, marry my boyfriend, and have a baby, and that would be my life, and that someday I would look back on the days when I took pinup pictures and danced, and that it would be just a fond memory of an era of my life, that’s all. But I was ambitious in the sense that I wanted to be as good at what I was doing as I could be, but I didn’t imagine that I would have gone this far. My pinup and burlesque career started in about 1991, so you can see that it wasn’t like I had all this fierce ambition and made it to the top overnight, I was surprised and delighted at every little victory over the past 17 years, but I never dared to think I would actually be doing what I’m doing to this extent, or even for this long.
Do you see yourself as an ambassador for burlesque, or being responsible for the resurgence, as some people have described you?
Well, I think there is a small group of us who were among the first to do this, and we did it before there was a place for it anywhere other than strip clubs and the Exotic World event every year. I don’t see myself as being ‘responsible’ for it, because I wasn’t the only one who was performing burlesque back before it was cool. Maybe some people give me credit for it, because I have had a lot of mainstream press in the past eight years, and a lot of alternative press even from the start, with all the early fetish and Playboy magazine stuff, and that helped. For me, burlesque and posing for pinups for fetish and men’s’ magazines are something that went hand-in-hand, because that’s how it was in the old days; burlesque stars posed for the risqué magazines to get people to see their shows, so it made sense to me to try the same thing. And eventually, people saw my shows that had the power to get me more mainstream attention. Hugh Hefner came to a little show Catherine D’Lish and I were doing and he liked it, and that’s what kicked it off in a big way.
I realise that not everyone in burlesque is happy about me being the ‘figurehead’, and they might not agree with what I say, or do, or whatever. But, you know, I do my best, and I’m true to myself, and I’m very knowledgeable about the history of classic American burlesque, and I try to be diplomatic about the questions I’m asked; I am sure to consider all kinds of strippers, from us burlesque dancers, to pole dancers. I try to think things through carefully before I say them, and hey, what if the figureheads of burlesque were The Pussycat Dolls?! That’s what you were going to get!
Seven years ago, when burlesque was hitting the mainstream, I made it my personal mission to make certain that people wouldn’t think that sanitized commercialized acts like that were what burlesque is. I wanted to be sure that people understood that burlesque was not a style, not a hip-hop or pop act with fishnet tights and feather boas, but a genuine form of entertainment with a great history, and that most importantly, it was risqué and that the stars were strippers, period! So, whatever anyone has to say about me speaking for the scene, well, it could have been that The Pussycat Dolls and Forty Deuce were our only media representatives of burlesque…
What would you say to anyone involved in the scene that believes you have ’sold out’ to mainstream success, and perhaps do not represent what they consider burlesque to be really all about? Do you think that it is rather easy for these people to criticise someone purely because they have achieved such an iconic status?
Well, then anyone who thinks that I’m a sell-out must not be an admirer of burlesque stars like Gypsy Rose Lee who ’sold out’ and did lots of liquor ads, cigarette ads, makeup ads, movies, TV shows, etc. And Lili St Cyr had her own lingerie brand and store too! Are we sell-outs if we try to make the most of what we do? I think that it would be silly for an exotic dancer of any kind and of any stature NOT to have other forms of income. What do you do later? But yeah, obviously it’s easier to criticize others than it is to take a look at yourself and see where your own shortcomings are, it’s easier to analyze others, no?
I’m just following the examples set by the burlesque stars that I admire, and by choosing products and projects that have relevance to me. I’m not the face of a jeans brand, even though I have been offered a truckload of money for it, and I am not in a sneaker ad, even though I could be about a million bucks richer, and I didn’t do any of the reality shows offered to me. I don’t want to be the host of “The Next Top Burlesque Star” or “Celebrity Burlesque Challenge”, I want to be involved in things I think are chic, and I believe that with integrity and honesty bigger successes come. Oh, and if I did choose to be a total sell-out and be in that jeans ad, well, that would be my choice and I shouldn’t care what anyone else has to say about it anyway. That’s my best advice to anyone - don’t consider what other people think, you have to listen to your own head and heart, you can never, ever win the affections or approval of everyone.
So… How is the footloose and fancy free life suiting you? What would you say is the key to enjoying a smooth (and successful! *wink*) single girl lifestyle?
Who’s footloose and fancy free? I work my *** off! That’s the key to being single, I like to keep busy. I have been loving being single for the last two years, it’s been an important time for me to think about what I really want from life, and to take the time to write, to read, to be focused on becoming a better performer, and on trying to be a better human being. I’m spending a lot more time with friends, and I reconnected with my oldest, most loyal friends, and it’s been amazing.
“Try to please everyone, and you lose, because you can’t be yourself, and where does that get you? So, I’m an ‘artiste’ to some, and an overpaid talentless sl*t to others. It’s the way it is. I’m okay with that. Universal respect is impossible; everyone in the media eye is the subject of criticism. If you can’t stand the showbiz heat, get out of the showbiz kitchen!"
Where does one take Dita on a date - what sort of a good time would I have to show you to get a second date?
Somewhere low-key, but elegant, and what’s the point of going somewhere where there isn’t delicious food? I always ask where we are going first, because for one thing, I like to know the decor so I can dress for it, and secondly, sometimes a date will choose something like Mr. Chow or The Ivy, which are paparazzi-infested. That’s how I have remained silent about my dating life, by not going to those kinds of places on dates!
And most importantly, I don’t want a second date unless I have chemistry with a man on the first date. I totally kiss on the first date; I need to know right away!
Is the marriage/babies/picket fence scenario something you still desire? Would you give up your lifestyle and career for it if you had to?
Well, I have my own white picket fence already, so I don’t need one of those. And I was married, so I had one of those too! You know I’ve been offered the option of giving it all up for a man my whole life, but the problem is that the men that ask me to do that are asking for the wrong reasons. Ego. Any man that wants me to give it up is the wrong man. Someday, I might choose to give it up, but to be honest, no man has made me feel like that yet.
Have I not yet truly been in love? I don’t know. I thought I was, lots of times. I have no idea what’s in store for me, I have no way of predicting what happens next, so I just let things happen as they may. It’s not so bad to be part of this group of women who chose a different path. I don’t need to have what everyone else has to feel secure about myself. This is my life, this is what it is, and I’m not lamenting what I don’t have, I’m enjoying what I DO have.
You know, every time I see you in person, I cannot get over how absolutely immaculate you look, and I always remark on it when people ask me about you. Not a hair out of place; perfectly turned out. Do you have any tips and tricks for looking immaculate and poised, whether on a budget or with a crazy time limit?
Well - you have to be a little crazy! I am obsessed with this stuff; I have been since I first got my hands on a lipstick! The best tip I have is to make it part of your day to day routine; when I get lazy, I think, if I don’t do this, and if I walk out of the house dishevelled, I’m going to run into an ex, or and ex’s new girlfriend, or the paparazzi! So, I’m motivated. Plus, when you take a little time to put yourself together, you always have a better day. So I’m motivated by having a day where I feel good, and for me, that includes feeling put together. And really, it takes no time at all to sweep some powder over your face and apply lipstick. The other day I was photographed while I was working out, and everyone made such a big deal that I had a full face of makeup on, but I spent about 20 minutes that day getting fixed up and dressed. I brushed my hair, and put on powder and sunglasses, and wore a nice coat over my workout clothes. It doesn’t take any longer to apply a red lipstick than it does a beige one. I’m not really as high-maintenance as I look. I just have a routine down. I’m fast!