Jolie Papillon – Burlesque Superstar

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Jolie Papillon with her hands on her waist and wearing a golden corset and white feather boa

Over the past ten years, Miss Jolie Papillon has gone from burlesque ingenue to powerhouse as both a performer and producer of the much-loved and (now) long established, Gin House Burlesque.

We catch up with her on the eve of her run at the variety show, La Clique. She’s sitting in her dressing room at home, at her ‘40s dressing table surrounded by pretty things, she doesn’t allay any burlesque stereotypes you might have – ‘I’m a very feminine girl,’ she says. We talked to her about burlesque, her background, the business and bringing her acts to the main stage. You may want to take some notes!

JOLIE PAPILLON ON HER THEATRICAL BACKGROUND

“I do recommend having a theatrical background. It’s not just about learning a skillset, but to learn to be professional, disciplined with your art because it’s a job and we need to establish some discipline to do our job the best. How to work with people, artists, technicians, people who work in our industry.

“I’m grateful I had the training I had as a child. It’s beneficial to explore different branches of the performing arts, and understand what you like, don’t like, what you can improve on and seeing what a director teaches you and where that point of view comes from. Learning how to take criticism and feedback.

Proper training is always going to enrich you – Jolie Papillon

JOLIE PAPILLON ON LA CLIQUE

“I’m from Italy and when I first moved to London, I went to see La Clique. That was my first big variety show. I was so memorised by it. I wasn’t even conceiving the idea of embarking into burlesque then.

“When I was offered to be part of it, it was great, they asked for my ideas and what I could bring to the table. That’s very nice from an artist point of view. Being able to present my best work. They asked me to perform my martini glass or my bubble bath act and I proposed a fan dance. We ended up changing the act with a completely different track, so it’s become a brand new act. I’m normally known to do classic burlesque, and while I’m still presenting that on stage, it’s with a very modern track. I’m very happy to get the challenge and to explore the different.”

JOLIE PAPILLON ON PERFORMING ON DIFFERENT STAGES

“I’m very comfortable being adaptable because I trained for theatre. In smaller immersive environments, it’s a very different scenario. When it comes to performing on a big stage, you’re thinking what acts you are presenting, how can you fill the space and not get lost. It’s more physical and you don’t have just one front, you have to be able to look at everybody. Everybody needs to see you at the crucial moments in your acts. It’s something we develop as artists naturally, but you always have to be mindful of it.

JOLIE PAPILLON ON PRODUCING

“I love producing. Burlesque gives me a sense of empowerment, but producing takes it to the next level. It gives me the freedom to create something in my mind and my heart – and to enable other performers. It’s amazing I can do it as a job, go to work and do what I love but to be able to give to other people, it’s part of the whole thing.”

JOLIE PAPILLON ON BURLESQUE AS A ‘LOW’ ART FORM

“Interesting you ask me that. People do underrate burlesque. But I think it sometimes comes from the top, there are some famous artists who have commented in the past. ‘I didn’t make it into such and such career, so I ended up being a burlesque dancer.’ It undermines what we do.

I intentionally chose burlesque, I decided to drop all of my other auditions, when I saw it, I saw the potential, that sense of belonging. I found my niche – Jolie Papillon

It was something I didn’t know existed until I saw it with my eyes ten plus years ago. There’s not really this scene in Italy but I realised I could put all that I learnt into burlesque. It’s coming from me, not something I’m given.”

JOLIE PAPILLON ON ART VS COMMERCE

“I don’t feel too restricted in that sense because my style is quite classic. But I can see how that can affect other artists who are tapping into something political or contemporary.

“There are situations where I need to adapt my act to the audience I have, sometimes, we can’t have a certain level of nudity, or movement. It’s easy for me because I’m more classic burlesque and because it’s dance based. I can easily integrate more movement and reduce the reveals.”

JOLIE PAPILLON ON MONEY

“Be aware and mindful of where are you at in the business, newer vs established performers, not to undermine your service. Or overvalue and then be unbookable. We all start somewhere. Wherever you are in your career, beginner or established, being paid and treated properly: there are some values to be established there.

For those five minutes on stage, there’s a lot of money and effort that goes behind it – Jolie Papillon

“So I’d say be mindful, invest in one good costume, nail that one then establish it a bit more, that’s how I’d do it. It’s a constant reinvesting game.

“There’s an urge to create lots of acts, I used to be that way. I’d just have the idea and want to create it. Nobody can tell you how to spend your money but we have to be mindful – costumes are so expensive. We always think about costumes, the constant training, conditioning, looking after yourself.

JOLIE PAPILLON ON COSTUMING

“What I would recommend, with my experience, is to invest in a good costume. Don’t do bits and bobs, you will spend three, four, five times the money that you could spend on a solid base. If you get a well structured costume, you can then add on beads and feathers.

JOLIE PAPILLON ON HER BEST ADVICE

“I think you really need to look after yourself. Physically, mentally, spiritually. It’s a beautiful but tough industry because we present ourselves as creators and artists, you’re so exposed. You can end up doubting yourself. You might live for that reward, the applause you get but sometimes things don’t go your way, so it’s important to be healthy in our heads, minds, hearts and our bodies, because it’s a lot of work we put ourselves through.”

Miss Jolie Papillon is at La Clique until Sunday 3rd July as part of the Underbelly Festival, just off Oxford Circus at London’s Cavendish Square.

Tickets at: www.underbellyfestival.com

Image of Jolie by Scott Chalmers

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