The world of burlesque is a wonderful microcosm of multitalented creative people, bootstrapping their way to glitz, creating their own definitions of glamor, subverting social scripts from gender, to sexuality, race, religion… if it can be subverted, someone in the burlesque world will use it in an act.
It’s also a tight community with a strong heritage. Those with connections to the industry tend to acutely aware of how they carry the legacy of burlesque in their present work as well as how they’re work today will contribute to its future.
Under the glamorous outer shell, vulnerability is a driving factor in burlesque performance. While burlesque performers take over control of the room, demanding attention by taking space with their mere presence, they’re also taking their clothes off for sometimes hundreds or even thousands of people.
Burlesque is also a responsive art.
From reacting to the political climate, to the performers’ life experience, to reacting in real-time to audience participation. In burlesque, the audience and performer have an intimate relationship that sometimes goes as far as touching during a performance, but almost always involves the performer demanding hoots and hollers to initiate their reveals.
And few other burlesque producers and teachers are quite as responsive to the current moment as Miss Marquez, founder of Empowerment in Heels.
**All following quotes are by Miss Marquez from our interview.
Miss Marquez and Empowerment in Heels
Empowerment in Heels, a Los Angeles based burlesque brand that encompasses classes, shows, and so much more, embraces the political responsiveness and vulnerability whole-heartedly. It started as a single weekly class and expanded to three weekly classes and three live performances every month.
I had the pleasure of sitting down with Empowerment in Heels Founder, Miss Marquez right after stay-at-home orders were first put in place here in LA. Since then, she’s pivoted her organization to respond to the circumstances of the pandemic with virtual classes, free webinars, and a mutual aid network for her students.
We talked about how she built the Empowerment in Heels from the ground up by responding to changes she wanted to see both in the burlesque community and political climate.
What I saw over and over in her origin story was an incredible will to act in response to what’s happening in the public arena (or national politics or Trump’s election), burlesque, and her individual members.
She’s built this brand on a cohesive vision rooted in her personal values and is making an impact beyond what she could have thought when she first stepped into teaching her weekly, improv-based burlesque class.
The ultimate lesson I learned from chatting with Miss Marquez is that you can make a big impact on your industry and artform if you combine a passion to make positive change with dedication and empathy.
The Final Straw
Miss Marquez attributes much of Empowerment in Heel’s growth to a newfound dedication and determination after a toxic relationship ended.
“We broke up right before Sunday class. I get to class and I’m very professional. I’m able to be like, ‘Alright, shut it down. Teach class. Do the thing.’ And then there’s this moment when we were doing the across the floor exercises and I remember just welling up in tears of happiness because I was like,
‘This is where I need to be.’
“’I don’t need to be with that destructive person. I need to be here facilitating this.’”
This is when the symbiotic relationship of give and receive occurred to Miss Marquez.
“Even in that simple moment, Empowerment in Heels was giving and nurturing me so much.”
Motivated by this revelation, Miss Marquez dove into her work and began expanding her vision for Empowerment in Heels. Fueled by anger with US political discord and fear of the social impacts that may follow, disappointment with the industry surrounding the artform she loved, and the ability to rely on her members as much as they relied on her.
The Power of Vulnerability
After this singular, vulnerable moment – that went unnoticed by students at the time – Miss Marquez returned to class the following week with a rejuvenated sense of openness and gratitude for what the class provided her.
She shared with her students that powerful moment and they rallied around her to strengthen the support.
“I think it’s definitely shifted the trajectory of where Empowerment and Heels has gone since then. Because, I don’t feel this need to be anything other than I am. And that’s a really fucking beautiful thing…
“[It’s] shifted my ability to grow as a person, as an artist, as a businesswoman. Because I feel supported.”
Miss Marquez’s courage to be vulnerable with her students allows them to be vulnerable with her and creates a safe space to not only practice self-love and the craft of burlesque, but also to perform with openness and take emotional risks once Miss Marquez started a new performance venture for Empowerment in Heels – a monthly show (that had increased to every-other-week, pre-Coronavirus) Moonlighting Menagerie.
This ability to access vulnerability makes her students better performers too.
“On stage, when you see [vulnerability] from a performer, that’s something that the audience just gravitates to. My mindset is that everyone has a place on stage because everyone has a voice to be shared…
“[by] expressing your voice honestly and with vulnerability, the audience will catch that, and they’ll be supportive of that. I think that’s what we’ve been able to harness really well with Moonlighting [Menagerie].”
Plus, at every Moonlighting Menagerie, Miss Marquez hosts the show. Sometimes she shares her experience of growing up with a speech impediment, which she points to as a testament that she’s pushing out of her comfort zone alongside her students. They may be on different legs of their personal journeys, but their progressing forward together.
Turning Frustration and Anger into Action
Let’s go back, for a moment, to a dark place in our history (that we’ve yet to come out on the other side of) – the 2016 presidential election. When Trump was elected, Miss Marquez was depressed. With the president elect having said some heinous things like the infamous, “grab them by the pussy,” among them, Miss Marquez felt, for the first time, unsafe as a burlesque performer.
This sudden stripping of a sense of bodily autonomy in an artform that relies on performers feeling empowered in their self-sovereignty depressed Miss Marquez. Then, the Womxn’s March happened. This large-scale, communal action to fight for and represent shared values energized Miss Marquez and served as the foundation for what would later become Empowerment in Heels.
That foundation? Providing a place for womxn to explore their sexual power, take up space, and get in touch with their bodies in an open, encouraging, and safe environment.
This combined with a mission to foster community over competition in the burlesque industry keeps the Empowerment in Heels fire ignited as a growing force for change in LA’s burlesque communities.
Since the Womxn’s March, Empowerment in Heels has put on fundraisers to support reproductive rights, raised money at their regular shows for charitable causes, and organized meetups to continue to attend the Womxn’s March as a unified community contributing to the whole.
Part of these efforts came simply from her students expressing their frustration at these political battles.
Again, she’s reacting to the needs of her students and the realities of our current political climate, while consistently leading by example.
Continuing to fight for their shared values together as Empowerment in Heels deepened the bond between students as well as their bonds with the organization beyond taking class and even performing together.
Today, in the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic and stay-at-home orders, Miss Marquez has continued to adapt to her student’s needs while supporting herself.
Continuing to Serve Members and React to the Current Moment
When the pandemic first hit, Miss Marquez immediately dove into creating an online class curriculum. She did it with great speed, while also taking the minimum required time to do it in a way that upheld a level of integrity for the art.
Since releasing her online curriculum of a mix of pre-recorded and live virtual class packages, she’s also worked hard to provide students with free ways to stay connected, continue their education, and support each other.
They have a mutual aid network (DM @empowermentinheels on Instagram for the link) where community members can offer and ask for services. There are free, weekly webinars anyone can attend. And, there’s a weekly, free happy hour where students can connect virtually free of charge.
With this range of options for students, Miss Marquez is doing what she does best – responding to the current moment and adapting to her students’ most pressing needs, desires, and shared values.
To me, this value-driven ethos, adaptability, and work ethic has been the thread holding together this growing organization.
How to Find Your People
Whether you’re looking for an artistic community that shares your values, or thinking about starting one up yourself, Miss Marquez has a few words of advice
1) Have the courage to acknowledge your passions
“Be bold enough to acknowledge what you enjoy.”
“By acknowledging the fact that you’re interested in something and you want to put your energy towards that… whatever inspires you. go that direction: research it, find other people that are involved in it, find other people that are the movers and shakers of whatever that thing is…”
2) Leverage social media
Today, we can connect with people who share our values from all over the world. Don’t limit yourself to the people you know. Miss Marquez encourages us to follow topics we’re interested in and reach out to the people talking about those topics.
If it comes from a place of authenticity, they’ll probably be more receptive than you might think.
3) Tell your story
“There are so many stories that are not being told. Do that.
“We all have the opportunity to, you know, share our own stories through the internet and social media, so take that opportunity to do so. Like what you’re saying with someone that wants to start something. Yeah. Do it! Start something on your own, see if there’s interest there.”
Follow Miss Marquez and Connect with Empowerment in Heels
You can find everything Miss Marquez is up to and sign up for her newsletter on her website. You can also sign up for classes and webinars there on the Empowerment in Heels page. She’s most active on Instagram, so if you want some sexy, empowered, topical content in your home feed, follow her on Instagram @themissmarquez.
You can also read her thoughts on Artful Effort’s How to Get Over Yourself and Get Started on a New Project post, here!
Your Artful Effort
Find your people.
While we call it “social” distancing, there are still plenty of ways to connect with artists and others who share our values and interests. I challenge you to reach out to that artist you’ve been following on Instagram, or to join a virtual meet up on a topic that interests you and start growing your personal community.
What may start as a simple conversation or single class could grow into something truly special. And, as with most things, you’ll never find it until you put yourself out there.
Suggested Reading
Interested in learning more about burlesque? Miss Marquez recommends Jo Weldon’s The Burlesque Handbook.
