The Burlesque used to be known as a kind of dramatic fun and entertainment that features humor as a parody and wild exaggeration. The contemporary burlesque is more attributed to strip tease while the traditional burlesque leans more on poetry and theater performances. Since the invention of the art over a century back, it has experienced plenty of metamorphosis.

The literally meaning of the word burlesque is `send up’ and the word comes from the Latin `bura’. The word started being popularized by Britain’s Geoffrey Chaucer’s satire called The Canterbury Tales. This was in the 14th century. It was used in prose and verse. In the 16th Century, Miguel de Cervantes, a Spanish poet, also enhanced burlesque in many of the satirical work he did.

By the 17th Century, the art had spread to Italy and France. It became known to a lot of people and it was generally referred as the bizarre and wild mockery of the dignified or pathetic.

By the 18th Century, burlesque was blended with some comic and serious elements that became famous in Europe for grotesque effect. By 19th Century, theatrical burlesque in England became popular but in form of musical parody. It was a common form of entertainment of the middle class families. The appeal of this art is attributed to have originated from its tendency of casting females in the lead male roles as well as double entendre. Traditional British burlesque is currently referred to as musical and classical burlesque. This art is very derivative from the burlesque that is commonly known today, which tends to focus more on strip tease.

By the 20th Century, the Americanized version became affiliated with a wide variety of shows where the strip tease was the chief attraction. The American form of the art is characterized by wit, parody and drama with a great mixture of performers such as mime artists, chanson singers, comedians, dancing girls and strip tease artists. Michael Leavitt brought together the very first burlesque cast in the 1870s. The cast, also called a troupe, was known as the “Rentz-Santley Novelty and Burlesque Company”.

There are a number of burlesque related films that have been inspired by the burlesque art. For instance, the 1943 film called the Lady of burlesque tells about the ‘behind the scene” roles of the burlesque performers. The Hollywood Revels was made in 1946 and was the first real motion picture based on burlesque. It was characterized by stage curtains, singing emcees, dances, stage curtains and stage performances as well as the final act from the start performer.

Other popular burlesque related movies include `AA night in Hollywood’ that incorporates the popular burlesque show called “Slowly I Turned”. A traditional type of horror movie is known as the Burlesque Massacre, where burlesque artists take the main roles in the movie.

The modern burlesque art is being revived gradually by independent individuals. Major players in revival of the art include Billy Madley’s cinema `Velvet Hammer performers in Los Angeles, and Ami Goodheart in Dutch Weismann’s Follies revues in New York. The contemporary burlesque has come forth in a wide variety of forms and honors some of the previous variations with performances like strip tease, bawdy humor, flashy costly costumes and strip tease among others.