Stripped back

A re-issue of Susan Meiselas's classic book, Carnival Strippers, includes unseen material of American dancers.

- Peter Dench

‘This is a striptease show, a burlesque show, this show has been set aside for the men and men only, no ladies and no babies. You must be 18 years or over to see this show because if you’re under 18 you wouldn’t understand it. Lord knows you waited so long your eyes couldn’t stand it. Fellas, when the girls leave the stage they’re only going to be wearing two things, a pair of shoes on their feet and a big smile on their face,’ is the well-practised patter by one girl show host, on a recording by photographer Susan Meiselas.

After a chance encounter with a stripper in a carnival bathroom, Meiselas wanted to discover more about those who took part in girl shows. A young woman herself, in 1972- 75 she photographed and interviewed women who performed striptease for small town carnivals in New England, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina. ‘No ladies and no babies’ fuelled her desire to access and delve into who they were. ‘I photographed the dancers’ public performances [and] private lives. I also taped interviews with the dancers, their boyfriends, show managers, and paying customers,’ she writes in her book,