Prostitutes, strippers and other sex workers have joined to host a cabaret-style art show featuring dancing, poetry, comedy and visual art now touring colleges and art galleries around the country.
“The show gives a multi-dimensional look at sex workers as people and creative geniuses in their own right,” said Sharon Hoshida, the University of California Santa Barbara’s Women’s Center director, according to The Daily Nexus student newspaper last week.
The center hosted the show which featured performers generally wearing lace bras and panties, tassels, corsets and black leather boots during performances as they provided commentary on the sex industry.
The show features burlesque performer Julie Atals Muz, author Michelle Tea who has written the book “The Chelsea Whistle,” along with former prostitute and prostitute rights activist, Scarlot Harlot, and Internet model Ana Voog, among others.
Tour organizer Annie Oakley said she wants to prove that while many sex workers are marginalized by society, they still contribute to it through their work and through their art.
The tour will next travel to New Orleans’ Zeitgeist Gallery on Wednesday, Atlanta’s Eyedrum Gallery on Friday, Huntville, Alabama’s Flying Monkey Arts Gallery on Saturday, and stop at the University of North Carolina’s Asheville campus on Sunday.
Other tour dates may be accessed at www.sexworkersartshow.com.
