An Evening of Fan Dancing with Leslie Zemeckis at Bookstore Cafe

By Housing Works Bookstore & Cafe

Oct 15  |  Culture

Soho Community Events at Bookstore Cafe 

“Zemeckis has once again given us a fascinating history of entertainment, a bold story of two brave women and the origins of the fan dance. A page-turning time machine to another era. Don’t miss it.”
— Sara Gruen, author of Water For Elephants

In the 1920s and ’30s, showgirls worked hard, hustled, and competed in a brutal entertainment business.

Celebrated burlesque historian and actress Leslie Zemeckis continues to discover the forgotten feminist histories of the Golden Age of entertainment, turning her sights on the lifelong feud between Sally Rand and Faith Bacon—who each claimed to be the inventor of the fan dance.

We’re honored to host an evening of fan dancing burlesque to celebrate this remarkable book! Copies of Feuding Fan Dancers: Faith Bacon, Sally Rand, and the Golden Age of the Showgirl will be available for purchase, with all proceeds benefitting Housing Works lifesaving services.

Thank you to Counterpoint Press and Leslie Zemeckis for their generosity and support.

Leslie Zemeckis is an actress, filmmaker, and the author of The Goddess of Love Incarnate: The Life of Stripteuse Lili St. Cyr, and Behind the Burly Q, the definitive history of burlesque. She wrote, produced, and directed the critically acclaimed documentary based on the book, which has been championed by USA Today and The New Yorker . She released “Bound by Flesh,” a multi-award winning documentary about vaudeville Siamese twin superstars Daisy and Violet Hilton, in 2014. She is the co-author/creator of a one-woman cabaret show Staar. She wrote and produced a mockumentary film Staar: She’d Rather be a Mistress starring Carrie Fisher, Jeffrey Tambor, and Fabio. Her most recent documentary is “Mabel, Mabel, Tiger Trainer.”

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