An iconic photoshoot series with a burlesque superstar

Creative experimentation on a fun photoshoot with the glamorous starlet and burlesque superstar Felicity Furore

Where to start with introducing Felicity Furore? …Well, I’d first say she is the Queen of burlesque storytelling, she’s an enigmatic shapeshifter that captivates audiences with her hugely diverse repertoire. Whether it is as an energetic pelvic thrusting Elvis, a slinky, sultry, cheeky feline or glamorous nostalgic showgirl, Felicity knows how to get your full attention.

She’s consistently named as one of the top burlesque artists in the UK and was named one of the “UK Burlesque Performers of the Year” by The Burlesque Awards in September 2016. In the same year she was listed in Daily Quencher’s “Top 10 UK Burlesque Acts to Watch in 2016” and from there on Felicity has been listed among the top 20 most influential burlesque artists in the UK by 21st Century Burlesque in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

Collaborating with Felicity was so much fun and such a great opportunity to test out a variety of images. Felicity wanted to encapsulate a glamorous vintage feel to the images we shot and brought along a couple of fabulous feather headdresses and costumes.. We both have a keen eye for composition and graphic imagery so we wanted to play around as much as possible with color and poses. We set out a plan to shoot a series of costumes that contained key pieces from Felicity’s performer repertoire, once we captured those we explored other graphic looks focusing on shape and colour.

A particular favourite of mine was our pink ‘female CEO’ shots. The jacket worn was a fly-of-the-moment purchase that Felicity made and had kept stashed away in her wardrobe, it was a gorgeous tailored blazer jacket with a large pink bow across the back. The angular shape of the jacket was enough for the shot, we didn’t need to over complicate these shots with poses, so went for a simple table set series. Most of the drama in the jacket was from the waist up so this meant we were able to really show off the angles and shapes in the jacket. This shoot was a creative success and we created a huge selection of iconic images.

How would you describe Felicity in 3 words?

Sassy. Glamorous. Cheeky.

What do you hope your audience experiences when they see you perform?

The most important thing to me is connection. I want the audience to feel like we are all here together to have fun and feel fabulous. I want my energy to be infectious and for them to experience the same feelings of joy and empowerment that I am feeling while performing.

Have you ever had any performance hiccups, if so what has been your biggest hiccup and how did you overcome it?

I’m not sure about my biggest hiccup, but a great one was when I was performing freestyle to a live bad about 6 years ago and I went to take my bra off and it got completely stuck in my hair.

“I went to take my bra off and it got completely stuck in my hair. There was no way it was coming out so I decided to whip my head around and become a helicopter!”

There was no way it was coming out so I decided to whip my head around and become a helicopter. The crowd thought it was hilarious and I actually got another gig out of it, so it cant have been that bad!

Have you found any positive outcomes from the COVID-19 pandemic?

I have spent a lot of time figuring out who I am as a performer, and what I want to focus on moving forward. I’ve worked on my insecurities and spent time acknowledging my strengths. Hopefully this will all come into play when shows start up again, but I feel a lot better for it either way so that’s positive!

What for you is the foundation of a good creative collaboration?

Mutual respect and equal benefits. If you believe you can learn/gain a lot from what the other person has to offer, and that you can be equally valuable to them, your collaboration has a great starting point. Problems come when things are unbalanced because collaborating is all about mutual benefit.

‘If you believe you can learn/gain a lot from what the other person has to offer, and that you can be equally valuable to them, your collaboration has a great starting point.”