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Lily Burana
Publisher: Talk Miramax BooksInterviewed By: Jeni McDonald 01/11/2002 BookReview.com What was your take on drugs and prostitution throughout your stripping career? From reading your book it seems as though these things are a constant presence in most strip clubs. Lily Burana I wouldn't say they're a constant presence in most clubs-but they're certainly there in many! I could count on one hand the days/nights I worked when a customer didn't proposition me (for pay, usually, though sometimes just for a legitimate date). It's not something that a dancer can necessarily take personally, as either a compliment or an insult-it's just a part of the business. It literally comes with the territory. The majority of customers will accept the 'fantasy' aspect of the strip club, and won't push for more than what is being offered. But there's always a percentage of men who want to go a step or two further and try to get you to "get together" outside. Some clubs are notorious for allowing prostitution on premises, which puts everyone at risk for arrest. But there's always customers and dancers alike who feel the risk is worth it-the girls think they'll make more money than 'working clean' (which isn't necessarily true), and the guys can treat the club as a hooker buffet, browsing for their ideal hook-up. But I wouldn't say that most, or even many, strippers are also hookers. I think the majority of strippers know how to deflect the proposition without endangering the money they're making off the guy for just dancing. Drugs, well, yeah, drugs are also a constant in stripping. Not like every club is a free-for-all opium den (hardly!), but it's a party atmosphere, and where there are parties, there are people who offer you drugs to up the fun factor. When I first started at Peepland, the management, staff, and even the other dancers, dealt drugs, and one could indulge as much as one wanted in the bathroom without any interference. Most clubs are more discreet, however. Managers in some clubs might smoke a joint with their favorite girls in the office, or turn their head if women are offering each other bumps in the bathroom. Some club owners don't really care if dancers show up to work drunk or high, or if they end up that way during the course of a shift. Since a large part of making money is sitting with the customers and sharing a drink with them, it's reasonable to expect to have upwards of five or six drinks bought for you a night. I didn't drink when I worked, or get high, simply because it was too scary to be f*cked-up in that environment, and I never felt it would help me relax or be more efficient. But I did know women who simply needed the drugs and alcohol to keep working, to stay awake, to keep making money. Responsible clubs might take a dancer's car keys before each set starts (if they serve alcohol) so the management can make sure the girls are sober each night before they drive home. Some try to stave off drug use in the clubs by taking the doors off of the bathroom stalls and hiring House Moms to, among other things, police the behavior in the dressing rooms. I've even heard of managers helping women who are addicted get into rehab, get to NA/AA meetings, etc. It varies widely from club to club. On one hand, you have clubs where pretty much anything goes, and others that are run with nun-like zeal-one transgression and you're fired. BookReview.com As a feminist did you ever feel the desire to intervene in other strippers lives who were obviously being abused or abusing themselves? (I guess that's two questions) Lily Burana Sure! There's nothing as sobering as seeing a talented, beautiful young woman flame out before the age of thirty because she's acting out or being victimized. But it's a hard business, and I mean that as in 'hard-boiled.' I really learned that there are some people who just can't, or won't, be helped. Even something as simple as a woman wanting to quit dancing and get a straight job can seem like a daunting task, and it takes some real dedication to get out, get straight and get on with your life. So if you consider something even more difficult to change, like an abuse dynamic, you really realize the enormity of the problems that some women in the sex industry can face. I've seen a lot of women get help, and get their lives back, but I've also seen a lot of women for whom the basics of life seemed too much to maintain. I don't think the strip club world is littered with corpses, exactly, but I will say it has a higher body count than any other field I've worked in. BookReview.com Since giving away most of your costumes, have you regretted your decision to stop stripping? Lily Burana I don't regret it, but sometimes I miss that particular kind of excitement. BookReview.com Was your husband glad to have you off the stage? His support of your Odyssey seemed amazing. Way to go on finding such an understanding mate! Lily Burana Being the partner of a stripper is tough. I don't think most men or women are cut out for it. To really be able to deal with it, you have to either be resigned to the fact that your stripper girl is going to do what she's going to do, for however long she chooses to do it, and/or be kind of tickled by the fact that she's a dancer/people want her but you get to have her/she's breaking the rules. Shame or fear about her job, jealousy of her customer base, or suspicion about her loyalty will destroy the relationship. It requires equal measures of trust and mettle. Granted, some strippers are ambivalent about having a partner who's okay with her stripping ("If s/he really loved me, s/he wouldn't want me to strip!") but in that case, the onus is on the dancer to either quit dancing or stay single. It's unreasonable, and a little immature, to expect someone to respect your decision to strip when that respect is convenient for you, and then want them to hate the job when you do. I think if you are dating a dancer, and are a decent person, there will always be concerns about your partner's safety and emotional health. But it's kind of like dating, say, a rodeo cowboy (which Randy is/was): It's part of the package. Just as I'd never say to him, "Hey, don't try to ride that wild horse, it could kill you!", he'd never say to me, "Don't strip, it's too risky." How fair is it to ask someone to stop doing something that was part of what attracted you to them in the first place? That said, while Randy and I still have a relationship, he and I have no plans to marry! BookReview.com Did you ever feel as though your were putting yourself in dangerous situations? Lily Burana I think I was in many more dangerous situations than I would have admitted at the time! It's only becoming clear to me now how dangerous the job could really be. BookReview.com The first time on stage... how hard was it? Lily Burana The real hard part was simply getting in the door. Once I crossed that threshold, with my knowing "older" (ie, 25-year-old) friend holding my hand, I was In It. At the time, I was in my Pseudo-tough Peace Punk phase-I really had something to prove! (Imagine a cross between Morticia Addams, John Wayne and Noam Chomsky!). Some people, when they're deep-down scared, allay their fears with swagger and brio. That was me at 18. I was going to make my way in the world and prove to everyone that I could support myself and duke it out on Forty-second Street, blah blah blah. I chalk up this chutzpah to youthful arrogance, and a little desperation. BookReview.com I love your writing. It's fabulous! Do you see any novels in your future? Lily Burana I see a certain novel very clearly in my head, and only partially on the page (so far)! We'll see how much more I can muster.
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