In the past year, I’ve developed a love for burlesque. I enjoy watching it, learning it, and even writing about it (check out my posts at Dieselpunks After Dark if you’re curious and okay with NSFW images). Recently I bought The Burlesque Handbook by Jo Weldon, and upon seeing the a quote from Japanese dancer Erochica Bamboo, I knew it was time to do a new profile.

Photo by Will Rob. From erochicahot.

Name: Erochica Bamboo (エロチカバンブー)
Hometown: Tokyo, Japan
Notable achievements: Miss Exotic World 2003, star of Camp Burlesque, founder of Tokyo Tease! and Tokyo Burlesque Academy
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Erochica-Bamboo/51182482140

Erochica was an art student when a promoter convinced her to dance at his cabaret. She traveled on her own to participate in the Miss Exotic World Pageant in Helendale, California (location of the Exotic World Museum) and wound up winning. The Japanese neo-burlesque scene wasn’t very big so after she returned from an extended stay in the U.S. in 2008, she founded Tokyo Tease! Far East Exotica Burlesque Show. It was a hit, and she was asked to do workshops. Two years later, Erochica started Tokyo Burlesque Academy. Now she resides in Berlin, Germany and performs all over Europe. She cites “[s]cenes from books, pictures, the town, nature; music; the artist inside” (The Burlesque Handbook) as her inspirations.

Sources: (may contain NSFW images)
“Erochica Bamboo: Tokyo Tease” – TimeOut Tokyo
“Japanese Burlesque Starlette Erochica Bamboo tells it all” by Mia Morris – indieberlin
“Miss Exotic World: Dixie’s Chicks” by Paul Cullum – LA Weekly

Listening to: “Runaway” by Cream