Event humanizes the skin industry

Strippers, dominatrices, porn stars and more will descend on the IU campus this Sunday for some raunchy fun – and to educate about the sex industry – at the Sex Workers’ Art Show.\nThe Sex Workers’ Art Show is a cabaret-style variety show featuring nine performers who work or have worked in some area of the sex industry. The artists will perform a blend of music, spoken word, performance art and more. The show will be held 7 p.m. Sunday at the Whittenberger Auditorium in the Indiana Memorial Union. \n“I saw the show two years ago when I was an undergraduate at the University of Delaware and I was blown away,” said Stacy Konkiel, a graduate assistance for the Office of Women’s Affairs. “A performance that I thought would be titillating, at the most was really thought-provoking.”\nThe diverse lineup of talent on this year’s tour includes Miss Exotic World 2004, Dirty Martini, an internationally-known burlesque dancer and Chris Kraus, an ex-stripper who now teaches writing at the University of California, San Diego. Kraus will be reading an excerpt from one of her published works, including “I Love Dick” and “Aliens & Anorexia.” \n“The idea is to show people what is behind the product,” said Annie Oakley, founder, director and curator of the show. “It humanizes them and presents the sex workers as real people.” \nOakley created the show in Olympia, Wash., in 1997 to disprove common stereotypes about the sex industry while entertaining the audience. After five years of performing a successful yearly show in Washington, Oakley decided to bring the show to a wider audience. She decided to take the show on the road and has been doing country-wide tours every year since. \nRepresenting the porn industry on the tour is Lorelei Lee. She described the Sex Workers’ Art Show as “incredibly entertaining, while still being smart and political.”\nLee has performed in porn films for more than six years and is also a student of creative writing. On the tour, Lee will read an excerpt from her autobiographical fiction novel about working in the porn industry.\n“Being on the tour has been an incredible experience,” Lee said. “I never thought I would have the chance to have so many people hear my writing. The response has been overwhelming.”\nAlthough recent stops have been sold out and responses for the show have been generally positive, the tour has sparked some controversy.\n“Just the idea that sex workers would make art is so disturbing to some people,” Kraus said.\nA recent visit to the Claremont Colleges was canceled because the administration was concerned about controversy the tour might bring with it, Oakley said. The controversy surrounding the show peaked in Williamsburg, Va., at the College of William and Mary, where the college fired its president after he refused to cancel the show. Oakley said the controversy surrounding the show is created by the parents of students and members of the religious right who have no idea what the tour is really about.\n“This is not a strip show,” Oakley said. “It is much tamer than a lot of things you can see or do on campus.”