Sex workers take it off to educate students about industry

Dominatrix Keva I. Lee selected a crowd member from the more than 400 people in the Whittenberger Auditorium Sunday night. She used the volunteer as a prop in her performance, whipping him and forcing him to act like a dog and a pony.\nIt was all just part of the Sex Workers’ Art Show, at which audience members gathered to laugh, be shocked and, most of all, learn about the people behind the sex industry.\nThe cabaret-style show featured eight performers from various areas of the sex industry, ranging from Amber Dawn, an ex-prostitute, to world-famous burlesque dancer Dirty Martini, who performed a striptease to Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA” while dressed in the American flag. Each of the performers shared stories of their experiences working in the sex industry.\nThe night of festivities was hosted by event founder and director Annie Oakley, who kicked the night off with some laughs.\n“I am really freaked out because I heard there was nudity in the show,” Oakley said at the show. “I am totally not comfortable with that.”\nThe first performance of the night came from The World Famous Bob, a burlesque dancer who entertained the crowd by mixing a martini with her cleavage. She also told stories of her youth as a stripper and a dominatrix struggling to find a career.\n“It was really good; I thought it was going to be a bunch of ladies up on stage bringing up depressing topics,” junior Nick Branch said. “But instead, it was a bunch of ladies up on stage sharing the joys of their career, and that is really what I wanted to hear.”\nEach performer discussed openly their various jobs in the $12 billion-a-year industry, giving the audience a new perspective on the people behind the product. Lorelei Lee, a pornography performer, read an excerpt from her book about her day-to-day life, both inside and outside the industry. Also, performance artist Erin Markey gave a side-splitting performance, complete with song, on turning to stripping after graduating college and not knowing what to do with her degree. \n“The show could not have gone any better,” said Stacy Konkiel, event organizer and graduate assistant for the Office of Women’s Affairs. \nKonkiel said the positive response to the show proved how open IU was to issues of intellectual freedom and sexual expression. \nThe show’s grand finale, fireworks included, came from internationally known performance artist Krylon Superstar. He flirted with the audience, sang a song and bathed nude in a kiddie pool full of glitter. \n“The show was unlike anything I have ever seen before,” said sophomore Ben Morse. “It was cool; very funny and culturally diverse. I would definitely go again.” \nOakley started the show in 1997 to disprove common stereotypes about sex workers. This is the first time the tour has made a stop in Bloomington.