Explore Burlesque From Every Angle at Coolidge Corner

Boffo Box Office, with a lecture from burlesque historian David Kruh, a screening of Lady of Burlesque and a performance from the Boston Babydolls Burlesque Troupe, will start at Coolidge Corner Theater tomorrow night at 7:00 pm. Tickets are $12.

Boffo Box Office at Coolidge Corner Theater kicks off a month packed with burlesque events. Tomorrow night, historian David Kruh will talk about the Old Howard theater, which used to be Boston's home of burlesque and entertainment.

Next on the bill is 1943's Lady of Burlesque starring the cinema's greatest tough cookie, Barbara Stanwyck. The movie is based on burlesque star Gypsy Rose Lee's The G-String Murders. (Lee may have been helped by a ghostwriter.) In the plot, dancer Dixie Daisy must solve the murders of her fellow dancers before she's next.

And then you get to see the real deal when the Boston Babydolls Burlesque Troupe strut their stuff. Hard to believe you get all that for $12!

Tomorrow night's show is just the beginning of what you could probably call Boston's Burlesque month. Later in February will be the Great Boston Burlesque Exposition from Friday, February 16, to Monday, February 19 at the John Hancock Hotel and Conference Center. (You wouldn't believe all the dirty puns we're thinking of right now.)

The exposition includes classes, so if you've thought about trying it out, you might want to check out the Coolidge Corner event for a sneak peek. You can also visit the Boston Babydolls website to check on upcoming performances.

The evening's proceeds will go to the Great Boston Burlesque Exposition and the Professional Burlesque Society, whose banner reads "From Tassels to Taxes." We didn't know there was such a thing, either, but they help burlesque performers learn more about business so they can spend more time ripping off their clothes instead of getting ripped off by venues. In all seriousness, one of their goals is to provide group healthcare coverage.