burlesque

[ ber-lesk ]

noun

1. an artistic composition, especially literary or dramatic, that, for the sake of laughter, vulgarizes lofty material or treats ordinary material with mock dignity.

   Synonyms: farce, lampoon, satire

2. any ludicrous parody or grotesque caricature.
3. Also burlesk. a humorous and provocative stage show featuring slapstick humor, comic skits, bawdy songs, striptease acts, and a scantily clad female chorus.

adjective

1. involving ludicrous or mocking treatment of a solemn subject.
2. of, relating to, or like stage-show burlesque.

verb (used with object)

, bur·lesqued, bur·lesquing.

1. to make ridiculous by mocking representation.

verb (used without object)

, bur·lesqued, bur·lesquing.

1. to use caricature.

burlesque

/ bɜːˈlɛsk /

noun

1. an artistic work, esp literary or dramatic, satirizing a subject by caricaturing it
2. a ludicrous imitation or caricature
3. a play of the 17th–19th centuries that parodied some contemporary dramatic fashion or event
4. Alsoburlesk theatre a bawdy comedy show of the late 19th and early 20th centuries: the striptease eventually became one of its chief elements Slang nameburleycue

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a burlesque

verb

1. to represent or imitate (a person or thing) in a ludicrous way; caricature

Derived Forms

• burˈlesquer, noun

Other Words From

• bur·lesque·ly adverb
• bur·lesqu·er noun
• pre·bur·lesque adjective
• un·bur·lesqued adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of burlesque¹

1650–60; < French < Italian burlesco, equivalent to burl ( a ) jest (perhaps < Spanish; burladero ) + -esco -esque

Word History and Origins

Origin of burlesque¹

C17: from French, from Italian burlesco , from burla a jest, piece of nonsense

Synonym Study

Burlesque, caricature, parody, travesty refer to the literary or dramatic forms that imitate serious works or subjects to achieve a humorous or satiric purpose. The characteristic device of burlesque is mockery of both high and low through association with their opposites: a burlesque of high and low life. Caricature, usually associated with visual arts or with visual effects in literary works, implies exaggeration of characteristic details: The caricature emphasized his nose. Parody achieves its humor through application of the manner or technique, usually of a well-known writer, to unaccustomed subjects: a parody by Swift. Travesty implies a grotesque form of burlesque: characters so changed as to produce a travesty.

Example Sentences

Not just a dance party, Ultra Violet will also feature burlesque, performance art, visual art, cabaret and drag king performances.

From Washington Blade

Guests are encouraged to come and enjoy top-tier burlesque and specialty performances, kink edutainment, interactive games, and plenty of surprises to thrill one’s senses.

From Washington Blade

Local drag legend Shi-Queeta-Lee served as the emcee, the GenOUT LGBTQ Youth Chorus sang the national anthem and burlesque drag performer Betty O’Hellno led the Wizards Dance Team in the halftime show.

From Washington Blade

He needed to get to The Ed Sullivan Show and didn’t have a chaperone, so he got a burlesque dancer to take him there—that’s fantastic.

From Time

Married twice by the time she was 16, she made her way to Los Angeles and was working as a cocktail waitress when a customer suggested that she consider dancing at a nearby burlesque theater, the Follies.

From Washington Post

Modern burlesque had, by then, shed its reputation for seedy strip clubs and desperate acts.

From The Daily Beast

Mixing innovative cocktails and dancing burlesque have one thing in common—they are both performances.

From The Daily Beast

Burlesque artists are often in it for the costumes, spending what they earn on fabric, feathers, and crystals.

From The Daily Beast

“The nature of the burlesque scene in London is as diverse as burlesque itself,” said Howard Wilmot, creator of Boylexe/Burlexe.

From The Daily Beast

Boylexe is a spin-off of a show about women in burlesque called Burlexe, which likewise mixes striptease, monologue, and song.

From The Daily Beast

The genius of the French language seems more particularly to lend itself to the fabrication of burlesque forms and subterfuges.

From Project Gutenberg

Valmond stood watching intently, and the people were very still, for this seemed like real life, and no burlesque.

From Project Gutenberg

I fancied that I had pitched my verses in so high a key that no one could mistake their burlesque intention.

From Project Gutenberg

Bad puns were evidently common on the stage before the days of Victorian burlesque.

From Project Gutenberg

His haggard, melancholy mien was in admirable artistic contrast to his garb and the burlesque humour of his song.

From Project Gutenberg