Circa announces the first book by photographer Angus Stewart – London Burlesque: A Family Album. Angus spent ten years backstage with London’s burlesque community, getting to know the performers and documenting their shared world. From the outset, his focus was on the personalities, rather than the performances. He set out to record the friendships, the laughter and the camaraderie that characterise the burlesque scene. In this new book, we are introduced to a thriving community that values dedication and loyalty, and where the exotic is always laced with humour; and we hear from performers Belle de Beauvoir, REIx, Lady Cheek, Lady May, and Lynn Ruth Miller. Burlesque can be provocative, it can be political, and it can be serious. But it can also be a lot of fun. London Burlesque: A Family Album will be published on 1 November in a numbered edition of 1,000 copies

‘I discovered that while some performers earn a living from burlesque, most have other jobs – anything from seamstresses to doctors, to company directors. This huge melting pot of professional experience, coupled with a variety of reasons for wanting to perform, means that personal development is encouraged. It’s an incredibly supportive community, and I wanted to try to capture that spirit.’ – Angus Stewart