Susan Meiselas Shortie. Presque Isle, Maine, USA.
Carnival Strippers
Susan Meiselas’s seminal work presents a nuanced view on the dynamics of America’s traveling ‘girl shows’ in the early 1970s
Susan Meiselas Shortie on the Bally. Barton, Vermont, USA. 1974. © Susan Meiselas | Magnum Photos
From 1972 to 1975,Susan Meiselas spent her summers photographing and interviewing women who performed striptease for small town carnivals in New England, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina. As she followed carnivals from town to town, she portrayed the dancers on stage and off, photographing their public performances as well as their private lives. She also taped interviews with the dancers, their boyfriends, the show managers, and paying customers.