When Brandi Rei performs in front of a crowd, she no longer goes by her legal name. She instead adopts her alter ego, Madame. As the leader of her dancers at Brown Suga Burlesque and the overseer of all, Rei makes sure to let the audience know she’s in control.
“I’m a very passionate and very direct dancer, and I’m very in tune with my sexuality,” said Rei, founder of Brown Suga Burlesque, a performance-focused, narrative-building show. “And when I do that and I perform, I connect with audience members by my aura and my confidence. So I just wanted to be able to put that just who I am as a dancer into a physical form, into a show.”
Rei, a North Philadelphia native and former Temple student, found refuge in her body through Dare2Dance, the university’s dance team. The diverse and supportive environment unlocked a confidence previously unbeknownst to her. She dropped out of college to move to Los Angeles, where she fell in love with dancing and ultimately returned to Philly, ready to establish BSB.
During Burlesque shows, dancers taunt and tease the audience, slowly guiding the crowd through an experience as entertaining as it is sensual. While nudity can be an element of burlesque, Gigi Penn, a dancer at BSB, emphasizes this is not the sole factor contributing to their success.
“It’s really about making everybody in this space feel like there is no shame to be had,” Penn said. “Because at the same time, we’re exhibiting something sexual for people to watch. People also feel a way when they watch something sexual happening, or even not sexual. [The performances] don’t have to be explicitly sexual, and [the audience] still discover things about themselves.”
BSB has developed into a bona fide Philadelphia institution since it opened in December 2023. But even with a team of 12 regular performers and dozens of other dancers and supporters, it hasn’t always been a smooth ride.
Their biggest challenges are not resources or booking shows, but misconceptions and judgment, Rei said. Bars and venues hosting all-white dance acts have kicked Brown Suga out for “vulgarity.”
As a Black woman performing erotically, Rei knows the response won’t always be positive.
“They always automatically assume we’re stripping,” Rei said. “It is not the same thing. We have different intentions and different purposes, and it’s more of an art form and creative expression, rather than just being about money.”
Rei hosts her dance classes at Bodies in Motion Performing Arts and Dance School, just blocks away from Temple’s campus on 10th Street near Diamond. When she isn’t teaching classes, her fellow dancers join her for drinks at her apartment nearby. Rei highlights the importance of building community outside of dancing, regularly hosting cookouts, sip and paints and apartment hang-outs.
Not all the company’s members dance, either. When Daeja Davenport first found the community, she was extremely timid and unsure of herself. As BSB’s content editor and behind-the-scenes employee, Davenport slowly found confidence through Rei’s uplifting energy and support.
“[Rei] allowed me to shine through that, and letting me do the editing and doing the background stuff, things I really enjoy doing, and things I want to do in life,” Davenport said. “So I am always so appreciative of her giving me this opportunity to do this and let me shine in ways that I’ve never been able to before.”
Penn remembers being sexualized from a young age, which she attributed to being treated older than she was because of her Blackness. She uses BSB to reclaim her body in an environment where the other women understand her struggles. She credits Rei for cultivating a shameless community for Black women to be vulnerable and build confidence together.
“It’s really about fighting for our right to be heard and appreciated,” Penn said. “Because black women are our main audience, but it’s literally for anybody who wants to appreciate a Black woman who was invited to BSB. And we just make sure that the girls feel empowered, and it’s not done in a way that feels exploitative.”
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