Why the international sex icon sometimes wishes she learned to DJ

As the International Queen of Burlesque, Dita von Teese is an icon to women and men around the world. She’s also one of the most sophisticated and glamorous individuals we’ve ever had the pleasure of laying eyes on.

Australia went into overdrive upon hearing von Teese would be bringing her critically-acclaimed show Strip, Strip, Hooray Down Under  We caught up up with the burlesque queen, lingerie designer, best-selling author, and international entrepreneur to talk sex appeal, fetish modeling, her latest line of lingerie, and what it’s like being a sex icon.

Tell us about the tour so far…

We just did three sold out nights here in Hollywood. It was a great new start; we have a lot of new people that have joined the cast so there are a lot of new things that we’re polishing up to get ready to bring to Australia. It’s been really fun and I’m pleased with how things are coming along.

Great to hear. So, you recently had a residence at the Crazy Horse in Paris. How did the Parisians respond?

In Paris, I’m able to do a lot of more big time press. I’m more known in France than I am in America in a lot of ways. In America, they’re not allowed to show a lot of the stuff I do on TV, and a lot of people are nervous to talk about striptease on TV.

In Paris, it’s always been a part of their culture. They love showgirls, they love being risqué, you know the Crazy Horse in Paris is an iconic Cabaret, it’s been around since the 50’s. It’s all nude but held in national regard. The girls are considered national treasures so it’s a little bit different there. I did about 35 shows [and] it was a big success.

How does the attitude toward sex differ in Paris?

People are people wherever you go, but I think as far as nudity people aren’t as hung up. It’s different. Historically it’s always been a little more free in that way, so I guess that’s never gone away. I guess in general, as far as the scene goes, there are a lot more risqué shows than there are in America.

What inspired you to get into fetish modeling?

That was in the 90’s, around 1991, and I’d seen pictures of Bettie Page at a fetish store. I was at a fetish store because I was buying a Victorian Steel-Boned corset and back then that was the only place you could buy something like that. Someone gave me an address, and I walked in, and it was this world that I had never experienced. I saw a picture of Bettie, and I was also looking at these fetish mags, and I thought, “Why isn’t someone bringing back this idea of retro fetishism like what Bettie Page did?” That’s how I got my start all those years ago.

Your latest lingerie line takes inspiration from the retro-chic culture and aesthetic?

Inspired by everyday glamour, it’s meant to be worn in daily life, it’s not a frivolous, fetish lingerie line, or anything. It’s definitely something that has the element that I love from classic 1940s-50s Hollywood but modernized and made wearable for every day.

Is the Dita Von Teese on stage different to the one I’d meet on the street?

You won’t catch me wearing a tee-shirt and jeans on the street, [but] I don’t have an alter ego where I’m one person, sexy for magazines and on the red carpet then suddenly I have a different costume for real life. I’m self-styled, self-made, and I do what I do because I love it, and it’s the only thing I know.

What’s it like being an icon for so many men and women around the world?

It’s sweet of you to say that, and I’m happy to be recognized for all these years of work, but at the same time, there are just as many people who haven’t heard of you. I don’t feel any differently. I have fans, people that follow my work, but at the same time the whole rest of the world hasn’t heard of me. I don’t walk around thinking how it feels to be an icon, I just do my work, and it’s great to be recognized by some people. I’m not like Taylor Swift you know?

She (Taylor Swift) loves writing about her ex-boyfriends, doesn’t she?

Oh yeah… I met her, but I still don’t know her songs. I’ve never connected to what she actually sings… I basically don’t listen to the radio; if I watch the Grammys I don’t recognize most people. I listen to more alternative music. There is a whole other world that is not that commercially-driven that appeals to me.

I couldn’t agree more… Who are some of your favorite artists?

I love The Presets. Hoping I’ll get to catch up with them when I’m in Australia, I love a band called Monarchy, also Australian, Blood Orange… I listen to a lot of electronic music.

Blood Orange are amazing and The Presets are always good for a party…

Yeah, I think they’re great. Whenever they come to LA I see them and I know them a little bit. I’ll definitely be inviting them to my show.

It must be a hard life, the life of a touring artist…

Doing production for my show, I produce my shows; it’s a massive undertaking to travel to Australia and bring all the props, costumes, and crew. Oh man, it’d be so much easier to be in a band, so many fewer overheads than putting on a production of this scale.

A lot of people just see the glitz and the glamor, but they don’t realize how much has gone on behind the scenes…

Yeah, a lot of people just see a sold-out room and they say “Oh well, you sold out 1,500 tickets.” Well yes, but it cost us $200,000 to put on this show, and I’ll probably make a little bit if I’m lucky, but people don’t know that the costs of production are enormous. It’s a labor of love. Sometimes I think, if I just could’ve been an electronic DJ, I could’ve just had an assistant and a hard-drive.iIt’d be so much easier! So many fewer overheads than bringing giant martini glasses and mechanical bulls and opium dens to other countries. That cost a lot of money.

Are you thinking about becoming a DJ, Dita?

No, I mean I have a lot of friends and I’ve been around the electronic scene since the early 90’s, so I know lots of DJ’s. I do wish I had just learned to DJ back then but this was also when everyone was playing vinyl and all my DJ friends and boyfriends were like “you should learn to DJ."

Well, it’s not that hard, Paris Hilton did it…

Yeah, and she’s quite good… I’ve seen her play a couple of times and even though her music isn’t my kind, she goes alright. You can make fun of her all you want but people still go to see her play and she’s doing the same thing all those guys are doing, turning knobs and stuff.

How many Louboutins do you own?

Well, Christian Louboutin (a French luxury footwear and fashion designer) is a very close friend of mine, so he keeps me well-heeled. I don’t know, I’ve never counted, I feel like that would be a weird thing to do, to count my shoes. But he’s made all the shoes for my shows, and I’m lucky to have him.

I’m self-styled, self-made, and I do what I do because I love it.

I read somewhere that he considers you a muse?

Yeah…

So, what’s that like?

Umm. It’s nice. There are people like him who I have been admiring since I was in high school and it’s amazing to know them and have them creating things for me with me in mind; it’s an honor.

Do you have a favorite photographer to work with?

I love working with Ali Mahdavi in Paris. We have a lot of things in common. We believe in glamor, in beautiful lighting and a classic Hollywood style, but with a modern twist. I trust him, and he has a great eye, and I feel like some of my best photos have been working with him. I also love Ellen Von Unwerth because it’s very free and fun and you can do anything with her and you know the pics are going to beautiful. She has a great eye for women’s beauty, and you can let go in a photo shoot with her and you know she’s going to get the best.

There are a lot of different photographers that I like for various reasons. I work with a guy called Albert Sanchez a lot, he shot all the images for my tour and I like to work with him, I do all the hair and makeup and it’s just him and his partner and there is no big fuss and we just shoot beautiful photos without the fuss. I like the low-key, high glamor setup. You get great photos without 20 people standing around. We just do it at my house or his house and get amazing images.

What do you notice when you first go to a guy’s place?

Well, I guess I notice their style. Like I think when I was dating a lot I would really check it to see if our styles could ever mesh with each other. For me, I always thought there is no point in me falling in love with a minimalist who loves modern style. I’m a big collector of antiques and pin-up paintings. I just remember going on a date with this guy and going to his place and just thinking, “Oh, this is not going to work.” Some people just don’t have anything personal lying around. They like to live in stark white space with stark white furniture and nothing personal around, no photos. The ultra modern is a little bit of a turn-off for me because it’s not my aesthetic. It’s hard to imagine co-habitating with someone that doesn’t like the same things as you do.

It’s good to notice how clean someone is, so that’s important too. In saying that, I’d rather someone come to my house; I’d rather be in my territory from the beginning.

Are you a book collection kind of girl?

I have a library. I moved about six months ago and it was one of the most traumatic things ever, moving the book collection over, it was such a huge undertaking…

Are you reading anything at the moment?

Not at the moment because I’ve been in full showbiz mode. I was working on reading a book by my friend Liz Baldwin. It’s about Los Angeles in the late 1800’s when there was like the wild west, and she wrote a book based on historical accounts but it’s semi-fictional. It’s fascinating to read about L.A at that time, especially when we think about Hollywood and movie stars of the 1920s and ‘30s, you don’t hear a lot about LA around that time. It’s called “Sporting Guys."

Finally, What’s your exercise routine, how do you stay so fit!?

I’ve done Pilates for many years, but I’ve recently started working cross fit. I was getting bored of pilates, and there were just a bunch of girls there so I was like, I’m going to go where the boys go and give cross-fit a go.

PHOTO: Scott Nathan