ONCE an art form that was performed behind closed doors and in dark dank clubs, burlesque has come out of the shadows in recent years.

So much so it’s being performed in mainstream theatres the length and the breadth of the country.

Now, there is a musical, Miss Nightingale, about burlesque. It is set in the Forties and stars Amber Topaz, one of the genre’s best-known performers.

She says: “I think there is still a lot of mis-education about burlesque, but it’s definitely changing. There’s a bit of a buzz about it and I think this show is just going to add to that.”

Amber started her career in West End musicals with parts in the Canterville Ghost and Les Miserables, before razzle-dazzling her way to international burlesque super-stardom and enchanting audiences around the world with her showgirl splendour. Over the years she has performed for a number of high-profile names, including design guru and restaurateur, Sir Terence Conran.

“That was perhaps the best gig I ever had,” Amber says. “I was booked to perform at his new hotel and afterwards his wife, Lady Conran, came up to me and asked whether I would do his 80th birthday. “That was a little bit bonkers with all these icons, such as Mary Quant, wandering around and me in next to nothing.

“There was also this time when I was performing at a nightclub party in this lingerie-style costume and I walked across the dance floor past Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson who both looked at me, then each other, and smiled.”

Miss Nightingale, by award-winning composer Matthew Bugg, tells the story of sex, scandal and showbiz in war-torn London.

Amber plays working class songbird Maggie Brown who has moved to London in search of fame and fortune.

She auditions at every cabaret bar, with her songwriter George, but nobody wants their act.

Things change when Maggie and George are picked up by wealthy nightclub owner Sir Frank. Soon Miss Nightingale explodes on to the stage, shocking society with her outrageous outfits and saucy songs, taking the West End by storm.

Amber says: “It was very flattering. Matthew saw me in something at the end of 2009. This show had been in development for a number of years and when he saw me perform burlesque he asked me whether I wanted to be involved.

“It’s my dream job and I’ve been having so much fun doing it.”

Miss Nightingale – the
Burlesque Musical
New Wolsey Theatre
Civic Drive, Ipswich.
Until May 11, 7.45pm,
£8.50 to £20.

wolseytheatre.co.uk 01473 295900