Lapdancer

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Determined to supplement her meager income as a novice photographer, Juliana Beasley embarked on an eight-year journey as a professional nude dancer, specializing in lap dances. From New York to Reno, she worked in over two dozen strip clubs, dancing for twenty dollars a song while navigating the rewards and pitfalls of variable income, flexible schedules, and the emotional and physical toll of the job. Alongside her dancing, Beasley never lost sight of her documentary work; she regularly brought a camera to the clubs, recording testimonies from managers, dancers, and patrons. The result is an inside look at the world of professional nude dancing, drawn from thousands of photographs and hours of interviews. Beasley documents a culture often misunderstood, governed by strict rules and populated by vivid characters. Through her lens, she guides us through the erotic dancer circuit, revealing its economic realities and the intimate, anonymous exchanges between dancer and customer. At what was once society’s fringe, Beasley explores evolving definitions of sexuality, gender politics, capitalism, therapy, and even love.