Trixie Minx reigns as ’empress’ of Krewe Delusion

By ALAN SMASON, Exclusive to the CCJN

Trixie Minx rules as the reigning monarch of Krewe Delusion tomorrow night. (Photo by Roy Guste)

Burlesque performer and producer Trixie Minx remembers the day well when she received her royal invitation to become the reigning monarch of Krewe Delusion. It was in the form of a mysterious text message from a friend – a member of the krewe – who insisted they meet in person.

“He had something really important to tell me,” Minx recounted. “I asked what was going on, but he was very elusive as to the subject matter.” While they were trying to decide an appropriate time that didn’t conflict with each other’s schedules, another member of the krewe asked her if she had accepted the offer to be Queen of Krewe Delusion.

Initially confused, it finally dawned on her what was going on. “We all ended up laughing about it, but basically, after a lot of run around, they asked me to be queen and I accepted,” she continued.

Minx took to the streets as Empress of the Insane and Captain of New Orleans Saturday night with the Krewe Delusion parade that moved along the traditional route in the Bywater and Faubourg Marigny neighborhoods and then into the French Quarter.

As a person working in burlesque, Minx is quite familiar with the term “queen,” which is used in official performance competitions within the entertainment field. The producer of Fleur de Tease at One-Eyed Jacks on Toulouse Street for nine years, Minx has made a name for herself as a performer, but her emphasis these days is producing revues such as Burlesque Ballroom, Creole Sweet Tease,  Jewel Box Burlesque and Voodoo Burlesque, all of which have deep connections to New Orleans.

Minx was adamant about not being designated another queen. “While I am the 2015 reigning Queen of Krewe Delusion, when the krewe asked what I would like my title to be, I requested ‘Trixie Minx, Empress of the Insane.'” That is what is is on all the official correspondence from the krewe and Minx is happy with that. She points out that an Empress rules over an empire comprised of several countries, but that a queen reigns over but one sovereign state.

Originally from Kendall, FL., just south of Miami Beach, Minx was raised with a younger brother and sister in a Jewish home. She took up ballet when she attended the New World School of Arts in Miami Beach. Her parents were originally New Yorkers, having hailed from Buffalo and Rochester, so they pushed for her to find her passion in dancing. “Growing up, my parents were both involved (with Judaism),” she said. “When we were little, we would go to temple, but my dancing was conflicting with services. My mom gave me the choice: ‘You can have a Bat Mitzvah or you can do ballet.'” Minx chose ballet, but they would still celebrate the High Holidays. “But, we didn’t do much more beyond that.”

She admired her parents for allowing her to find her own way and being loving of respectful of the decisions she has made. Minx, who has raised more than eyebrows when she has used Star of David pasties within her act, is nevertheless proud of her past. She admits, though, she would have found it hard to imagine her life today.

Producer and performer Trixie Minx recalls her Jewish upbringing. (Photo by Roy Guste)

“I didn’t want to be a burlesque dancer,” she confided.”I thought it was trashy. I thought it was stripping and I didn’t think there was an art form to it.”

Dancing to classical music and ballet was her proving grounds and she worked hard to excel in it, even when her shapely frame grew into a statuesque shape beyond the normal range for a ballet star.

But then came an injury that cut her career in ballet short. “When I injured my foot, I thought I would never dance again and that was the end of my story,” she said.

Minx had to give up ballet, but continued to do some ethnic dancing to keep herself active. She could not longer get up on point like she used to, but was still strong as a folk dancer in samba or dancing with a partner.  It was then a friend suggested she would love burlesque.

“‘No. No. I don’t want to do that!'” she remembered saying at the time. But friends insisted she look into it. Finally, she began to see that burlesque wasn’t at all about stripping, but strip tease. There was a moment of clarity in which she began to see the various styles of burlesque – from “the dirties,” what she calls the slimiest to those glamorous acts that are essentially comedy bits.

“I like the comedy style of it,” she confessed. “It’s really funny because my career has been defined by my comedy bit.”

Burlesque, she pointed out comes from the Latin word meaning “to joke,” so it should be done tongue-in-cheek. “Some aspect of the burlesque show should be a comedy or have some aspects of comedy in it.”

After getting over her initial reluctance around 2004, Minx poured herself into her performances and along the way made friends with other seasoned burlesque performers like Kitty Twist. Twist also performed as a stripper, which was a line Minx was not willing to cross, but she appreciated the ease with which Twist performed and the flexibility she maintained in working the different forms of her art. “She was so talented,” Minx stated. “She could jump from one world to the other and she was so knowledgable.”

Taking the lead from others, Minx began to book other would-be burlesque performers and began to promote her shows at One-Eyed Jacks and other local venues. As time went on she found she was taking more of a management position and was not performing as often. It is what she laughingly refers to as a graceful transition.

“I work with women who are not just burlesque performers; they are burlesque icons,” Minx went on. “They will perform until they die.”

For the past two summers she has performed weekly in Atlantic City as a soloist with the Burlesque Show at the Borgata Casino and Hotel there. The stress of traveling each week, performing, flying back to New Orleans and doing it all again the next week doesn’t seem to dampen Minx’s spirits.

She fully expects to be asked back to perform this summer

Trixie Minx performing at Fleur de Tease. (Photo by Roy Guste.)

“I love traveling whenever I can to perform as a guest with other shows,” she confessed. “But what I find myself doing more and more recently is creating custom designed shows for private parties, corporate events and festivals.”

Last year she produced “Fantasy, the Naughtiest Show at Sea” for Couples Cruises. “It was an amazing experience and we literally did a full-scale Vegas style show on a ship!”

In recent years she has moved into several mainstream theatre offerings. A year ago she took part in a stage reading with several other well-known female members of the community. Her part was well received.

For now, Minx is keeping her eye on Carnival and the role she will play as royalty. “I sincerely believe New Orleans to be a cultural phenomenon that I am proud to call home,” she professed. “Being the ruler of Krewe Delusion and being present in my community makes me part of the living history that I so deeply respect and admire.”

She requests that her krewe members be active participants in the community, creating a revolution and evolution for the city. “Be the positive change you want in your community, rather than wait for someone to change it for you,” Minx said.

When asked prior to the parade, what she would have under her sleeve, she replied with a smile:  “I don’t know. Like Gypsy Rose Lee said ‘Always leave them wanting for more.'”