France Eyes Burlesque
In Tournée (“On Tour”), Mathieu Amalric plays Joachim, a middle-aged Frenchman and former television producer who abandons his children to start a new existence in America. But he returns with a troupe of burlesque stars whom he has tempted with a tour of France and Paris. Going from town to town, the shows prove a wild success with men and women alike until, of course, trouble begins. Tournée is inspired by the real-life New Burlesque genre, a revival of the classic shows of the 1920s and 30s, when burlesque was about much more than a striptease. Satire and social commentary played an integral role. All of the film’s burlesque performers are real-life artists who have taken part in the resurgence of the industry in America.