Jacob Bloomfield | Universität Konstanz (original) (raw)

Books by Jacob Bloomfield

A rich and provocative history of drag's importance in modern British culture. Drag: A British ... more A rich and provocative history of drag's importance in modern British culture.

Drag: A British History is a groundbreaking study of the sustained popularity and changing forms of male drag performance in modern Britain. With this book, Jacob Bloomfield provides fresh perspectives on drag and recovers previously neglected episodes in the history of the art form.

Despite its transgressive associations, drag has persisted as an intrinsic, and common, part of British popular culture—drag artists have consistently asserted themselves as some of the most renowned and significant entertainers of their day. As Bloomfield demonstrates, drag was also at the center of public discussions around gender and sexuality in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, from Victorian sex scandals to the "permissive society" of the 1960s. This compelling new history demythologizes drag, stressing its ordinariness while affirming its important place in British cultural heritage.

Publications by Jacob Bloomfield

Drag Histories, Herstories and Hairstories: Drag in a Changing Scene, Volume 2, 2021

All About Jazz, 2020

'Renegade Or Retrograde: Questioning Little Richard's Legacy' critiques predominant narratives of... more 'Renegade Or Retrograde: Questioning Little Richard's Legacy' critiques predominant narratives of Little Richard as a progressive cultural force, promoted heavily after his recent death, by arguing that Richard’s appeal to white audiences was predicated on traditional legacies of minstrelsy and a conscious attempt to diminish the perceived threat of black masculinity by exhibiting sexual ambiguity.

Twentieth Century British History, 2019

This article will examine how a series of theatrical shows which starred casts of cross-dressing ... more This article will examine how a series of theatrical shows which starred casts of cross-dressing ex-servicemen achieved critical and commercial popularity in interwar Britain despite increased cultural anxieties about the links between gender variance and transgressive acts, behaviours, and categories of identity. Prior to this study, historians have researched wartime concert parties where servicemen cross-dressed for each other’s entertainment, but scant attention has been given to the popular phenomenon of ex-servicemen who performed cross-dressing revues for the general public. Staging revues on the home front exposed cross-dressing ex-servicemen to new forms of spectatorship: the theatregoing public, arts criticism in the press, and state censorship. This article will analyse these dynamics for the first time through an investigation of the First World War troupe Les Rouges et Noirs, who popularized the subgenre of veterans’ cross-dressing revues with their debut production Splinters (1918). Critics commended the company’s contribution to the war effort while also lauding the troupe for their entertainment value and ‘bewitching’ feminine mimicry. Some observers, like the Lord Chamberlain, found Les Rouges’ cross-dressing troubling, but these views were in the minority and did not seriously hinder the performers’ success. When carried out temporarily in a performative setting by artists who presented a skilful and beguiling representation of femininity, and whose status as ex-servicemen helped to dispel suspicions of immorality, cross-dressing could be a source of great pleasure, even as it constituted a source of cultural anxiety in other contexts.

Papers by Jacob Bloomfield

University of California Press eBooks, Nov 2, 2023

European Review of History: Revue européenne d'histoire, 2018

Germany in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries witnessed key developments in LGBT h... more Germany in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries witnessed key developments in LGBT history, including the growth of the world's first homosexual organizations and gay and lesbian magazines, as well as an influential community of German sexologists and psychoanalysts. Queer Identities and Politics in Germany describes these events in detail, from vibrant gay social scenes to the Nazi persecution that sent many LGBT people to concentration camps. Clayton J. Whisnant recounts the emergence of various queer identities in Germany from 1880 to 1945 and the political strategies pursued by early homosexual activists. Drawing on recent English and German-language scholarship, he enriches the debate over whether science contributed to social progress or persecution during this period, and he offers new information on the Nazis' preoccupation with homosexuality. The book's epilogue locates remnants of the pre-1945 era in Germany today

Twentieth Century British History, 2018

This article will examine how a series of theatrical shows which starred casts of cross-dressing ... more This article will examine how a series of theatrical shows which starred casts of cross-dressing ex-servicemen achieved critical and commercial popularity in interwar Britain despite increased cultural anxieties about the links between gender variance and transgressive acts, behaviours, and categories of identity. Prior to this study, historians have researched wartime concert parties where servicemen cross-dressed for each other's entertainment, but scant attention has been given to the popular phenomenon of ex-servicemen who performed cross-dressing revues for the general public. Staging revues on the home front exposed cross-dressing ex-servicemen to new forms of spectatorship: the theatregoing public, arts criticism in the press, and state censorship. This article will analyse these dynamics for the first time through an investigation of the First World War troupe Les Rouges et Noirs, who popularized the subgenre of veterans' cross-dressing revues with their debut production Splinters (1918). Critics commended the company's contribution to the war effort while also lauding the troupe for their entertainment value and 'bewitching' feminine mimicry. Some observers, like the Lord Chamberlain, found Les Rouges' cross-dressing troubling, but these views were in the minority and did not seriously hinder the performers' success. When carried out temporarily in a performative setting by artists who presented a skilful and beguiling representation of femininity, and whose status as ex-servicemen helped to dispel suspicions of immorality, cross-dressing could be a source of great pleasure, even as it constituted a source of cultural anxiety in other contexts.

Women's History Review, 2016

Drag Histories, Herstories and Hairstories, 2021

This thesis will examine how British male cross-dressing performance remained commercially and cr... more This thesis will examine how British male cross-dressing performance remained commercially and critically popular from 1918-1970, despite increased cultural anxieties about the links between gender variance and transgressive acts, behaviours, and categories of identity. Through an analysis of popular male cross-dressing in this period, I will explain how artists and their performances navigated the theatrical and cultural terrain to establish and cultivate mainstream success. Far from being an ‘outsider art’, male cross-dressing endured as an essential part of the fabric of British entertainment from the interwar period through the so-called ‘permissive society’ of the 1950s and 1960s. Even as the variety theatre declined and new forms of entertainment such as radio, film, and television emerged, male cross-dressers were pioneers of the entertainment industry, readily adapting to the changing nature of leisure. Equally, male cross-dressing performance was at the centre of many key public discussions in this period, including those regarding the changing nature of normative masculinities, sexual morality, the decriminalisation of certain homosexual acts, the proliferation of live erotic entertainment, and the breakdown of the official theatre censorship system. However, the centrality of male cross-dressing in relation to these key public debates has been scantly acknowledged by historians of interwar and postwar Britain, in spite of the enduring popularity of the art form in the 1910s through the 1960s. The first three chapters of this thesis investigate the significant manifestations of male cross-dressing performance from 1918-1970: touring revues featuring cross-dressing ex-servicemen in the interwar and post-Second World War periods, the pantomime dame in the interwar years through the 1950s, and the emergence of the drag queen in the 1950s and 1960s. The final chapter highlights areas in which male cross-dressing performance was deemed controversial through an investigation of the Lord Chamberlain’s censorship system. This thesis will argue that contemporary views of male cross-dressing were complex. I will seek to unpack the various regimes of knowledge as they related to the meanings, or absence of meaning, perceivably associated with male cross-dressing. In doing so, my study will reveal that the practice held different and often contradictory meanings for performers and audiences alike. For instance, some newspaper reviews of theatrical productions featuring cross-dressing troupe Les Rouges et Noirs, which this thesis will explore in great detail, made vague allusions to the authors finding gender variance both troubling and alluring. Statements to this effect ranged from the cautiously complimentary: ‘How they have managed to eliminate all trace of that subtle unpleasantness so often associated with this type of thing I know not,’ to the unabashedly positive: ‘Reg Stone [of Les Rouges] in particular… achieves a wonderful sexual transition, complete in all its details down to the white powdered arms and polished manicured fingernails, the dainty gestures and positively pretty little affectations of femininity.’ Male cross-dressing performed before an audience could at once be a source of pleasure and anxiety in a time when British mass entertainment reached a greater and more diverse range of spectators than ever before. It is my hope that this thesis will reorientate interest in interwar and postwar male cross-dressing performance and will inspire a more critical historical approach to the study of gender variance in the twentieth century.

This paper analyses the modern popular perception of the 'drag queen' in Britain. Gender theorist... more This paper analyses the modern popular perception of the 'drag queen' in Britain. Gender theorists and historians have often used the term drag queen, but its meaning has not been clearly defined or historicised. I argue that the drag queen embodied a specific, modern style of male cross-dressing as exemplified and popularised by the entertainer Danny La Rue in the 1960s. Utilising the framework of star studies as developed by film scholars like Barry King, I argue that the drag queen was defined by male cross-dressed artists' explicit and implicit reference to the rendering of the concept of celebrity presented by Old Hollywood 'star-actresses'. La Rue, as an embodiment of the drag queen performance style, reproduced this model of stardom to popularise a distinct interpretation of drag. Through this analysis, I investigate other key elements of the modern drag queen in order to provide a clear, historically-grounded definition of this performance style, including the concept of 'camp' and whether drag queen performance is inherently sexist.

This paper also explains how La Rue became one of the most famous British entertainers of the 1960s, all while predicating his career on cross-dressing. Building upon the work of historian Frank Mort, I take a critical approach to La Rue's place within the cultural and sexual history of 1960s Britain. I argue that the entertainer was ultimately aided by the wide-ranging debates about the impact and consequences of the so-called 'permissive society'. His shrewd appeal to 'conservative modernity' in the wake of the liberalisation of social and cultural attitudes in the 1960s, while taking advantage of the favourable entrepreneurial environment offered by contemporary Soho's permissive 'casino economy', allowed him to achieve mainstream success in a period when male gender variance was often perceived as transgressive.

OLD MOTHER RILEY -67 year-old Arthur Lucan -was chuckling in the wings of a theatre last night, a... more OLD MOTHER RILEY -67 year-old Arthur Lucan -was chuckling in the wings of a theatre last night, awaiting his cue. When the cue came he did not take it.

One of the most conspicuous renderings of professional cross-dressing performance on the British ... more One of the most conspicuous renderings of professional cross-dressing performance on the British stage from the interwar period through the mid-1950s was a series of shows starring casts of exservicemen in women's dress. This talk will examine how these theatricals achieved widespread critical and commercial popularity despite increased cultural anxieties about the links between gender variance and transgressive acts, behaviours, and categories of identity. Prior to this study, historians have investigated female impersonation in wartime concert parties and POW camp theatricals, but scant attention has been given to the popular phenomenon of ex-servicemen who performed cross-dressing revues for the general public. Staging these revues on the home front exposed ex-servicemen female impersonators to new forms of spectatorship: the theatregoing public, arts criticism in the press, and state censorship. Utilising newly discovered archival material, I will analyse the commercial, critical, and legal response to ex-servicemen's cross-dressing revues. Through this methodology, I argue that the public reception to the shows was largely positive. For example, the interwar troupe Les Rouges et Noirs was considered 'a household word' by the 1930s and was deemed distinguished enough to be selected as the subject of one of the very first British motion picture 'talkies'. The 1940s and 1950s incarnations of the subgenre were so commercially successful that no less than twelve shows starring cross-dressing veterans were produced between 1941 and 1953. As I will demonstrate, much of the acclaim for the revues was tied to audiences' admiration for the performers' wartime service. However, the main focus of the critical praise received by the theatricals was the sheer artistic quality of artists' performances.

Book Reviews by Jacob Bloomfield

A rich and provocative history of drag's importance in modern British culture. Drag: A British ... more A rich and provocative history of drag's importance in modern British culture.

Drag Histories, Herstories and Hairstories: Drag in a Changing Scene, Volume 2, 2021

All About Jazz, 2020

Twentieth Century British History, 2019

University of California Press eBooks, Nov 2, 2023

European Review of History: Revue européenne d'histoire, 2018

Twentieth Century British History, 2018

This article will examine how a series of theatrical shows which starred casts of cross-dressing ... more This article will examine how a series of theatrical shows which starred casts of cross-dressing ex-servicemen achieved critical and commercial popularity in interwar Britain despite increased cultural anxieties about the links between gender variance and transgressive acts, behaviours, and categories of identity. Prior to this study, historians have researched wartime concert parties where servicemen cross-dressed for each other's entertainment, but scant attention has been given to the popular phenomenon of ex-servicemen who performed cross-dressing revues for the general public. Staging revues on the home front exposed cross-dressing ex-servicemen to new forms of spectatorship: the theatregoing public, arts criticism in the press, and state censorship. This article will analyse these dynamics for the first time through an investigation of the First World War troupe Les Rouges et Noirs, who popularized the subgenre of veterans' cross-dressing revues with their debut production Splinters (1918). Critics commended the company's contribution to the war effort while also lauding the troupe for their entertainment value and 'bewitching' feminine mimicry. Some observers, like the Lord Chamberlain, found Les Rouges' cross-dressing troubling, but these views were in the minority and did not seriously hinder the performers' success. When carried out temporarily in a performative setting by artists who presented a skilful and beguiling representation of femininity, and whose status as ex-servicemen helped to dispel suspicions of immorality, cross-dressing could be a source of great pleasure, even as it constituted a source of cultural anxiety in other contexts.

Women's History Review, 2016

Drag Histories, Herstories and Hairstories, 2021

The first three chapters of this thesis investigate the significant manifestations of male cross-dressing performance from 1918-1970: touring revues featuring cross-dressing ex-servicemen in the interwar and post-Second World War periods, the pantomime dame in the interwar years through the 1950s, and the emergence of the drag queen in the 1950s and 1960s. The final chapter highlights areas in which male cross-dressing performance was deemed controversial through an investigation of the Lord Chamberlain’s censorship system. This thesis will argue that contemporary views of male cross-dressing were complex. I will seek to unpack the various regimes of knowledge as they related to the meanings, or absence of meaning, perceivably associated with male cross-dressing. In doing so, my study will reveal that the practice held different and often contradictory meanings for performers and audiences alike. For instance, some newspaper reviews of theatrical productions featuring cross-dressing troupe Les Rouges et Noirs, which this thesis will explore in great detail, made vague allusions to the authors finding gender variance both troubling and alluring. Statements to this effect ranged from the cautiously complimentary: ‘How they have managed to eliminate all trace of that subtle unpleasantness so often associated with this type of thing I know not,’ to the unabashedly positive: ‘Reg Stone [of Les Rouges] in particular… achieves a wonderful sexual transition, complete in all its details down to the white powdered arms and polished manicured fingernails, the dainty gestures and positively pretty little affectations of femininity.’ Male cross-dressing performed before an audience could at once be a source of pleasure and anxiety in a time when British mass entertainment reached a greater and more diverse range of spectators than ever before. It is my hope that this thesis will reorientate interest in interwar and postwar male cross-dressing performance and will inspire a more critical historical approach to the study of gender variance in the twentieth century.