I've been to some pretty bad burlesque shows, where I agree it doesn't feel much different to going to a themed strip club. But I have been to a lot of good (personal opinion) burlesque which has the dose of dark humour and/or undertow of social commentary which drew me to the performances in the first place. It's hard to consider it an oppresive tool of the patriarchy when in a show where the performers are making a subtle dig at said patriarchy :)
Nah, it's not that hard. Consider the following scenario: the digs are subtle enough that they don't actually hurt patriarchy, but they let people feel like they're doing something bold and subversive, which prevents them from getting pissed enough to actually go out and smash stuff.
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