Tinsel, tassels and Santa Claus are just a few of the things one might see Saturday night. The Iowa School of Burlesque will be hosting “The Breast Christmas Pageant Ever” at 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, at DG’s Tap House. Admission for the event is $5 and is 21-plus.

Erin O’ Grady and her new roommate sat listening to records in their new Des Moines apartment, getting to know one another.

“We both went through a really crappy break-up and just talked about our mutual love for the ’40s style and pinups. Kind of along the subject of burlesque,” O’ Grady said. “We just decided that evening that we were going to start a troupe and host some auditions. A lot of people showed up and we had an eight-person burlesque group called St. Vitus and the Taxi Dancers.”

O’Grady would soon become Phoenix L’Amour, and St. Vitus and the Taxi Dancers would be given many opportunities such as opening for the Envy Corps at 80/35 music festival and multiple shows at the Des Moines Social Club.

“When we started doing this, we had no idea what we were doing,” O’Grady said. “We knew little about the actual history and art form. We were learning as we went along through a lot of research. We were kind of secluded.”

In 2010, O’Grady started the Iowa School of Burlesque to help nurture the growing burlesque scene.

“I wanted to create a group/place and idea where people could [explore burlesque.] I wanted to make it a headquarters so people could feel free to email us, get involved and come to our shows. We want to share what we’ve learned,” O’Grady said. “I think starting the Iowa School of Burlesque was really a way to teach people what to do and what not to do based on mistakes that I’ve made.”

Burlesque is a physical and emotional experience. The performer puts him or her out there and uses his or her body to stir an audience’s emotions.

“Something that is very unique about a burlesque performance or performer is when they are on stage they are completely vulnerable,” O’Grady said. “They are presenting themselves to the public; they’re naked; they’re out there; they might be doing some performance art piece that means something to them. … That’s what keeps me doing it. It’s like a therapy performance every time I do a performance.”

The first time O’Grady stripped down to pasties was at the Windy City Burlesque festival and it was intimidating to say the least.

“My first couple years of burlesque, I didn’t strip down to pasties,” O’Grady said. “As I did more research, I realized that  [stripping down] makes a huge statement and might be very powerful for me to do that for myself.”

The audience is a very important part of any burlesque performance and it was the audience that helped O’Grady feel more confident at that performance.

“For the most part audiences are so receptive and supportive. So they’re hooting and hollering,” O’Grady said. “That’s very unique, because you have this relationship with the audience. And you might be on a stage where there are hundreds of thousands of people out in the audience but it feels very intimate.”

Before the show on Saturday, the public can attend a workshop in burlesque at DG’s Tap House from 3 to 5 p.m. for just $35, which includes a free pair of tassels. Those who attend the workshop can also perform in the pageant later that night.

“Burlesque is for everyone, and that’s truly how I feel,” O’Grady said.