The Barrison Sisters, c. 1890s, reveal kittens beneath their skirts.

The Barrison Sisters were a risque Vaudeville act who performed in the United States and Europe from about 1891 to 1900, advertised as The Wickedest Girls In the World. The Barrison Sisters performing their notorious vaudeville cat dance, c. ... The Barrison Sisters performing their notorious vaudeville cat dance, c. ... Vaudeville is a style of multi-act theatre which flourished in North America from the 1880s through the 1920s. ... World map showing Europe Political map (neighboring countries in Asia and Africa also shown) Europe is one of the seven traditional continents of the Earth. ... 1891 (MDCCCXCI) was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... 1900 (MCM) was an exceptional common year starting on Monday. ...

Lona, Sophia, Inger, Olga and Gertrude Barrison were actual sisters (many "sister" acts in Vaudeville were not) of Danish-German descent. Along with their mother the five sisters emigrated to America from Denmark in 1886 joining their father who had taken the journey earlier. Lona Barrison, the oldest of the sisters had had theatre experience in Denmark as a young girl and it was she who initially gravitated towards the theatre scene after the family settled in New York. Later on she was joined by her siblings. The Barrison Sisters were said to sing in high squeaky voices, and dance with middling ability. They achieved notoriety, however, by ingenious use of double entendres on stage. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Profanity. ...

Lona Barrison in Berlin, 1903

In their most famous act, the sisters would dance, raising their skirts slightly above their knees, and ask the audience "Would you like to see my pussy?" When they had coaxed the audience into an enthusiastic response, they would raise up their skirts, revealing that each sister was wearing underwear of their own manufacture which had a live kitten secured over the crotch. Lona Barrison, one of the notorious Barrison Sisters, scanned from June, 1903 magazine. ... Lona Barrison, one of the notorious Barrison Sisters, scanned from June, 1903 magazine. ... The Barrison Sisters lift their dresses to show a live kitten, a double entendre of pussy. For the village, see Pussy, France. ... A kitten. ...

After their succes in Europe in the 1890's, scores of troups perporting to be "sisters" followed in there footsteps. Among them the British Machinson Sisters. The Barrison Sisters broke up around the turn of the century, but both Gertrude and Lona went on to have successful solo careers on the stage. Gertrude, the youngest and perhaps most talented of them all, became a groundbreaking modern dancer in Wienna, Switzerland. She was the last to die - in 1939 in Copenhagen. The Machinson Sisters The Machinson Sisters were an early 20th century Vaudeville act originating in England. ...

External links

• The Old Spice Girls by Richard Smithson
• Text of one of their performances