The terms exotic dancer and exotic dance can have different meanings in different parts of the world and depending on context.

Non-erotic interpretation

Exotic dancers are those that possess a mastery in any form of dance that is rare. These can include:

• Whirling dervishes,
• Shaman dancers, and
• Religious dancers

The Mevlevi Order or the Mevleviye are a Sufi order founded by the followers of the Persian Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi in 1273 in Konya present day Turkey; also known as the Whirling Dervishes due to their famous practice of whirling as a form of dhikr (remembrance of Allah). ... A shaman doctor of Kyzyl. ...

Erotic dance interpretation

In the United States the term applies to any striptease performer in a strip club or gentlemen's club. There are two main types of exotic dancer seen in strip clubs: feature dancers and house dancers. Feature dancers make feature appearances at clubs all over the United States; house dancers work for a particular strip club or franchise. Porn stars often earn extra income as feature dancers. Erotic dance is a major category or classification of dance forms or dance styles, where the purpose is the stimulation or arousal of erotic or sexual thoughts or actions. ... A German stripper performing at an auto shop. ... For the book or movie Striptease see Striptease (book) and Striptease (movie) A striptease is a performance, usually a dance, in which the performer gradually removes their clothing for the purposes of sexually arousing the audience, usually performed in nightclubs. ... A gentlemens club is an upscale go-go club in the United States that features performances by exotic dancers to high energy club tracks. ... A pornographic actor or a porn star is somebody who appears in pornographic movies, live sex shows or peep shows. ...

A third type of exotic dancer or stripper performs at private engagements, such as bachelor parties, and may or may not work in a club at all. A bachelor party (also called a stag party, stag night, or bucks party (Australia)) is a party held for a bachelor shortly before he is married, to commemorate his final opportunity to engage in activities a new wife might not approve of, or merely to spend time bonding with his...

The origin of the erotic interpretation is similar to that of the term massage parlour, in that a description for a non-sexual service was co-opted to describe a sexual service. For sexual massage, see erotic massage. ...