History MsFanservice / Theater

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lily_pons_as_lakme.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Looks like the opera ain't over 'til the ''slender'' lady sings.]]
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* A rare classical music example: the title character of Richard Strauss's 1905 opera ''Salome'' does a famous dance, the Dance of the Seven Veils, during which she takes off the eponymous veils until, by the end, she's (supposedly) naked. Most productions don't expect the soprano to actually get naked and generally go with underwear or a bodystocking but whenever one does (such as [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3jF3g4KBbw Maria Ewing - NSFW]]) it's always a sensation.
** In Zemlinsky's opera ''Der König Kandaules'', the titular king Kandaules persuades the hero Gyges to gaze upon his (the king's) beautiful young wife Nyssia when she's undressing. The ensuing nude scene has a lot to do with why the opera, although written in the 1930s and 40s, didn't get premiered until 1996. [[spoiler: In case you're wondering, karma bites Kandaules in the ass when, in the third act Gyges owns up to the deception, and Nyssia is so taken with his honesty and so disgusted with her creepy husband's pimp tendencies that she persuades Gyges to kill Kandaules, and promptly crowns Gyges king instead.]]
* Similarly, the title character of Olga Neuwirth's opera ''American Lulu'', loosely adapted from Berg's ''Lulu'', wears skimpier and skimpier clothing as the show goes on. [[spoiler: Culminating in FanDisservice: she undresses completely for her last client and he stabs her to death and leaves her naked body in a dumpster.]]
* Magda from ''Theatre/TanzDerVampire'', who spends most of the show in various forms permutations of the ImpossiblyLowNeckline and a very skimpy nightgown. Then there's her finale costume, which seems designed to show as much skin as possible while still using the idea that extra fabric is sensual. The result? [[http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd180/magdavamp/Franziska%20Forster/finale2.jpg A corset-bodiced dress with lots of cleavage, a short skirt, and a transparent blouse and overskirt.]]
* Interestingly, some versions of ''Theatre/LittleShopOfHorrors'' tend to give Audrey a nightgown or very short skirt (think 60s nurse uniform skirts) for the scene where she dies, and when she's placed upon Audrey II and the puppeteers start moving the tongue to get her down, the audience gets a pretty good view. Notable since she could just be placed any old way and fall down his gullet however she wanted.
* Cunegonde and Paquette in [[AllMusicalsAreAdaptations Candide]]
* The entire female cast of ''Theatre/SpringAwakening.''
** Also ''Theatre/{{Chicago}}.''
* Sally Bowles in ''Theatre/{{Cabaret}}.''
* [[StalkerWithACrush Eponine Thenardier]] is portrayed this way in some productions of ''Theatre/LesMiserables'', likely to [[BettyAndVeronica contrast her with her love-rival]], the prim and proper Cosette. This is an interesting contrast to [[Literature/LesMiserables the original book]], where Cosette is expressly stated to be the more attractive of the two and gets a couple InnocentFanserviceGirl moments herself.
* In the 1930's and '40's, Lily Pons did a BareYourMidriff interpretation of the title role of Delibes' ''Lakmé'', as shown in the image above.
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[[caption-width-right:350:Looks like it ain't over 'til the ''slender'' lady sings.]]

* Magda from ''TanzDerVampire'', who spends most of the show in various forms permutations of the ImpossiblyLowNeckline and a very skimpy nightgown. Then there's her finale costume, which seems designed to show as much skin as possible while still using the idea that extra fabric is sensual. The result? [[http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd180/magdavamp/Franziska%20Forster/finale2.jpg A corset-bodiced dress with lots of cleavage, a short skirt, and a transparent blouse and overskirt.]]

* Sally Bowles in ''{{Cabaret}}.''

** In Zemlinsky's opera ''Der König Kandaules'', the titular king Kandaules persuades the hero Gyges to gaze upon his (the king's) beautiful young wife Nyssia when she's undressing. The ensuing nude scene has a lot to do with why the opera, although written in the 1930s and 40s, didn't get premiered until 1996. [[spoiler: In case you're wondering, karma bites Kandaules in the ass when Gyges owns up to the deception and Nyssia is so taken with his honesty as against her creepy husband's pimp tendencies that she persuades Gyges to kill Kandaules, and promptly crowns him king instead.]]

* The entire female cast of ''SpringAwakening.''

* Cunegone and Paquette in [[AllMusicalsAreAdaptations Candide]]

* The entire female cast of Spring Awakening
** Also ''Theatre/{{Chicago}}''
* Sally Bowles in ''{{Cabaret}}''

* Interestingly, some versions of ''{{Little Shop of Horrors}}'' tend to give Audrey a nightgown or very short skirt (think 60s nurse uniform skirts) for the scene where she dies, and when she's placed upon Audrey II and the puppeteers start moving the tongue to get her down, the audience gets a pretty good view. Notable since she could just be placed any old way and fall down his gullet however she wanted.

** Also {{Chicago}}
* Sally Bowles in Cabaret

* Sally Bowles in Cabaret

* Magda from ''TanzDerVampire'', who spends most of the show in various forms permutations of the ImpossiblyLowNeckline and a very skimpy nightgown. Then there's her finale costume, which seems designed to show as much skin as possible while still using the idea that extra fabric is sensual. The result? A corset-bodiced dress with lots of cleavage, a short skirt, and a transparent blouse and overskirt.

* Interestingly, some versions of ''{{Little Shop of Horrors}}'' tend to give Audrey a nightgown or very short skirt (think 60s nurse uniform skirts) for the scene where she dies, and when she's placed upon Audrey II and the puppeteers start moving the tongue to get her down, the audience gets a pretty good view. Notable since she could just be placed any old way and fall down his gullet however she wanted.