Fluorescent blue and red lights flash upon the woman as she slowly, provocatively slides her red sequined bikini top from her tanned shoulders. She begins sliding against the dirty, fogged-up mirrors that line the red, 8-by-10-foot stage, making little eye contact with the dozen men sitting at the bar below. Her body glides in sync to the music pulsating off the black walls.

Groping her bare breasts and licking her lips, *Bunny slinks across the stage. This 20-year-old brunette hopes to make a nice chunk of money tonight. Still wearing the bottom half of her bikini, the slim, 5-foot tall dancer begins removing her black 5-inch stiletto heels. The room is void of catcalls or whistles—the men are too busy staring, completely awestruck by this woman.

Bunny, who has worked as a stripper for more than a year, is definitely not one of the “three ugly ones” at the Deja Vu Showgirls strip club, known for its motto: “Hundreds of Beautiful Girls and Three Ugly Ones.”

Nestled on the corner of Denny Way and Aurora Avenue in downtown Seattle, this 18-and-over club is located right next to the Holiday Inn Express, across from the neon-flashing sign announcing the Elephant Car Wash. The club is open seven days a week until 2:30 a.m.

At the foot of the stairway leading to the stage, *Jewel, a Marisa Tomei look-alike and one of Bunny’s co-strippers, patiently awaits her turn. Jewel is a married medical student at the at the University of Washington and is currently completing a medical internship.

“I hope I make a lot of money tonight. One of my regulars is coming in,” Jewel tells one of her co-workers, scanning the room with her hazel-green eyes for a potential “lap dance” partner.

While waiting for their turn on the stage, strippers wind their way in between the rows of metal, fabric-covered chairs. Breasts thrust forward and bending over, the scantily-clad women place their professionally manicured hands on shoulders and whisper an invitation to visit with them in the V.I.P. Couch Room.

For $20 a patron can have a stripper all to himself for a single song in this dark, private room, lit only by a purple fluorescent glow. But strippers at this type of club must be careful. When giving lap or couch dances, they must not make eye-contact with their “client” for more than 5 seconds. If they do, they will be breaking state law. If an undercover cop visits the club and discovers the girls aren’t abiding by the law, the club could be shut down.

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