Courtesy of Pam Percy
Brava: A Titillating History of Bras (2026)
Bras are a fact of life for half the population, and what they display is a source of fascination for at least a quarter of the other half. Milwaukee’s award-winning writer-director Pam Percy decided to address this prominent undergarment in her latest documentary, Brava: A Titillating History of Bras.
“I had a funny idea for a Cinderella story, except instead of losing her slipper, she left her bra behind,” Percy says. “The man in the story becomes obsessed” and wants to learn more about the garment.
Bitten by the media bug in the ‘90s, Percy produced Wisconsin Public Radio’s “Hotel Milwaukee” variety show and was half of the Shepherd Express’ popular “Boris and Doris” gossip column. Her husband, author Marty Hintz, was preparing a film about his father, lost in action during World War II, and after his death, Percy saw the project through completion as a documentary, Finding Loren.
Her second film, Chicken City, delved into her fascination with the barnyard fowl. “I raised them for 35 years and collected anything that looked like a chicken,” she explains. “But when I went to the library for a book on chickens, I couldn’t find one.” So she wrote the book and it became the basis for a light-hearted, partly animated documentary.
Animated Musical Lyrical Documentary
She maintains a similar tone with Brava, working closely with Milwaukee animator-editor Jon Phillips. Percy uses her Cinderella story as the framework for an exploration of bras through the ages, a chronicle that begins, like so many things, in ancient Greece. In a sudden flash of inspiration, she decided to tell that history in verse form, aided in segments by musical settings by John Sieger and Peter Batchhelder with Robin Pluer singing. Another prominent Milwaukee musician, Victor DeLorenzo, serves as narrator. “I call it an animated musical lyrical documentary,” Percy says.
Brava illustrates changing fashions over the centuries as corsets grew tighter in the Victorian Age and loosened in the Edwardian period (under pressure from women’s groups), only to tighten into the flat chests of the Flapper era before shifting to the big-breasted look that remains evident nowadays. Bra burning? “An urban myth,” Percy declares. “There was a protest at a beauty pageant where women threw their bras into a trash bin, but they didn’t light them on fire.”
The countercultural flirtation with bra-lessness came and went in a flash. Bras are a billion-dollar industry. “Hollywood dictated a lot of the changing styles, now maybe it’s TikTok,” Percy continues. “I have no philosophical thoughts about this. Brava does not have a message. It just shows the history in a fun, delightful, clever way.”
Photo courtesy Pam Percy
Peacock feather bra
A peacock feather bra
The May 14 world premiere of Brava at the Oriental Theater will feature a runway show of original bras by Milwaukee artists, hosted by Karen Valentine and Jules Laabs from Studio D'Angeli with students from the Edessa Fashion School as well as Carri Skozcek, Deborah Render, Jennifer Hellerman and Holly Harnischfeger.
Additionally, DeLorenzo will screen his semi-autobiographical short film, “Mary for the Block.” “Working on ‘Floodgates’ gave me the itch to write a film,” DeLorenzo says, referring to the Eric Engelbart-directed short that premiered in Milwaukee at last month’s film festival. (Full disclosure: I’m coauthor of the ‘Floodgates’ story) “Mary for the Block” concerns a music producer who unties his creative knots by sitting beside the statue of Mary outside SS. Peter & Paul Parish on Milwaukee’s East Side. “I wrote it in one 12-hour sweep, sitting in front of my computer, and didn’t change a word when it went in front of the camera.”
“Mary for the Block” has an original score by DeLorenzo and is the first in a projected trilogy of short films.
For tickets and more information, visit https://www.bravathefilm.com/
