Maybe you've heard or maybe you haven't, but the city held its annual Christmas party on Nov. 30 at the Yellowknife Ski Club.

If you've heard about it, you're probably familiar with the rumoured entertainment involved. One councillor SA¹ú¼ÊÓ°ÊÓ´«Ã½ spoke to on Monday put that to bed: strippers were not involved.

Coun. Garett Cochrane explained the party included two burlesque dancers, both of them women. Some clothing was removed, but there was tape around the dancers' nipples, he added.

The party had about 120 guests with no children in attendance, he added.

Burlesque is an art that incorporates body comedy, body positivity, dancing and choreography and Cochrane said that it's something a bunch of people do on a regular basis here in town.

He noted that he, too, has heard people thinking the city paid for strippers, but that is not the case.

"It's not as controversial as it sounds," he said.

A ticket to the party cost $50, Cochrane added, and taxpayer dollars were not allocated towards hiring any dancers. 

Have past city Christmas parties featured burlesque dancers before? For the ones Cochrane has been to in the past couple of years, he said no and that this year's party was a bit of an overhaul compared to past years.

"It was a Vegas-themed night. There was no big dinner. We had an open bar and appetizers in a corner," said Cochrane, describing the party.

Even though the theme was about Las Vegas, gambling was not involved, he added.

Both dancers had a specific space for their performances, and no one person got their own dance, Cochrane explained.

"Nobody tipped them, nobody went up for a dance," he said. "They did their performance at around 9:30 p.m., which accumulated to around 10 minutes and then they were done."

Cochrane said Mayor Rebecca Alty and Coun. Steve Payne were also in attendance for the soiree.