Silly, sassy, sexy and sparkly—after a pandemic-induced furlough, the Toronto Burlesque Festival returns with four days of zesty performances. It’s all hanging out (and gyrating, swinging all around, and shamelessly bouncing with a cherry on top) from October 3 to 6 at the iconic El Mocambo at 464 Spadina Ave.

We sat down with singer, dancer, firebreather, body-positive advocate, queer woman of colour – oh, and she happens to be Festival Director and Board Chair – Ivory (she/her), to get the naked (or at least scantily-clad) truth about this year’s festival.

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Yohomo: What is the festival all about?

Ivory: LIFT OFF - The Return of the Toronto Burlesque Festival is about celebrating glamour, humour, diversity, inclusivity, sex positivity, and body positivity. As a newly minted nonprofit, returning Oct 3rd - 6th 2024 in its 16th year at the legendary El Mocambo, we’ve got a stacked lineup of over 50 of North America’s premier burlesque, drag and cabaret artists across four unique showcases, and every single one of our headliners this year is QUEER and PROUD!

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Why does the festival matter? What makes it special?

The Burlesque revival has largely been about women, queers and marginalized folx taking control of the art form, their sexuality, their image, their bodily autonomy, and how they choose to be portrayed onstage. As one of Canada’s longest running burlesque festivals, we believe burlesque should be for every-body—celebrating every shape, size, ability, orientation, gender, age, and background. It’s a fabulous rebellion against patriarchy and oppression, sparking bold conversations on feminism, intersectionality, and social justice with every dazzling performance.

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Why is the festival important for the queer scene in Toronto?

The Toronto Burlesque Festival provides space on a world class stage for  performers who otherwise may not receive stage space in conventional theatre and festival settings, or on the Church Street Strip. Many burlesque performers have multiple intersectionalities, in both their artistic practices and their demographics, and Toronto Burlesque Festival, and Burlesque in general, is like a gathering place for those with a glittering, rebellious spark in the queer art scene.

It's a vibrant stage where performers show off their fabulousness and defy mainstream norms. By twisting traditional expectations and celebrating diverse identities, burlesque offers a thrilling, unapologetic space for self-expression and social critique. It’s where the queer community gets to shine, and have a GREAT time while doing it!

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This year’s festival is filled to the impossibly lovely tits with queer talent. Woven throughout the four-day-long festival, the queer performers include (but are not limited to) Joy Rider, Kozmic Skater, Zyra Lee Vanity (also the person lead photo for this blog post!), Chola Magnolia, Bea Lissima, Kage Wolf, Babia Majora, Kaleb “Fluffy Souffle” Robertson, Rubyyy Jones, Belle Jumelles, Dainty Smith, and the featured troupe Indigibabes Burlesque.

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Check out the full schedule (which is basically entirely queer every evening of the fest) here.

Get your tickets here.

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