The BurlyCon team is deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Toni Elling. Many of us have had close individual relationships with her, and over the 15 years we’ve known her she has made our lives, and burlesque, infinitely better and more loving. As Toni was the first legend guest of honor at Burlycon in 2008, our relationship with her was important to our organization from the beginning. She …
BurlyCon 2023 is a year to rebuild and renew. Be a true innovator and changemaker by supporting this ambitious, essential, and industry-changing work. The choice is yours! Be a Benefactor, member, legends archive sponsor, recurring donor or one-time supporter.
After 2 years of online pandemic pivots and a return to in-person service, Burlycon will dedicate 2023 to a complete internal under-the-hood restructuring through an anti-racist and anti-oppressive lens, and the popular in-person convention will return in 2024. For the past 15 years Burlycon has been the global leader in peer-based Burlesque Education. The Board of Directors and Steering Committee have voted to dedicate the next 12 months to focus …
Greetings love, It’s been a while since we have seen each other in person. Three years since we were in a hotel conference center learning the art of the tease. Things have changed and things keep changing. There are things that we used to do that we no longer do. And that is ok. We hear you and we understand you. The price of potatoes and pasties has gone up …
The Board has been busy for the last eight months searching for the next Executive Director of BurlyCon. And today I have the deep pleasure of announcing, our search is over! BurlyCon’s next Executive Director is…. Twirlisha Devine AND Iva Handfull! Yes you read that right, the Board fell in love with both of them. Their knowledge, skills and energies are a wonderful compliment and we are over the moon …
Just Ducky Seattle, WA -cue dramatic music- Dialogue- “The name’s Ducky, Just Ducky” -sip suggestively on a martini – END SCENE Ok, but let’s be real here, everyone calls me Ducky. And if you have met me suggestive is probably not one of the top things you would call me. Quirky? Yes. Silly? Huge yes. Bubbly? Ya. And honestly, that’s fine by me (we will revisit this in a later …
GiGi Holliday Washington, D.C. & Brooklyn, NY First Year at BurlyCon: 2012 Years as a Benefactor: 6 “One of my favorite things about being a benefactor is the benefactor dinner. If you become a member, I hope you sit at my dinner table and we make a toast to burlesque education.” Interviewed by Vixen Valentine, Director of Communication for BurlyCon You’re incredibly passionate about being a BurlyCon Benefactor, why is …
“Booking legends is probably one of the most gratifying things I’ve done in burlesque. We need their history.” The Infamous Nina Nightshade | Portland, OR | First Year at BurlyCon: 2010 Interviewed by Vixen Valentine, Director of Communication for BurlyCon What’s one memory from your first BurlyCon experience that sticks out to you? I keep thinking about different experiences I had at my first Burlycon. Do I talk about meeting …
How the Burlesque Legends Archive is Letting Burlesque Legends Record Their Stories Iva Handfull is the Director of Online Programming for BurlyCon, a non-profit that’s a community-oriented, professional growth and educational organization for burlesque performers, fans, and aficionados. Interviewed by Vixen Valentine, Director of Communication for BurlyCon Where did the idea of The Legend Archives come from? I believe the idea bloomed in everyone, we all talk about a place to hear legends’ …
We’re kicking off a whole month dedicated to our new program: Legends Archive. What’s the Legends Archive? So glad you asked! Imagine a mini-documentary where one burlesque legend talks about their time as a burlesque performer. The Legends Archive is exactly like that! BurlyCon is working with different interviewers (Lola Martinet, Jett Adore, to name a few) who meet up with the burlesque legend they’re interviewing. The interviewer will help …
