Montreal Burlesque Festival: three shows at Club Soda this weekend
From Thursday to Saturday, the festival at Montreal's Club Soda presents burlesque as a mix of dance, theatre, circus, fashion and music, with founder Scarlett James.
Archive image · Photo: Jean Gagnon / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped and resized)
The Montreal Burlesque Festival runs from Thursday to Saturday, October 17. At Club Soda on Boulevard Saint-Laurent, Canadian and international artists are taking the stage. According to the Quartier des Spectacles, the festival treats burlesque as a multidisciplinary art form combining dance, theatre, circus, fashion and music; alongside the performances it offers workshops and networking for the scene. The events are aimed at an adult audience.
According to the published programme, three shows are scheduled: on Friday evening and on Saturday at 5.30 p.m. and 9.30 p.m. All three feature headliners Miss Chrissy Kiss, Mr Victor Victoria, Velvet Jones, Chanelle de Mai and festival founder Scarlett James. They are joined by a different line-up each night, including Salty Margarita, Sugar Kane, Madame Romanova and Belle Époque. Seating is cabaret-style at tables.
Tourisme Montréal notes that burlesque was already performed in the city's cabarets in the 1920s and 1930s. It describes the festival as a show celebrating beauty, creativity and diversity. The Quartier des Spectacles bills the event as a festival showcasing “the very best of burlesque” on its stage.