Celebrating Vermont. Welcoming the World.
- Luke Warm
- Jul 31
- 5 min read
Understanding How the Vermont Burlesque Festival Curates Its Programming & Performances
Each year, as performer applications open, one question inevitably comes up:
"Does the Vermont Burlesque Festival reserve a certain percentage of its performance lineup for Vermont artists?"
It's a thoughtful question, and one that deserves more than a simple yes-or-no answer.
The short answer is no.
The Vermont Burlesque Festival does not reserve a fixed percentage of its performance lineup based on where someone lives.
The longer answer speaks to the very heart of what the festival was created to accomplish.
Vermont Has Always Been Central to the Mission
Since its founding in 2013, Vermont performers have been an essential part of the Vermont Burlesque Festival.
Before the first festival was ever produced, conversations were held with the Vermont burlesque groups that existed at the time to discuss what a statewide festival should represent and how it could best support the growing local community. Those discussions helped shape the festival's mission and established many of the guiding principles that continue to influence VTBF today.
Readers interested in the history behind those conversations are encouraged to read "More Than Glitter: How the Vermont Burlesque Festival Defined Its Mission." That article explores the festival's origins and how its mission was developed alongside Vermont's early burlesque community.
Since that time, Vermont-based performers have appeared on VTBF stages every year, either as featured troupes or as individual artists. Throughout its history, the festival has also invited local troupes to perform collectively while helping promote Vermont organizations, performances, and the broader burlesque community whenever possible.
That commitment remains unchanged.
Celebrating Vermont. Welcoming the World.
Those four words capture the philosophy that has guided the Vermont Burlesque Festival from the very beginning.
VTBF was never intended to be a festival exclusively for Vermont performers.
Instead, it was created to celebrate Vermont while connecting it to the larger world of burlesque and live performance.
From its earliest days, the vision has been to place Vermont artists on the same stage as performers from across the country—and occasionally around the world.
That exchange benefits everyone involved.
Vermont audiences experience artists and performance styles they might never otherwise encounter.
Visiting performers discover Vermont's vibrant creative community.
Local artists gain exposure to new ideas, techniques, perspectives, and artistic voices.
Friendships are formed. Collaborations begin. Inspiration is shared.
That exchange of creativity has always been one of the defining purposes of the Vermont Burlesque Festival.
Every Applicant Is Evaluated Using the Same Process
Whether an applicant lives in Burlington, Brattleboro, Boston, Montreal, Las Vegas, London, or anywhere else, every submission is evaluated through the same published application process.
Applications are reviewed by an odd-numbered panel of producers and evaluators—never fewer than three individuals—who assess the performance itself rather than the production quality of the submitted video.
The review process considers factors such as:
Performance execution
Originality and creativity
Storytelling
Audience engagement and/or reaction
Stagecraft and presentation
Technical and legal feasibility
How the performance contributes to the overall showcase
No single factor determines acceptance or placement.
Every act is considered on its own artistic merit while also being evaluated as one piece of a much larger production.
Acceptance into the Vermont Burlesque Festival is not a ranking of performers. It is the process of assembling a particular show for a particular audience at a particular moment in time.
What "Curated" Really Means
This is perhaps one of the most misunderstood aspects of producing a festival.
Curating a showcase isn't simply about selecting the highest-scoring acts.
It's about creating the strongest overall audience experience.
Imagine attending a music festival where every artist performed the same style of music. Or a comedy festival featuring only one type of comedian. Even if every individual performance were exceptional, the overall experience would quickly become predictable.
The same principle applies to burlesque.
As each year's showcase is assembled, VTBF strives to create a balanced production that celebrates the remarkable diversity of live performance. Programming intentionally includes a broad range of burlesque genres, performance styles, artistic voices, pacing, tone, and theatrical experiences. Alongside classic and neo-burlesque, audiences may also encounter comedy, drag, circus arts, vaudeville, live music, magic, sideshow, and other forms of variety performance that complement the overall production.
The goal is not simply to present outstanding individual performances.
The goal is to create a cohesive, memorable evening that engages audiences, celebrates artistic diversity, and showcases the incredible breadth of live performance art.
Vermont Artists Continue to Play an Important Role
None of this diminishes the importance of Vermont performers.
Quite the opposite.
Since its founding, Vermont talent has remained an essential part of the Vermont Burlesque Festival's identity and mission.
While VTBF does not reserve a fixed percentage of individual performance slots based on geography, the festival has historically taken an active role in ensuring Vermont's burlesque community is represented in meaningful ways.
From the earliest years of the festival, Vermont-based burlesque troupes have been invited to participate as featured groups, often with dedicated performance opportunities that highlighted their collective work and introduced audiences to the organizations helping build burlesque throughout the state. Groups such as Green Mountain Cabaret, Spielpalast Cabaret, Peep Show, ArtsFest, Merde, Vermont Vaudeville, and others have all been invited to participate as part of that longstanding tradition.
Beyond the festival stage, VTBF has also worked to support Vermont's burlesque community by promoting local productions, referring performance inquiries to Vermont performers and troupes whenever appropriate, and encouraging audiences to attend local shows throughout the year. The festival has never viewed itself as existing separately from Vermont's burlesque community—it has always sought to help strengthen and celebrate it.
For individual performers, however, the process has always remained the same.
VTBF cannot consider an act that has not been submitted.
Every solo performer—whether from Vermont or elsewhere—is evaluated through the same published application process and artistic criteria.
Today's Vermont Burlesque Festival is intentionally a more focused production than the multi-day, multi-venue festivals of years past. At one time, the festival offered enough stage time to accommodate nearly every performer who registered. Today's showcase simply has fewer performance opportunities, making each available slot considerably more competitive. While the format has evolved, the philosophy behind the festival has not.
The Door Has Always Been Open
One final point is worth emphasizing.
The Vermont Burlesque Festival cannot consider performances it doesn't know about.
While certain headliners, featured guests, emcees, local troupes, and collaborative performances may be invited directly by the festival's producers, the published application process remains the primary and most transparent pathway for performers and groups to have their work reviewed and considered.
The door is wide open—and the application process is completely free. Whether you're an established performer or stepping onto a festival stage for the first time, submitting an application ensures your work is seen by the festival's evaluation panel and considered as part of that year's showcase.
That same spirit of openness extends well beyond performer applications.
Throughout its history, VTBF and its producers have remained open to collaborating with Vermont-based troupes, producers, organizations, venues, and members of the performing arts community. Many of the festival's partnerships, special presentations, and featured group performances have begun with a simple conversation.
Whether the idea involves a featured troupe performance, an educational offering, a community partnership, a special event, or another creative collaboration, VTBF welcomes those conversations. We encourage performers, producers, organizations, and community members to reach out through the application process or by contacting the festival and its producers directly.
The Vermont Burlesque Festival's connection to the performing arts has always been rooted in collaboration. Its philosophy is to create an inclusive platform where artists, audiences, and communities connect through creativity, shared experiences, and mutual support. That philosophy continues to guide how the festival curates its programming, develops partnerships, and fulfills its mission.
For more than a decade, that philosophy has remained remarkably consistent:
Celebrate Vermont. Welcome the world. Create unforgettable experiences together.
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