Perth International Burlesque Festival (PIBF) has been a mainstay in the Perth burlesque calendar since its opening at Deville’s nightclub in 2012. Growing from sold-out shows at the Fly by Night in Fremantle to packing the Heath Ledger Theatre, the festival has evolved with the arts landscape in Perth and Australia, bringing hundreds of local, national and international acts to the city over 13 years to tease, tantalise and tempt audiences to spend October with some of the top burlesque artists heading to Perth, Geraldton and Margaret River.

To see what makes this year so lucky, I asked Festival Director and CEO of Tease Industries, Jessica Gough, also known as The Sugar Duchess, to elaborate.

This year is the 13^th year of the festival! Do you think 13 is a lucky or unlucky number for the festival this year and why?

Thirteen is our ultimate, magical “lucky 13”! Rather than shying away from superstition, we’ve completely embraced it as a badge of honour. It feels like all those years of planting seeds are blooming into something truly transcendent.

What inspired you and the PIBF team to select this year’s headliners and feature performers?

We looked for powerhouses who embody unapologetic artistry, fierce individuality, and boundary-pushing creativity. Bringing in icons like Raquel Reed (Nuvagantu/Las Vegas, USA), Kitty Obsidian (Naarm/Melbourne), and Kelly Ann Doll (Gadigal/Sydney), who are all debuting bespoke performances just for PIBF, was about raising the bar globally. We wanted artists who don’t just fill a stage, but command it, inspiring our local community and setting our festival completely on fire with world-class talent.

The festival has always made a commitment to travelling to regional WA since 2014. What makes the trip worth it, and where would you like to go in WA that PIBF hasn’t been to yet?

Growing up in Karratha myself, I know what it feels like to look for spaces of radical self-expression, diversity, and belonging when they feel, and are… well, literally hundreds of kilometres away. Taking PIBF on the road has always been about bridging that gap.

Bringing this festival home to Karratha – where my own baby Duchess performance journey started – and sharing that one-of-a-kind burlesque heart-expanding energy under the Pilbara stars would mean the absolute world to me.

PIBF is open about engaging with Traditional Owners in its show locations, including Indigenous names of performers’ locations this year, and creating diverse burlesque casts across the line-ups statewide. What can other Australian arts and cabaret producers learn when creating something similar?

Inclusion and respect can never be an afterthought – they must be foundational. We are profoundly proud and endlessly grateful for the incredible guidance, heart, and assistance from Bizzi Body (Magandjn/Brisbane) and Kitty Obsidian in shaping our First Nations contributions this year.

As Australian arts and cabaret producers, we need to actively centre Indigenous voices, honour Country with genuine respect, and collaborate when opportunities arise. True community leadership means listening, sharing the mic, and ensuring our stages genuinely reflect and celebrate First Nations culture.

Help us choose what show we go to by finishing these sentences:

• Come to The Tease Factory… if you want high-octane spectacle and jaw-dropping avant-garde antics.

• Come to Club Burlesque Gala… if you want classic elegance, absolute glamour with a fierce modern twist and big-stage drama.

• Stay out late for Glitter Crash After Party… if you want wild late-night antics and untamed energy.

• Come to Peep Show Community Showcase… if you want intimate community thrills right up close.

• Come to all of them…If you want a wild, unforgettable festival-wide binge!

The headliner workshops are also a coveted part of the festival, giving performers a chance to develop their skills in the art form with seasoned international stars. What’s your favourite festival workshop memory?

My absolute favourite memory is watching someone walk in carrying years of quiet self-doubt, only to watch that heavy armour melt away mid-workshop…Seeing someone finally give themselves permission to occupy space without apology moves me to my core; it’s a profound reminder that we aren’t just teaching an art form, we are holding sacred space for people to come home to themselves.

Finally, how is the festival mascot Honey Pupperazzi getting ready for the festival? 

Literally doing her official pupperazzi best! She’s out there struttin’, sniffin’, and serving as both our paw-sitive-vibes beloved festival mascot and the fierce official guardian of all our PIBF headliners and performers. Nobody protects the backstage energy quite like Honey!

Festival Dates & Tour Locations

PIBF 2026 is hitting the road and taking over iconic venues across Western Australia this October:

Full article at: https://www.seesawmag.com.au/2026/09/spotlight-western-australia-gets-lucky-with-13th-perth-international-burlesque-festival