Silver Tusk Burlesque Awards 2026

In 2016, Viktor Devonne (that's the guy on the right) and Holly Ween were returning home from a visit to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where they had just appeared together at the Alterna-Tease Festival.  They marveled at the superlatives and titles that festivals frequently gave out, and acknowledged, there was no precise award show for burlesque outside of the parameters of festivals.  Those most recognized of course include the Golden Pasties for NYC, and the regional categories that give us the Miss and Misters across the country and globe... The Burlesque Top 50 certainly raised the profile of several entertainers, but that was a ranking system.  Where was dumbass high school yearbook superlatives we all deserved?  Who was, after all, most likely to succeed... at falling off the stage?

Months went by, and the 2017 Silver Tusk Awards were born. Held at the residency for White Elephant Burlesque, Rockbar NYC, it was a celebration of tomfoolery and excessive glamour. The category names were whittled down, the performers notified for the voting, and the initial pool of potentials were born out of those who had performed with WEBurlesque the past 2 years, as this event would coincide with the third anniversary of the show at Rockbar.  It was a ridiculous hit that would be matched again in 2018, 2019, and an assumed final time in 2020 when White Elephant Burlesque exited Rockbar due to Viktor moving across the country to Southern California.

And then the world shut down.  To raise spirits, Viktor recreated the Silver Tusk Awards for an online presentation, this time offering a chance to anyone who had performed at White Elephant Burlesque ever, but had yet to win.  An additional set of categories honored those who had adapted to the online version of burlesque.  It seemed like the perfect rip-off of those reality shows were favorites who had just missed crowns or accolades, so it was dubbed All-Stars?!

Well, that was a hit, too.  And since WEBurlesque resumed shows, digitally, for the year, the Tusks returned to their roots for the entertainers who had appeared on both the virtual WEBurlesque stage and the WEBurlesque Podcast.  And a choice had to be made.

In 2023, the Silver Tusk Burlesque Awards went global.  Write-in ballots will be made available for ANYONE to be nominated for such illustrious categories as  Shiningest Star, The (Up in) Smoke Show, Ass Almighty, and Hilarious Hussy. You know, the serious stuff.  Who will join the ranks of those previously honored? Let's find out together.

Love you.  And remember; don't be a dick. This is meant to be fun.

xx Viktor Devonne