At Vancouver International Burlesque Festival, "them fatale" Moscato Sky finds empowerment onstage
Nonbinary star draws on a unique background that includes a dance degree and Colour Guard
Moscato Sky blends shape-shifting costumes, honed dance technique, and old-school glamour.
The Vancouver International Burlesque Festival runs April 2 to 7
TRAILBLAZING NONBINARY burlesque star Moscato Sky is known for shape-shifting gowns and intricately choreographed routines. Those who catch Seattle’s reigning “them fatale” perform at Vancouver International Burlesque Festival’s two-night showcase will see a blend of old-school Garbo-Hayworth glamour with sophisticated dance skills and artfully inventive costumes.
Watching the Latinx legend, burlesque fans might be surprised to find out the artist traces their burlesque back to their teen years in Texas, when they were part of the Colour Guard.
For those not up on what is an all-American ritual, the Colour Guard has uniformed teens parade around with vibrant flags and other equipment, throwing and spinning the objects to spectacular effect while a marching band plays.
“That sparked an interest in dance and movement,” begins Sky, speaking over Zoom from an industrial loft in Seattle that’s bedecked with powder-pink walls and twinkle lights. “And somehow I had this weird delusion that I needed to pursue a career in dance. So I applied to dance schools, never having really had the experience to audition. But I did it and I managed to get into Cornish College of the Arts here in Seattle.”
Ensuing years of training across modern styles, and an eventual Bachelor of Fine Arts, are evident now in Sky’s polished, flowing choreography. More importantly, it was in Seattle where they discovered the burlesque scene, first in a course in their sophomore year at Cornish, and then working with groups like the renowned multidisciplinary Mod Carousel, whose influential performers include Indigo Blue and genderblending Waxie Moon.
Amid an increasingly gender-diverse field, Sky has gone on to break new ground, placing 1st Runner Up in the Mx Exotic World category at the Burlesque Hall Of Fame Weekender in 2023, and sitting at number 16 on the 21st Century Burlesque Top 50 List of the most influential burlesque figures on the planet. In 2020, Sky was crowned The Duchess of Burlesque at The Noire Pageant in NYC.
“Carousel gave me permission to just say, ‘Oh, I can play. This is a safe space for me to explore,’” Sky reflects. “And even then, it took me many more years to finally fully dive into who I was, who I could be onstage, and who I can be as a person in the world day to day. Burlesque was truly a space where I got to investigate gender and who I was. I think it wasn't until the pandemic where I truly realized, ‘Oh, there's so much more to the gender of who I am in my everyday life.’ That became the gateway for me to explore that, to question that, and give me the permission to even question.”
Through that self-reflection, Sky created their stage name—surely one of the most evocative in the burlesque world. The dancer loves the way it plays on a sweet wine with a darker side.
“I just love the trope of a stripper having a boozy name,” the affable artist adds. “And I loved that idea of being the sweetest wine and the most delectable treat—dessert’s best save for last.”
As for “Sky”, it makes them think of “sunsets and sorbet sunrises”.
“The thing that pushed me over the edge was I was being interviewed for a book, and the person asked, ‘Have you heard of the term ‘Skyclad’?” they relate. “And I didn't know what that was. It turns out it’s a pagan ritual underneath the moonlight—and it’s danced naked. And dancing under moonlight naked is very, very on brand! It just felt right.”
Sky has gone on to evolve their performance over the years, developing it into an act of empowerment as much as artistry. In the Mx Exotic World competition, that meant swirling in a gauzy white halter dress under a starry sky, the gossamer fabric recalling the rippling fabric and lighting art of turn-of-the-last-century dancer Loïe Fuller, Sky magically removing panels to shift its appearance.
“I feel like I have this divine feminine energy that I like to access when I'm performing, and that allows me to explore my sexuality in ways that feel powerful,” they explain.
For Sky, the inclusive Vancouver International Burlesque Festival, running for its second year under the artistic direction of Androsia Wilde, also provides a welcome space to play with those ideas and tap their inner “goddex”. Sky appreciates that diversity at VIBF—whose mandate embraces performers across the LGBTQ2SIA+ spectrum, as well as artists with disabilities, with different body types, and of different ages.
But the performing artist says there’s still a lot of work to do elsewhere—both inside and outside the burlesque world at large. They’re all too aware of the movements threatening trans rights in the U.S., let alone up here.
“I feel like in burlesque there still isn't enough trans representation on stages,” Sky says. “There is so much more now than there ever has been. But it’s sad when I'm the only trans person in a show….So I find it incredibly important to be taking up the space to be celebratory of who I am—and I've proven time and time again that trans people are just as capable of not just taking up space but, in our industry, of snatching titles and inspiring others who are like me.
“Especially in the last year, I've seen some pretty harsh comments about trans people, and honestly, it scared me for a bit,” they add. “It made me feel like I had to protect myself by stepping away from social media. But I think it's just reminded me of the importance of being seen in what I do. I'm not going anywhere. Trans people aren't going anywhere. And I'm just really honoured to be invited to Vancouver to share my art and my voice—it’s one of my favourite places to perform, honestly.”
Sky hints that they’ll be bringing back the showstopping, shape-shifting gauzy-dress number, as well as a somewhat darker, sultry new work to the VIBF stage.
“It’s very ‘sensuality for sensuality’s sake,’” Sky hints. My work is very much about celebrating joy and trans sexuality, because especially in our day and age, people are trying to erase that, essentially, in the country I live in.”
On a purely aesthetic level, get ready for more props and shape-shifting costumes—a kind of sophisticated play that sets Sky apart, and that the artist traces back to those Colour Guard years, long before they were a trans icon in burlesque.
“My burlesque style pulls inspiration from the burlesque of yesteryear, but it strays from that classicism in that I like to challenge myself and play,” Sky says. “I love to give myself the challenge of taking a costume and expanding on what it is, and what it can be. In Colour Guard, I learned movement through using props, through using things that became extensions of my body. So that's how I see my costume: as an extension of myself.” 
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