Duchess Burlesque builds inclusive community ahead of Arcata show

Duchess Burlesque is building something beyond a show in Arcata: a place where people who often feel shut out can walk in, learn, and belong. The Humboldt-based troupe says its weekly classes are free and open to anyone interested in learning more, and founder Anna Grant, who performs as Duchess, describes the group as welcoming every body type, every shade, and every gender expression and orientation.

That approach has made the classes feel less like a polished arts program and more like a local support network built around movement, laughter, and confidence. Performers say the room gives them space to work on choreography and stage craft while also finding community, especially at a time when places centered on joy and self-expression can be hard to find. One performer describes the class environment as full of laughter, while another says the inclusivity is what makes the group stand out.

The troupe is now moving toward Rabid Rococo, a new production that leans into glamour, satire, and the kind of exaggerated style burlesque audiences expect. The show is scheduled for June 20 at The Basement in Arcata, with a 7 p.m. start, and tickets are being sold through the troupe’s Instagram presence. For a small local scene, the event lands in one of Humboldt County’s core live-performance hubs and gives the group a visible stage to show what its model looks like in practice.

Duchess Burlesque is also part of a broader Humboldt performance ecosystem. Grant says the county has multiple burlesque groups, not just Duchess, and another local troupe, Bare Elegance Burlesque, has publicly described its mission as creating an inclusive, body-positive, accepting space. That broader culture matters in a county where Arcata has also raised a Two-Spirit and intersex-inclusive Progress Pride flag, a visible sign that queer residents and performers are finding more public affirmation. In that setting, Duchess Burlesque’s weekly classes and Arcata show do more than fill a calendar date. They offer a concrete answer to a community need: a place to enter, participate, and be seen without having to fit someone else’s definition first.