Did you know that alongside the Miss Exotic World title at Burlesque Hall of Fame, there’s also a Mr Exotic World – or Best Boylesque – category too? This year I witnessed New York based aerial & circus performer Joshua Dean take the title, following an incredible step-down performance from last year’s winner, Texas based aerialist and boylesque Performer Ickymuffin. And when I say incredible: check out the strength and poise of Ickymuffin in this live performance shot below! It was a beautiful act to photograph and one of my favourites acts from the whole weekender. Want to know more about Ickymuffin? Read on…

Mr Exotic World 2018 Ickymuffin

Describe your burlesque persona in exactly 5 words: Majestic spinning animalistic unicorn. Amen.

Tell us about your best ever burlesque moment. What happened? Who was there? My best burlesque moment was when I competed for Best Boylesque at the 2018 Burlesque Hall of Fame Tournament of Tease. Until then I honestly felt like such an awkward fraud. I was confident in a few things, but overall I felt like at any moment everyone would realize I didn’t have a dance background, and that I’m actually very awkward and in no way sexy. Instead, I had one of the best performances of my life. The crowd was awesome. I improvised a bunch of things in the moment that really added to my character, and on top of that, my closest friends were there to support me. As I walked off stage and emptied my stomach in a trashcan I felt so overwhelmed, proud, and hungry. Not like… metaphorically hungry… but like… I wanted chicken wings from TGI Fridays.

Name two things that you always carry with you.
1. Extra safety panties….Horrible things happen to safety panties when you do aerial. Sometimes I’m like: “I must burn this”. 
2. Pamela’s Whenever Bars. They are dairy free, gluten free, and surprisingly NOT joy free.

What inspired your burlesque journey? I was inspired most by the acts I saw at my first Show-Me Burlesque Festival. Every performer is so weird and unique and beautiful. I was taken back by how thoughtful and nuanced the acts were.

Who would play you in a movie of your life? Daniel Craig. We have very similar eyes, and I’d love to see him dressed up in my cat outfits.

What’s the most interesting thing about you that the internet doesn’t know about you yet? Well…the internet may know because I talked about it when I filmed an episode of House Hunters in 2018, but I have eaten breakfast in the bathtub everyday for about 10 year. It’s a crutch for my anxiety and I will not leave the house until I’ve soaked.

Tell us about your shoot experience with Tigz! The photo being used in the book is from my 2019 Step-down number from Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekender.  We didn’t really get to interface but I felt so privileged to get shot by so many amazing photographers!

What song gets you on the dancefloor? Barbie Girl by Aqua. What can I say, I’m a total stereotype.

Best achievement or moment that you’re most proud of in your career I’m probably most proud of making toilet paper beautiful. My Best Boylesque winning number has a couple of big aerial moments where I hold a giant ribbon of toilet paper between my toes and spin like an elegant tornado. During that particular run, at the final spin sequence, the toilet paper broke from where it was supposed to be….but a random other piece somehow transferred from my hoop to my foot. It was a total 1 in a thousand accident, but looked like I did it on purpose. SHHHHHHHHH, don’t tell anyone.

What is your top striptease tip? Eye fuck them. And when they start to look elsewhere, keep eye fucking them.

If you could be a model for any brand, which brand would it be and why? Tide Bleach Sticks. To understand why, see my comment above about always traveling with extra safety panties….

What will your autobiography be called? “The Garbage Took Itself Out”

What exciting project are you working on right now? I’m actually trying to back off of performing for a bit. My husband and I are starting the Foster to Adopt process and I need more space in my life for that.

Favourite burlesque festival/show to perform at? BHOF for sure! It’s just such a GRAND event, and the audience is so amazing….because it’s all of us! You can walk around and meet so many glorious legends, performers, and fans. It’s just so amazing.

Most inspirational/memorable performer you’ve seen? Willy LaQueue. He is such an inspiring dancer, performer, and makeup artist. I’ve gotten to know him from various festivals and my troupe has brought him down a few times to perform with us. He is kind, and thoughtful, and puts on a brilliant show. Everyone should be booking him.

Pre-Order your copy of STRIP/TEASE from Friday 18th October 2019.

Signed copies are available here, or for USA and Rest Of World, head to Working Class Publishing.