Avery DeLite: Missoula Burlesque Performer & Montana Producer
Avery DeLite is a Missoula, Montana burlesque performer, producer, emcee, and teacher bringing high camp, queer joy, comedy, glamour, and rhinestone-covered chaos to stages across Montana and beyond.
Avery has been part of Montana’s burlesque community since 2020, performing since 2022 and building a reputation for performances that are equal parts ridiculous, glamorous, heartfelt, and unapologetically queer. Based in Missoula, Avery performs and produces burlesque shows throughout Montana, with performances and appearances in Helena, Butte, Missoula, and across Idaho, as well as Las Vegas, New York, and Boston.
Burlesque Performer
On stage, Avery DeLite is as versatile as he is unforgettable. One night, he might be a pickle. Or a cheeseburger. Or some other deeply questionable character covered in rhinestones. The next, he might deliver a raw and heartfelt queer performance that leaves an audience unexpectedly emotional.
That balance of camp and sincerity is at the heart of Avery’s work. He believes burlesque can be ridiculous and meaningful at the same time. It can make you laugh, make you blush, make you question a few societal expectations, and occasionally make you cry.
Avery’s performances draw from comedy, character, storytelling, music, and classic burlesque while making plenty of room for the weird. His work celebrates bodies, individuality, queer expression, and the freedom to take up space exactly as you are.
Burlesque Producer
As a Montana burlesque producer, Avery has brought nearly a dozen productions to life, with shows selling out and raising thousands of dollars for Pride organizations and 2S-LGBTQIA+ causes throughout Montana.
His productions prioritize paying performers, supporting local and regional artists, creating inclusive spaces, and building community through live performance. Avery has also curated lineups featuring performers from across the country, helping connect Montana’s burlesque scene with artists, ideas, and perspectives from outside the state.
From community fundraisers to themed revues and burlesque brunches, Avery approaches producing as more than putting a show on a stage. It is an opportunity to create a space where performers can be valued, audiences can feel welcome, and queer creativity can thrive.
Emcee & Host
Avery is also an experienced burlesque emcee, hosting shows he has both produced and performed in. With warmth, wit, and an easy rapport with an audience, he keeps the energy moving while making a room full of strangers feel like they're part of the same experience.
Whether emceeing a late-night burlesque revue, hosting a brunch, or guiding a community fundraiser, Avery brings humor, personality, and plenty of sparkle to the microphone.
Teaching & Community
Avery also teaches burlesque and performance, sharing the lessons he has learned through years of performing, producing, and building community without a traditional dance background.
His classes focus on performance, character, musicality, confidence, and finding what makes a performer uniquely engaging. Avery believes you don't have to be the most technically trained dancer in the room to be a compelling performer. You just have to learn how to make people watch you.
Creating queer burlesque in the rural West has not always been easy. Avery's work has faced resistance simply for existing. But that has only reinforced what he already believes: queer art deserves space, queer performers deserve to be paid and supported, and queer people deserve places where they can be loud, visible, weird, glamorous, and joyful.
For Avery, burlesque is about more than taking your clothes off.
It is about liberation, community, reclaiming space, celebrating bodies, and making room for the people who come after us.
When Avery DeLite takes the stage, it's a celebration, a little bit of protest, and a whole lot of sparkle.
And yes, there will probably be rhinestones.