We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Rubi K. Rose. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Rubi K. below.

Rubi K., appreciate you joining us today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I learned to trust myself to do what I do, with meditation, embodiment, and improv training guiding me. Dancing and character work bring me joy, and my analytical mind drives me to study everything. Watching performers mesmerizes and inspires me. I aim to recreate that energy through my own lens, recognizing that performance is a give-and-take, learned by attending shows as an audience member.

I’m grateful my learning pace was right for me. I wouldn’t want to rush it. My development mirrored my life stage, meeting myself where I was, which kept me authentic.

As a dancer, my training helped me craft acts that entertain and communicate the character’s story. The main challenges were simply initial unfamiliarity—learning new skills, vocabulary, and discovering aspects of the art I didn’t know existed. These hurdles deepened my understanding and enriched my knowledge of tease, rather than hindering me.

Rubi K., love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Rubi K. Rose. I am a Black, non-binary queer neo-burlesque performer based in Salt Lake City, Utah. I got into burlesque by attending burlesque heels classes with my mentor, Madame Rose, initially just wanting to learn heels. I was drawn to this class as another fun Friday night activity. She scouted me for my strong character, joy, and dramatic expressions during class. She asked if I knew what burlesque was and if I was interested, which made me consider diving in. I did my research and I was hooked, and I debuted 5 years ago in 2021. What sets me apart from other performers is my focus on connecting with audiences—exciting them, captivating them, and touching them without physical contact. I’m most proud of embracing my inner child, doing what brings me happiness, and radiating my full self on stage.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

One lesson I had to unlearn was performing what I thought the audience wanted to see. Early in my career, I took almost every gig to make money, building acts I believed fit the show’s theme safely, cater to the producer’s or audience’s preferences, and earn tips. This approach led to a typecasting that felt inauthentic. Unlearning this allowed me to tap into my own creativity and push the binary and challenge the boundaries made to censor and restrict us, and find audiences eager to celebrate who I am. I am a proud Black, non-binary, queer artist. It also enabled me to be more selective, exercising discretion over where I felt safe to explore and present myself authentically.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

Yes, there are. I wish I had known earlier about all my relevant skills I already possessed and their application to burlesque. I could show up as I am and it was enough. Additionally, I knew my intermediate sewing skills would help with costume making, but I didn’t realize all the creative ways to build costumes from scratch, how to build creative quick reveals, or where to buy costume notions. I also didn’t know there are costume designers who create pieces specifically for burlesque. I had thought everyone made their own costumes, but many don’t, and buying or commissioning custom pieces is costly. While this can be a barrier, there are resources to learn to make your own costumes, which is invaluable when on a budget.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xoxo_rubik/
• Other: Stay tuned for Patreon

Image Credits

Jeri Gravlin/Jeri Jonise Photo
Alix Rice
Bryan Smyer/Smyer Image
Natalie Fox Grover/Red Fox Photo