Meet Matt Finish | Burlesque Performer and Professor of Dance

We had the good fortune of connecting with Matt Finish and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Matt, let’s talk legacy – what do you want yours to be?
I’d like to be remembered as an accomplished performer (I have an MFA in Dance Performance and I was a professional ballet dancer prior to grad school). But in all honesty, If anyone thinks about me after I’m gone it’ll be for my (Un)Helpful Burlesque Tips. I’ve been creating them every single day since June 10th, 2017. I’ve never missed a day since and I have people approach me at events who know me as “the meme guy”. It’s not something I planned, and certainly not something I could have ever predicted.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
When it comes to burlesque, I’ve been extremely lucky. When I started, there weren’t very many male performers. And there especially weren’t a lot of ex-ballet dancers, so I was able to use my prior career skills. I think now, I have a pretty solid brand with my (Un)HelpfulTips. I’m definitely not the first performer to offer advice/commentary, but I’m the only one who’s done it every single day for 7 years. I’m basically the Dear Abby of burlesque. I wish I had some big, dramatic story about my artistic struggle in burlesque, but it was pretty easy! Being a former professional ballet dancer with all the training and sacrifice that comes with that made doing burlesque comparatively simple. Also, my mindset that burlesque is a hobby and not a career means I can still have fun without the pressure to measure success in every gig.
The very best lessons I’ve learned have been from my fellow performers. Ada Manzhart has a wonderful saying “Burlesque is just letting people watch you fall in love with yourself.” I think that really puts it best.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’m ALL about eating and shopping when it comes to Tucson. Vintage and antiquing you have to go to How Sweet it Was Vintage, 6th Ave Antique Mall, Speedway Antique Mall, and 22nd Street Antique Mall. Chingona Arizona is the only place you need for souvenirs, and PopCycle has fantastic local art. For ambience the Surly Wench Pub is a glam goth bar with a killer menu, IBTs is the stop for some of the top drag queens in the country! You also need to swing by Hotel Congress. If you didn’t know, the mirrored bar across from the main stage is old bar from Talk of the Town (RIP). TotT was the burlesque bar in Tucson in the 1960s and when the Pusch building was demolished Hotel Congress bought the bar and brought it over, so it’s a literal piece of local burlesque history!
There is so much amazing food here in Tucson. My must-eat places are Sachiko Sushi, El Molinito, Ermanos, Locale, and Frank’s!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My parents have supported me as a performer since my first ballet class at 4 years old! They’ve supported me consistently for over 30 years in performing. Fanny Galore, Lili VonSchtupp, and Desiré d’Amour all played pivotal roles in pushing me to become the performer that I am today. And my partner of 11 years Jake has stepped in to help every single time I’ve needed him.

Instagram: www.instagram.com/xo.mattfinish

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Youtube: www.youtube.com/xomattfinish

Image Credits
Group Shot – 48th&Pixel; B/W portrait – Lauren McConnell; Red Robe – Lauren McConnell; Fans: Ed Flores; B/W stage shot- Kari Cummings