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What imagery on stage will reflect this tour's name, The Copper Coupe? DVT: With every tour, I've redone a version of my martini glass act. I have a six-piece set of gigantic glasses at this point. I could have a giant cocktail party! I'm always thinking, "How can I one up that number and make it fresh and new?" For this tour, one of the most exciting parts is the costume. I collaborated with my longtime creative partner, Catherine D'Lish. We put our heads together and came up with the most extravagant costume we've ever done, to-date. A big part of making the show was this gown. I can't tell because I'm wearing it on stage, but from what people are telling me it lights up the entire room. I know you're the Swarovski queen. I'm assuming everything is crystallized… DVT: Everything is crystallized on this costume. We haven't weighed it yet, but I keep asking to. It's completely covered, and we're using a new version of their aurora borealis stone. They're cut like diamonds, and the effect is mind-boggling. People have been asking if my costume is electrified or plugged in. It's really something to see under the lights. You've been quoted as saying that burlesque is a new kind of feminism. How so? DVT: It's become that for a lot of women. The feminist movement must be respectful of other women's ideals of what it is, and what it means. More than ever, we as women have to respect each other's choices. Like I always say, and this is the truth, my audience is mainly female. My social media following is about 85% female. When I started in the 1990s, I had a lot of male fans, and when I was a Playboy model I had a lot of male fans. It shifted in the early 2000s when I came out with a book and told my story about why I loved pinup, why I loved burlesque, and what it meant to me to have that to look to for my beauty icons. That resonated with a lot of people and I could feel that was when it all started to shift, when I exhibited my vulnerability about why I love this. I like to say that it's an alternative feminist movement. What do you say to the women who cry out that burlesque is objectification? DVT: Something that could have, in the past, been considered degrading to women, I think that idea has been turned upside down when my audience is mainly female. They're getting inspiration from this and feeling like they can harness their own sensual power in a different way and be in control of it. I would never say that striptease and burlesque should be for everyone. I have always loved things that walk that fine line, where one person looking at it thinks it's inspiring and magical, and another person thinks it's dirty and bad. It's interesting to me the way people see things. I find things that are polarizing to be interesting. You perform your show all over the world. What are the differences in how burlesque is received in the U.S. versus in other countries? DVT: What's interesting is that the striptease-style burlesque was invented in America, and it was thriving here in the 1930s and 1940s. That's the funniest part about all of this. I had to go to France, England, Germany and Australia to get that big mainstream acceptance at first. I performed a lot in the UK during the early part of my career and I would do mainstream television shows over there. I could talk about what I was doing there, and I could go to France and do my show on television. They could show the pasties and the G-string, and it was fine with everyone. For people who have yet to see a burlesque show, what will the experience be like for them to attend one of your shows, on the Dita Von Teese and the Copper Coupe tour? DVT: They will be very excited to see the diversity of my fellow cast members. You're on a wild ride of beauty and glamour in its many shapes and forms, and it's unexpected and inclusive. I think most people walk away thinking, "I'm a little bit like her. I can be like that, yeah!" My show is a warm and welcoming place, and it's raucous; it's wild! I'm really proud of the show as a whole, and people will experience the biggest burlesque show in history. ML Dita Von Teese is currently touring throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe. Purchase tickets to see Absolut Elyx Presents Dita Von Teese and the Copper Coupe at www.dita.net/shows. Allison Kugel is a syndicated entertainment and pop culture journalist, and author of the book, Journaling Fame: A memoir of a life unhinged and on the record. Follow her on Instagram @theallisonkugel.