BALLROOM

“A movement of freedom.”

Roberson, a theologian, public health practitioner, cultural consultant to the FX series Pose, and member of the Ballroom community for 30 years, is an ideal guide to this dance-club subculture. He clearly knows the House/Ballroom scene—a Black/Latine LGBTQ+ artistic collective, intentional kinship, and chosen family—from the inside. So he has real authority when he lays out the “Six Tenets of Ballroom,” ideals such as “radical inclusivity.” The history of the balls is traced from the earliest-known record of a drag ball in the U.S. (1888, in Washington, D.C.) to their expansion into a global phenomenon. Roberson shows how the move to organize a ball by a “House” system—the House of Corey, founded by Dorian Corey, for example—was transformative and tracked the rise of Black power, feminist, and transgender movements. The author also considers whether Ballroom’s now-mainstream visibility risks its authenticity and autonomy. Madonna’s pop music hit “Vogue,” for instance, raises issues of cultural appropriation. Iconic balls and important figures from their history, such as Willi Ninja, the so-called Grandfather of Vogue, are spotlighted. Ballroom is examined holistically, as art form and cultural production, but also as community organizing and a response to health crises and systematic oppression. Throughout the book, readers get insights into what is most valued in Ballroom culture—“You sell your look from head to toe, but bring it with your face.” Roberson’s celebratory prose is enhanced by lively photographs of Ballroom celebrities, their runway triumphs, and thrilled audiences. As Aisha Diori, an activist, says, “Ballroom isn’t just about competition and extravagant costumes, vogue, and competition; it’s a safe haven, a family.”

An exuberant tribute to a vibrant and nurturing dance-club scene.