Voguing catches on in China, and encourages LGBT Chinese to be ‘beautiful and fierce’ and celebrate diversity without judgment
- The dance battle genre came from the LGBT ballroom culture in 1960s Harlem, New York, and was made famous by Madonna in 1990
- The scene is starting to take off in China, where most LGBT people still lead low-key lives
Leather, glitter, stilettos and a strut – voguing has seized Beijing and given China’s LGBT community a “playground” to celebrate their identities.
Sashaying down the runway clad in fake fur, mile-high wigs and dramatic make-up, performers showed their poses for an ecstatic audience, powered by a pounding house music soundtrack.
Hundreds of young LGBT Chinese, many of whom had travelled there from far and wide, packed into the cramped venue for last weekend’s event – the first large-scale voguing ball held in Beijing.
With categories including “Butch Queen Realness”, “Drag Queen Lip Sync” and “Voguing Open To All”, performers battled to win the judges’ approval – scoring straight 10s – or were eliminated in cutthroat style.
“It’s a playground for marginalised groups,” said 27-year-old organiser Li Yifan, nicknamed “Bazi”, a pillar of China’s quietly flourishing ballroom scene who teaches regular voguing classes in Beijing.