57 Summers

​The summer of 2023 is my 57th Summer in this lifetime. In the fall I turn 58. An aging athlete, I, the dancer have trained and performed many styles. Now approaching my senior years I have found strength and grace, joy and a fierce sensuality in the dance Old Way Vogue.

I first saw this style in 1988 at MidTown 43, a black gay dance club in Times Square NYC. I was 23 years old fresh from a professional training program at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center. A triple threat, I was a dancer/singer/actress who also loved fashion and studied the supermodels, photographers, and magazine layouts (Vogue included) of the day. I built a portfolio and was signed to Grace Del Marco Models and Talent in Manhattan. I did not book many jobs but the pursuit was fascinating!

​​Around this time I became a principal dancers with Nanette Bearden Contemporary Dance Theater and we rehearsed on 46th Street and 7th Ave deep in the heart of Time Square. After rehearsals we walked a short 3 blocks and partied the night away at MidTown 43. This video is not just a celebration of what my body can do at 57 but a tribute to the black innovation and freedom found in disco and house music and the genius of vogue dancing that came with it. Thank you to the innovators of this style and those who carry the tradition forward. Shot on location at B-Love's Guest House, a Queen Anne Victorian mini mansion in West Oakland, CA that I own and operate. It is a boutique hotel with an art gallery and urban garden. https://www.b-lovesguesthouse.com Video by: Kumari Suraj Hair by: Naturally Bold by Lani Make by: Kumari Suraj Yellow fascinator constructed by me: Traci Bartlow Yellow vintage halter jumpsuit sourced by: Corey Action Danced by: Me!