Next month, some of the most notable dancers in the ballroom community will be striking a pose inside The Metropolitan Museum of Art for Battle of the Legends: Vogueing at The Met.
In honor of the 50th anniversary of Stonewall, and in celebration of The Costume Institute’s summer exhibition “Camp: Notes on Fashion,” The Met is set to host a variety of Pride festivities— including live performances, discussions and workshops.
On June 11th from 6:30 to 7pm, during the Museum Mile Festival, six dancers—Asia Balenciaga, Bootz Prodigy, Dashaun Lanvin, Omari Mizrahi, Tamiyah Mugler, and Ty Ebony—will compete to be the grand prize winner, or “Legend Slayer.”
These hot artists will be judged by some icons themselves: Anna Wintour (Editor in Chief of Vogue and Artistic Director of Condé Nast), Jose Xtravaganze (Father of the House of Xtravaganza), Twiggy Garcon (executive producer of Kiki), and Jordan Roth (president of Jujamcyn Theaters).
Other festivities include a June 23 Sunday at The Met conversation between Billy Porter, star of the hot TV show Pose, and Madison Moore, a cultural critic, DJ, and Assistant Professor of Queer Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University. These two will discuss the exhibition Camp: Notes on Fashion, the concept of camp in performance, and the impact of ballroom style on high fashion and pop culture.
Additionally, on June 21 from 5 to 9pm, MetFridays: PRIDE will consider and explore recent civil rights victories through the lens of The Met’s collection. This event will incorporate a variety of in-gallery talks by Met curators as well as special appearances by Jack Mizrahi (co-founder of House of Mizrahi), Sinia Alaia and sexuality educator Ericka Hart.
All of these events and programs are free with Museum admission.