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The Evolution Of Vogue : An Essay

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Emily N. Lara
Instructor: Sandra Lopez Ramirez
Dance Appreciation Monday Wednesday 1:30
4 December 2015
The Evolution of Vogue
Fierce, bold, strong, technique, style, attitude, history, etiquette, language, community, and powerfulness. These are just a few words I can’t help but to think of when I hear the term Vogue dance. Although the roots of voguing can be traced back to the masquerade balls of the Harlem Renaissance, it wasn’t really until the mid-1960’s when gay men of color were performing drag in Harlem ballrooms, that a new and fresh style of dance began to evolve, combining poses and gestures integrated with angular, linear and rigid arm, leg and body movements from magazine covers, such as Vogue (in which the dance got its name from). Underground Ball culture development allowed gay youth of color a venue to express themselves and their gender fluidity. In the 1970’s, Vogue distinguished itself as a dance form and cultural entity, different from drag performances, also becoming less about the clothing and more about the individual performance and style. Categories of vogue now included Old Way, New Way, Vogue Fem, Dramatists, and Botch Queen. Old Way is characterized by formation of lines, symmetry, and precision in the execution of such formations and graceful, fluid-like action. The Old way also consisted of some duck walking. The New Way consisted of some contortions and tutting. New Way can also be described as a modified form of mime, where imaginary

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