Florida Overseer Kalypso Ninja & Florida Godfather Josh “Imperial” Ninja
In partnership with The Blunt Space Incorporated
Present:
The Hunger Games Ball 2023: Part 2
What is the Hunger Games Ball 2023: Part 2?
A ball is a competition and showcase of talents of the Ballroom (Ball Culture) Community. The momentous event will occur Saturday, October 21st at the Tampa German Club located at 2105 North Nebraska Ave, Tampa, FL 33602. We were inspired by the Hunger Games series because there were diverse communities that existed in different districts but still formed one society. Ballroom is composed of many houses, spectators, and 007s (a free agent that doesn’t belong to a house) but we are still one community. This ball will embody that with a creative twist because in ballroom nothing is ever what it seems. The event will feature multiple categories and cash prizes! More details to come soon!
Buy Tickets and Tables Below!
What is a Ball and Ball Culture? A Brief History Lesson
Ball culture emerged in the 1920s in and around New York City. At their beginning, performers consisted mainly of white men putting on drag fashion shows. Black queens rarely participated, and when they did, they were expected to lighten their faces . Fed up with the restrictive and racist ball culture, the queer black ball community established their own underground ball culture in the 1960s. Ball culture in the 1960s contained very few categories, with primarily queens portraying Las Vegas showgirls. However, New York’s Stonewall Riots of the late 1960s, when queer people of color stood up to police, “changed self-perceptions within the subculture: from feeling guilty and apologetic to feelings of self-acceptance and pride” . The 1970s saw an expansion of ball participation as balls increased their numbers and types of categories to allow inclusivity and involvement of everyone . Balls became a safe space for queer youth of color, mainly Black identifying individuals and Latinos/Latinas/Latine/Latin(x), to express themselves freely.