Purchase Poses for Vogue Veteran

Purchase Poses for Vogue Veteran
Submitted by Jamie Wollberg on Tue, 11/09/2010 - 23:49
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Photo Credit: Wilgris Suazo

On Nov. 4, the cinema room at The Student Center was filled with fashion enthusiasts waiting excitedly for voguing master Benny Ninja to take the stage. After viewing the film, “Paris Is Burning,” students bent into multiple poses alongside Ninja himself.

To start the event, senior and Student Life Representative Amanda Roman projected “Paris Is Burning,” on a big screen in order to teach students about the background of voguing. Roman said that she showed the movie in order to make the program well rounded.

“We also try to make it as educational as possible,” she said.

Ninja then gave an introduction to a room of about 75 fans, which included answering students’ questions. He also told the crowd about what voguing means to him.

“I take dance and I make it 3D,” he said. “It’s all mine, and I think that’s what really made me gravitate towards it.”

Ninja said that he chose to speak to college students because they are important for the future.

“Children and college students are the up and coming generations,” said Ninja. “I was a college student as well, and when I started learning to vogue and become a part of this community, this is where I was when I learned it.”

Ninja is also known as the Father of the House of Ninja, which was started by voguing guru Willie Ninja in the 1980s.

“The house of Ninja is basically a gay gang,” said Ninja. “It’s not a gang in the way you would think. We don’t carry knives, we don’t have guns, and we don’t go out and bully people. Our battles are done on the dance floor.”

According to Benny, Willie closed down the house in order to bring voguing around the world. In 2000, Benny reopened the house and took on the responsibility of being the father of the house, which means being a father figure to those who need one.

And finally, everyone rushed to the dance floor to learn detailed instructions on how to vogue from Ninja.

“A lot of people tell me voguing looks so simple until I pick up my arms and try to do it,” he said. “That’s the illusion in it.”

It wasn’t long before students lined up in rows to stretch to the house music blaring out of the speakers. Junior biochemistry major Alesia Ashley said she anxiously awaited for Ninja to explain the next step.

“Benny’s awesome,” she said. “You can tell that he’s not big headed about how big he’s gotten.”

Others didn’t know what to expect.

“I underestimated voguing,” said Roman, “It’s a legit dance.”

Students gave a generally positive response to Ninja’s personality, knowledge, and workshop. Undeclared freshman Joshua Myers said, “I love him every time I see him on America’s Next Top Model.”

Ninja left the audience with one more piece of insight before the event ended.

“We don’t have to look like a model, but why can’t we feel like one?”