Ballroom Takes Root in Colombia. But Who Is It For?

As the scene expands so too have concerns about cultural appropriation and inclusion.

BOGOTÁ, Colombia — The theme was Met Gala — that is, if the Met Gala had vibrators and whips. On a Friday night in October, hundreds of attendees crammed into a second-floor dance studio near the northern edge of Bogotá adorned with flowers, chains, corsets and long flowing wigs, their carefully painted makeup smearing as the night wore on.

Contestants were vying for a grand prize, and when it came time to compete in the sex siren category, contenders pulled out all manner of props, including lollipops and bottles of liquor to tantalize the judge as they stripped down to near nudity.

Sitting next to the judge, the competition’s commentator, Jhon Dewar Cordoba Valdes, known to most as Papu, chanted phrases of encouragement, interspersing his raps and rhymes and shouting various unprintable expressions for female genitalia at the dancers. These land as compliments in the lingo of ballroom, the queer subculture of dance and modeling competitions founded by Black and Latino gay men and trans women in New York City in the 1970s.