TGBOE 2: A HARLEM FANTASY

by **LegendInt'l** Sat Jan 17, 2009 8:23 am

Coming Fall/Winter 2009

Father Terrence Legend Int’l & Friends
present
THE GREATEST BALL EARTH! II: A HARLEM FANTASY
An Evening to Benefit “The Greatest Ball On Earth!” History Project & House of Blahnik Scholarship Fund

LADIES & GENTLEMEN: 
THE GREATEST BALL ON EARTH! 2: A Harlem Fantasy (TGBOE 2) is an annual fundraiser & Grand Ball combining the forces of charity and creativity to benefit the Ballroom scene. TGBOE 2 producer Terrence Legend Int’l is currently authoring a book, The Greatest Ball On Earth!, which is his effort to educate the world about the rich history of this fabled scene rooted in the Harlem Renaissance. However his research has revealed a creative community still suffering from HIV/AIDS, homelessness, discrimination and social inequalities. So he organized TGBOE as both a celebratory and educational way to raise awareness of causes aimed at improving this population and to support his Ballroom history project. Donations will be made to the HOUSE OF BLAHNIK SCHOLARSHIP FUND, a nonprofit educational assistance for college-bound Ballroom participants.
TGBOE 2 takes us to a time when the bars closed in the after-hours of gay Harlem. Two of the Ballroom’s most revered figures, Pepper Labeija & Dorian Corey, were hosting their highly anticipated “Harlem Fantasy” Ball. At four in the morning, people “turned up in dresses even Madame Pompadour herself might have thought twice about…and was putting together outfits bigger and grander than Rose Parade floats.” This was the place where a scorned community came together to fulfill their fantasies. Pepper & Dorian's drag balls helped to ignite and transform the organized masquerades that had mostly died out in the 1960’s. The first of their colorful spectacles began in the late 1970s but grew to reach heights undreamed of by its predecessors. And when gay men emerged into public view in this post-Stonewall era, Pepper & Dorian added categories for them to “walk” (sans drags). TGBOE 2 organizer and author Terrence Legend was able to experience Pepper & Dorian’s Harlem Fantasy Ball in 1982 – presumably the first ever recorded. TGBOE 2 is based on this archival footage as well as other material from Legend’s expansive archive.

GRAND PRIZE OVERALL: FANTASY WEDDING OF THE CENTURY! The goal in marriage is not to think alike, but to think together. In the spirit of Pepper Labeija & Dorian Corey's Harlem Fantasy, combine forces with someone you love and bring forth THE BEST WEDDING ON EARTH! A Bride & Groom with a production serving any style or theme you feel will turn the ball out (i.e. Haute Couture, Bizarre, High Fashion,
Fairytale, Futuristic, Avant-Garde, Military or Royal). OPEN TO ALL!
$$ CASH & HONEYMOON TRIP FOR 2 ...   

*MORE EXCITING CATEGORIES COMING SOON!
Contest: All winning contestants will be immortalized through prominent photo placement in TGBOE book & subsequent programming.

*SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES & AD SPACE AVAILABLE NOW!

Please visit www.myspace.com/thegreatestballonearth regularly for updates and full details.

SEE TGBOE ON FRENCH TV HERE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYvZdJ7APHE