Equinox, has launched its “Life’s a Ball” campaign, celebrating Pride and the New York City Ballroom community, and benefitting House Lives Matter, the only organization for the House Ballroom Community by the House Ballroom Community.
Equinox has partnered with the Icons and Legends in the New York City Ballroom community including Legendary Veronica Miyake Mugler, Legendary Chyna Prodigy, Legendary Asia Balenciaga, Legendary Tamiyah Miyake Mugler, the Icon Sinia Alaia, the Icon Leiomy Maldonado and Up-and-Coming Legendary Tati Finesse to star in the campaign.
“Life’s a Ball” honors the power and magnificence of trans women of color in their performance element and shares a message of equality, fostering sisterhood and expressing pride all through movement. Each woman delivers a winning performance, dancing solo in a frame surrounded by her sisters, each showcasing one iconic element of vogue performance: Dips, Spins, Catwalks, Hands, Hair Whip, Duck Walk, and Floor Performance.
“Voguing is a place where I can release so much,” says the Icon Sinia Alaia. “I kind of let all my issues out through Vogue. For me it is a release of stress and the hardships I’ve dealt with in life. I would Vogue and it seemed like once I was finished everything was on the floor. With Voguing gaining visibility in mainstream culture I hope others who are looking for the same release will come to find it as my sisters and I have.”
The Ballroom Community and Equinox mutually foster transformation, self-expression, personal best, pushing past limits, using strength in everyday life, power and confidence, all of which are at the forefront of this campaign.
“’Pride’ isn’t just something we do at Equinox—it’s who we are, and we remain committed to celebrating the incredible diversity of the LGBTQA community,” says Timothy Strudwick, Senior Creative Director, Equinox. “To us, movement is a celebration of being alive, and with this work, we are celebrating life and bringing visibility to marginalized communities who are often overlooked. We focused on dance—and Voguing specifically— because it’s all about quick and precise movements, representing an authentic way to speak to Pride through our brand’s unique DNA, which is rooted in embracing the joy of movement.”
“Voguing is a celebration of the magnificence of culture. It has also become a sisterhood within the LGBTQ+ community,” says Icon and Executive Producer Jack Mizrahi. “For us, Vogue is not a science. It’s a dance that is conditioning your body at the same time and now, more than ever before, fitness is a required part of the performance. Being a part of this campaign with Equinox was the perfect platform for us to showcase that sisterhood and the power of our culture.”
To celebrate the launch of the campaign, Equinox Voguing Master Classes have been hosted by the campaign talent in San Francisco (June 1), Los Angeles (June 2), New York (June 8) and Miami (June 9th). All classes will be hosted by Jack Mizrahi & Sinia Alia. The event in NYC will also be led by The Icon Pony Zion and the stars of the campaign, which will be ticketed and open to the public.
Equinox has partnered with House Lives Matter, a home-grown peer leadership and advocacy project that promotes wellness, quality of life, rights and resiliency among youth and adults in the House Ball Community (HBC) and mobilizes HBC members from different Houses and regions across the US (and globally) around a shared advocacy agenda. Equinox is House Lives Matter’s first-ever brand partner. For every post using #PoweredbyPride or a GIPHY sticker from the campaign used in the month of June, Equinox will donate $1 to House Lives Matter.
The campaign, created with agency RanaVerse, benefits House Lives Matter, the only organization for the House Ballroom Community by the House Ballroom Community.
“Life’s a Ball” honors the power and magnificence of trans women of color in their performance element and shares a message of equality, fostering sisterhood and expressing pride all through movement. Each woman delivers a winning performance, dancing solo in a frame surrounded by her sisters, each showcasing one iconic element of vogue performance: Dips, Spins, Catwalks, Hands, Hair Whip, Duck Walk, and Floor Performance.
