As part of the pop culture program in the run-up to the European Football Championship 2024 in Cologne, we want to focus on the visibility of the Black & Latinx LGBQT+ on Saturday the 24th of April at the BüZe. We have invited the makers of the short film "Realness with a Twist" for a screening followed by a discussion. Conceived in 2023 by British-Indian director Cass Virdee, the short film "Realness with a Twist" is about a talented footballer who is torn between his secret passion for voguing and the fear of disapproval from his teammates. The film provides the perfect impetus for a discussion about gender equality and diversity in the context of soccer and the sports industry and establishes an initial link between the ballroom community and soccer.

Following the film and discussion, we will break stereotypes, break down barriers and freely interpret the world of soccer at "The Kick Off Ball". "The Kick Off Ball" is hosted by Crystal 007 (formerly Saint Laurent). Crystal 007 was a member of the first German House - House of Melody (2012 - 2019) as well as the legendary House of Saint Laurent (2019 - 2023) in the German chapter since 2014. In Ballroom she is known for the categories Face, New Way and Fashion Categories. In recent years, she has organized several Kiki's, sessions and community spaces in Cologne, NRW and Berlin. Anyone who has experienced "The Crystal Ball (2022)" or "The Trailblazer Ball (2023)" will not forget this event. Now, for the third time, a major ball hosted by Crystal 007 for the ballroom community is taking place as part of the c/o pop festival.

The Ballroom community, in which "The Kick Off Ball" takes place, has its roots in the Afro- and Latin American trans, drag and LGBTQIA* community of the 1960s and 1970s in New York. Ballroom (the umbrella term for this culture) serves primarily as a space for empowerment and as a survival mechanism to create visibility for marginalized groups who are still affected by racism, homophobia and transphobia on a daily basis. For BIPOC and queer people in particular, Ballroom is both a cultural and community space. At the so-called "balls", which can also be seen as competitions, the community comes together to dance against each other, perform and celebrate themselves. Ballroom is first and foremost a place to express yourself and be creative. The dance style of voguing, for example, is an extremely expressive, physical dance that is primarily about being seen and claiming and defending a place for yourself on the dance floor and further afield in society.

Judges:

Hanabi Miyake Mugler

Kenzo 007

Lyhnasty Balenciaga

Legendary Pioneer Mother LA B. Fujiko

Ray Elle

Jay Jay Revlon (Commentator)

DJ ESENGO

Datum: 27.04.2023

Ort: Köln, Bürgerzentrum Ehrenfeld

Start: 14.00 Uhr Screening 16 Uhr The Kick Off Ball

❖ Beginners Runway (2 GP)
❖ European Runway (2 GP)
❖ All American (1 GP)
❖ Beginners Performance (1 GP)
❖ Femme Queen Performance (1 GP)
❖ Old Way OTA (1 GP)
❖ Face (Enby,w, FQ,MF) (4 GP)
❖ Drags Performance (1 GP)
❖ Hands Performance vs. Arms Control (1 GP)
❖ ENBY Performance (1 GP)
❖ Body (2 GP)
❖ Women Performance (1 GP)
❖ Realness
(MF, Butch, FQ , Transmen , Drags) (5 GP)
❖ BQ Vogue Fem (1 GP)
❖ Realness with a Twist (1 GP)
❖ New Way OTA (1 GP)
❖ Fashion Killer (1 GP)
❖ Sex Siren (4 GP)
❖ lip sync (1 GP)

The Kick Off Ball by Crystal 007 takes place as part of FU24BA7L. FU24BA7L is a soccer culture festival taking place in Cologne in the run-up to UEFA EURO 2024. The project is funded by the Football and Culture Foundation and organized by cologne on pop GmbH on behalf of Arsch Huh e.V.