House of Suarez + Contact: The Ball of Conspiracies at Manchester Academy

Kristy Stott, Theatre Editor

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House of Suarez + Contact: The Ball of Conspiracies

Manchester Academy, Manchester
1 March 2024

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

The Ball of Conspiracies at Manchester Academy. Four performers in separate images, all wearing dark clothing, and in striking poses. The first image is of somebody with long brown hair, sunglasses and a mesh bodysuit, she is in a squat position and is back lit. The second image is of a feminine, Caucasian appearing person, wearing makeup, black chain jewelry, a PVC bralette and gloves, she is looking at the camera with her hands on her hips. The 3rd picture is of a masculine appearing person with defined muscles. The 4th person is holding their dress out with dramatic energy, and is wearing black lipstick.
Image courtesy of Contact Theatre/ House of Suarez.
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Fabulous and fierce, and hot off the heels of a triumphant Eurovision-themed Vogue Ball, House of Suarez are back at Manchester Academy with the Ball of Conspiracies.

Celebrating Ballroom culture, this annual House of Suarez dance spectacular is one of the most celebrated events in the performance calendar. The audience get to watch as different groups of artists (known as ‘houses’) sashay and dance their way down a huge runway – each competing for catwalk supremacy.

Hosted by House of Suarez regular, the exuberant Rikki Beadle-Blair, the 2024 edition will see each different house explore some of the most outlandish conspiracy theories of our time. Expect meticulous choreography, more costume changes than Madonna and an exceptionally high standard of dance performance – all set to a dazzling club soundtrack.

Was the moon landing faked? Did aliens land at Roswell? Was Avril Lavigne replaced by a lookalike called Melissa? Is the Vogue Ball itself an inside job? We very much doubt it but we’re there to shake our hips, cover ourselves in glitter and suspend our disbelief for just one night.

A celebratory night of flamboyance, flashes of colour and energetic physicality, House of Suarez’s Ball of Conspiracies centres around Ballroom Culture, a movement that began in the 1960s within New York’s black and Latinx LGBTQ+ communities. Ballroom Culture was later popularised by the award-winning documentary Paris Is Burning, Madonna’s iconic 1990 hit ‘Vogue’ and, more recently, in the Emmy Award-winning prime-time TV series Pose.

Billed as “a killer evening of entertainment” by Upstaged Manchester, The Ball of Conspiracies promises a hugely entertaining night of high drama and spectacle. Don’t miss out.

Where to go near House of Suarez + Contact: The Ball of Conspiracies at Manchester Academy

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