Ballroom at the Elk Imperial Lodge

Artist/Designer: Vertner Tandy

Project Location: New York, New York

Four story brick building on city street. Concrete pilasters in the front with some yellow plaster accents around the six central windows. A large red awning is above the red door with the name

Figure 1: Exterior of the former Imperial Elk Lodge in Harlem, present day. ( Source | Accessed : December 24, 2021 | Photographer: Courtesy: NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project )

The room is dark wood with some stage lighting. A black performer in red dress has one hand on hip as they look to the side. People surround the performer as an audience. They are a diverse crowd. Trophies sit upon a table with a white tablecloth.

Figure 2: A ball contestant at the Elk Lodge, late 1980s. ( Source | Accessed : December 24, 2021 | Photographer: Screen capture from Paris Is Burning (1990) )

A person is performing in the middle of a large room with wood floors and red walls. The photo is taken over the left shoulder of a person with a microphone

Figure 3: Interior of the lodge hall, late 1980s. ( Source | Accessed : December 24, 2021 | Photographer: Screen capture from Paris Is Burning (1990) )

A crowd of primarily people of color watch a black performer in white stockings and a white blazer performer in the middle of the room.

Figure 4: Modavia Elite modeling in the Legacy Voguing Ball at the Union Square Club, New York, 1991. ( Source | Accessed : December 24, 2021 | Photographer: Andrew Savulich )

Style/Period(s):
Revival Styles

Primary Material(s):
Brick

Function(s):
Community Center

Related Website(s):

"Drag Balls at Imperial Lodge of Elks" NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project | Accessed : February 27, 2022

Significant Date(s):
1922

Additional Information:
Citing discrimination against contestants of color, Black drag queen Crystal LaBeija stopped participating in pageants in the 1970s in order to begin her own ball. The 1990 film Paris Is Burning prominently features the Imperial Elk Lodge in Harlem, where many balls were held through the 90s.

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