Paris is Burning Screening

Austin Community College (ACC) Highland Campus is screening Paris is Burning on Thursday, August 27, from 4 PM to 6:30 PM. The 1990 documentary follows the underground drag ball culture of Harlem during the 1980s and the Black, Latine, gay and transgender people who built a vibrant community there. If you've seen it before, it's a good excuse to revisit; if you haven't, it's a classic for a reason.

The screening is only the first half of the afternoon. Once the credits roll, the room opens up for a discussion and voguing lessons led by Shuja Uddin and Natalie Sanders. Uddin is a professor and filmmaker; Sanders is an activist and a legendary founding mother of the House of Lepore. Having someone from that world lead the lesson puts the whole thing in a different light—you're not just watching a film about a culture, you're learning a piece of it from someone who lived it.

It's free and open to the public, so you don't need to be a student or have any particular connection to the college to show up. Popcorn, candy and soda are provided, which is a nice touch for a late-afternoon screening. If you can't make it in person, virtual attendance is available upon RSVP.

The screening and the lessons run from 4 PM to 6:30 PM on Thursday, August 27, at the ACC Highland Campus, building 4000, room 4.2205.