B*tch You Betta!

"If I didn't grab a promoter," Scott Anthony (pictured below right) told me once I pulled him up onto the table I was standing on, surveying the sea of people, "I wasn't sure I was going to get in." I'd seen Vandam's line when I peeked outside earlier. Now, I wasn't moving off this table because I wanted a good vantage of the back area where Jonté (pictured above) was soon to perform.

I'd popped down briefly to greet my de la Blanca sister Celso (pictured above left). It took me quite a while to squeeze my way back. Despite everyone's relative immobility, the crowd was happily grooving to DJ Johnny Dynell's set. Dirty Martini (pictured below) was not only shaking her money maker; she was shaking her money, too.

Kenny Kenny (pictured below) perched himself above the fray, near the DJ booth, to give everyone a gander of the fantasy he was serving that night.

But the entrée that night was Jonté. There was no room for dessert. His fantastical set showcased tracks from his upcoming CD that he was just promoting in Japan. Vandam doesn't have a proper stage; and Jonté is petite, even when sporting pumps. Still, amidst the hundreds of people and the wave of cell phones and cameras held above them recording the moment, Jonté popped. Most of us couldn't see his legwork--except when he broke into his standing splits, with his legs in a straight line perpendicular to the floor--but you could feel it. He moved so quickly and cleanly that I could barely get a shot in focus. Vocally, he was giving me Jamie Principle. Choreographically, I wanted an extended break with verses and background dancers to the side so that Jonté could rule the stage alone. The seemingly effortless poise he has deserves to be admired apart. Nevertheless, he had me gagging when he did a a little of a spaced-out version of Vanity 6's "Make Up." For the rest of the night, Jonté had me singing his cuts "Ya! Who?" and "B*tch You Betta" no matter what was actually playing up or downstairs.


I wasn't the only one left inspired. After the show, I made my way over to get some shots of the always c*ntational Jordan Fox (pictured below), who was working the hell out of her powdered wig look. Jordan said that tonight was a preview of the coming year, which she's going to amp up: "2010 isn't about hosting parties. It's about performing, like Jonté." I can't wait.