Javier Ninja (birth name Javier Madrid,

Dance Magazine ''Dance Magazine'' is an American trade publication for dance. It was first published in June 1927 as ''The American Dancer''. ''Dance Magazine'' is currently part of Dance Media, led by longtime arts publisher Joanna Harp as president, and has mu ...

- interview of "Javier Ninja" by Margaret Fuhre

- retrieved 30 March 2015 born 10 March 1984 in

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

Javier Ninja's workshop and bio in Arkstar (December 3, 2010

retrieved March 31, 2015 (

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

)) is an American vogue dancer and

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

.Line-up of "Advance NYC Street Lab" teachers (2012, archive) in Street Dance Magazine (Javier Ninja included in line-up

Madrid is a member of the ''Legendary House of Ninja'' founded by the late

Willi Ninja William Roscoe Leake (April 12, 1961 – September 2, 2006), better known as Willi Ninja, was an American dancer and choreographer known for his appearance in the documentary film '' Paris Is Burning''. Ninja specialized in voguing and was a ...

and has worn the House Dance International vogue ''" Champion of the year"'' for three consecutive years.Javier Ninja in "Cori Olinghouse of Ninja" in The Brooklyrail by Patricia Milder - March 4th, 201

- retrieved March 30, 2015 He is well known within the vogue (dance), vogue dance world and has performed and taught in several countries including the U.S.iA Studios (London) publicity of Javier Ninja's workshop in "heyevent" : "Javier Ninja Vogue Workshop London

- retrieved March 31, 2015

Early life and education

Madrid was born in

, New York City. He attended "The New Ballet School" (a tuition free ballet school for children from Poverty, low income families, now called Ballet Tech founded by

Eliot Feld Eliot Feld (born July 5, 1942) is an American modern ballet choreographer, performer, teacher, and director. Feld works in contemporary ballet. His company and schools, including the Feld Ballet and Ballet Tech, are involved in dance and dance ed ...

) when he was nine years old and studied

contemporary Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from about 1945 to the present. In the social sciences, contemporary history is also continuous with, and related t ...

modern Modern may refer to: History *Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Philosophy ...

and

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

, and discovered

vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** '' Vogue Adria'', a fashion magazine for former Yugoslav countries ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ' ...

when he was fifteen years old (in a

nightclub A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a Bar (establishment), bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighti ...

). Like many underground voguers of his generation and the generation before him, he started going to nightclubs whilst he was

underage In law, a minor is someone under a certain age, usually the age of majority, which demarcates an underage individual from legal adulthood. The age of majority depends upon jurisdiction and application, but it is commonly 18. ''Minor'' may also ...

. He met the great

in 2002 who went on to become his mentor. Willi coached and guided him for five years until he was ready to ''"walk"'' a ball.

Career

Madrid won the House Dance International's

"Champion of the year" three years in a row (2007, 2008 and 2009) and has become a permanent fixture of the ball scene since 2007 — entering many competition and judging. He is a member of the ''Legendary House of Ninja'', a vogue house founded by the late Willi Ninja — his mentor, and the person who brought him to the House. Madrid has performed solo pieces as well as group pieces with other members of the House in various countries as well as in the

U.S The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

.Bio of Javier Madrid in

Broadway Dance Center Broadway Dance Center is a dance school located at 322 West 45th Street west of Times Square in New York City. It was founded in 1984 as one of the first "drop-in" dance training schools in the world, offering classes in jazz, tap, ballet, conte ...

(New York City

retrieved March 31, 2015 He performed in ''"Battle of Yestermorrow"'' by Iona Rozeal Brown (2011), "Scott, Queen of Marys" - previously performed by his late mentor the great Willi Ninja ("the godfather of voguing") in 1994, ''"Off Broadway"'' House of Ninja Production and ''"East is Red"''. Television appearances include

America's Next Top Model ''America's Next Top Model'' (abbreviated ''ANTM'' and ''Top Model'') is an American reality television series and interactive competition in which a number of aspiring models compete for the title of "America's Next Top Model" and a chance to b ...

presented by

Tyra Banks Tyra Lynne Banks (born December 4, 1973), also known as BanX, is an American model, television personality, producer, writer, and actress. Born in Inglewood, California, she began her career as a model at the age of 15 and was the first Black A ...

and his "House father"

Benny Ninja Benny Ninja (né Benjamin Thomas) is a self-taught Vogue-style dancer from the underground clubs based in Westchester, New York. He is best known for his involvement in ball culture. He is the father of the House of Ninja, a post given to him b ...

. In 2010, Madrid performed in the World competition "Juste DeBout" in Paris. He has performed with

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...

in the 2012

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the excep ...

, appeared in

Icona Pop Icona Pop ( ) are a Swedish synth-pop duo that formed in 2009, with electro house and indie pop music influences. Its two members, Aino Jawo (born 7 July 1986) and Caroline Hjelt (born 8 November 1987), grew up in Stockholm and created what the ...

's music video ''" All Night"'' (2013) and in

FKA twigs Tahliah Debrett Barnett (born 16 January 1988), known professionally as FKA Twigs (stylized as FKA twigs), is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, and dancer. She was a backup dancer for numerous musicians, and made her musica ...

music video ''" Glass & Patron"'' (2015) starring alongside Benjamin Milan,

Tamsier Joof Aviance Tamsier Joof Aviance or Tamsier Aviance (né Tamsier Joof; born 17 May 1973,"Senegambian taking the dance world by storm", ''West Africa'', 5 June 1995, p. 4.''The Comet'' newspaper (Stevenage) interview : "This is it", 23 August 2001, p. 21. ...

and David Magnifique — the three voguers from

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

(

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

). Madrid also appeared in the flagging documentary ''"Flow Affair"'' directed by

Wolfgang Busch Wolfgang Busch is a documentary filmmaker, director, producer, cinematographer, and editor. He directed and produced the 2006 documentary '' How Do I Look'' about the Harlem ballroom scene. He is the founder of Art from the Heart Films, which pr ...

.Review of "Flow Affair" in Edge Media Network : "New Film Documents History & Artistry of Flagging" - retrieved 30 March 2015 As well as being a dancer, Madrid is also a vogue dance teacher and has taught in the US and various other countries especially in Europe and the Far East. He is a guest teacher at the

and as of 2013, is the current "father" of the Legendary House of Ninja following Benny's involvement in the December 1, 2013 Metro-North train derailment.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ninja, Javier Living people 1984 births Hispanic and Latino American dancers House of Ninja