Carmen Xtravaganza, an NYC ballroom icon who was featured within the 1990 documentary “Paris is Burning,” has died. She was 62.
The House of Xtravaganza — which emerged from Latest York’s underground ballroom scene and for which Carmen held the position of house mother at various times — announced the news of her death Friday in an Instagram statement.
“Throughout the Nineteen Eighties, Carmen reigned on the runways as certainly one of the House of Xtravaganza’s ‘unattainable beauties.’ Her presence and talent left an indelible mark on the House Ballroom scene,” the statement read.
A explanation for death was not shared, but in line with a 2022 GoFundMe page, Carmen had been battling Stage 4 lung cancer.
Born in Andalusia, Spain, on April 9, 1961, Carmen moved to the US by the age of 16 and underwent sex reassignment surgery at 18.
She brought ballroom to the mainstream in 1988 when she graced the quilt of the Village Voice for an article entitled “Venus Envy: The Drag Balls of Harlem.”
Two years later, Carmen and her house sister, Brooke Xtravaganza, discussed their transition experiences in “Paris is Burning.”
She was inducted into the Ballroom Hall of Fame in 1999.
The House of Xtravaganza concluded in its Instagram statement: “As we hold her memory near our hearts, her famous quote, ‘… that voice continues to be there,’ takes on latest meaning, serving as a reminder that Carmen’s spirit will live to tell the tale through the love and memories she left behind.”
“Paris is Burning” is offered to stream on Max.
