Did Go-Go Harder’s porn star antics lead to his banning from this year’s New York Burlesque Festival?
Chris “Go-Go” Harder claims his porn shoots led to his banning from the New York Boylesque Festival. Image: Santiago Felipe
Despite only appearing in porn flicks since last year, American boylesque star Chris “Go-Go” Harder is claiming that his nascent blue movie career has blocked his return to the New York Boylesque Festival. Writing in Queerty, he lays it out plainly “My on camera adventures are apparently just too hard to handle for the producer’s (sic) of the Boylesque Festival, and it was made clear to me that I was not welcome on either night’s stripping festivities, despite the fact that I had helped organize year one’s events and that a quarter of year two’s participants had all taken my Boylesque classes.”
He also touches on what may be an emerging theme: the sexual discrimination by some within the burlesque industry against men. As we wrote last year, boylesque has never been in better shape in London. A staple of the rather fine Soho Burlesque Club at the Hippodrome Casino, the talented Phil Ingud is a classic example of how male strippers can appeal to a mainstream audience. Superstars of London’s burgeoning queerlesque scene including Mr Mistress and Miss Cairo have been strutting their stuff all over the capital while Howard Wilmot’s Boylexe – now fronted by two-time London Cabaret Award winner Alp Haydar – goes from strength to strength. Despite this, the London Cabaret Awards judges’ ten nominees this year were all female.
Here’s Harder’s take on the apparent gender discrepancy: “In my opinion, burlesque, porn and even sex work are much more deeply intertwined than many of today’s audiences and Dita-devoted starlets may realize. I’m thinking about the “classic” burlesque ladies who lived in an age where burlesque theaters were the only option instead of the alternative for a Stagg night out or a chance to see the stripping of cloth from skin and bare breasts under hot spot lights. And I’m reminded of burlesque legends now bragging at conventions and festivals about bagging JFK and of course the boys and men of Times Square and the golden days of the Adonis Theater or the Gaiety, where chaps and thongs were playfully peeled away and final reveals were sold to the highest bidder. Even Dita Von Teeze (sic) herself began her career in soft core porn films and fetish spreads.”
The producers of the New York Boylesque Festival have been quick to reply. Jen Gapay and Daniel Nardicio’s robust response suggests that Harder’s exclusion is less to do with his porn pursuits and more to do with Harder’s past relationship with Nardicio. They also rebuff some of Harder’s Queerty claims. Here’s what Gapay said to industry website 21st Century Burlesque: “As the co-producer of The New York Boylesque Festival, I can honestly say that the festival and its producers are supportive of sex workers and work with them on a regular basis. The decision to not have Chris Harder perform in this festival is a personal one based on the personal relationship between co-producer Daniel Nardicio and Chris. Chris and Daniel were boyfriends and lived together for over 2 years. Obviously this is a matter of the heart and not about the festivals stance on the porn industry.”
“As far as past festivals go, Chris did not help organize the 1st Annual Boylesque Festival; he taught a class in conjunction with the festival and made all the money that was generated from that class, and yes, there were performers that participated in the 2013 festival that had taken classes from Chris, but certainly not a quarter of the festival performers as he claims.”
Nardicio goes further, saying
“I’m saddened that my ex Chris chose to play this out for publicity. As anyone who knows me and my career can attest, I’ve been more than supportive of the porn community. And I employ and promote sex workers regularly. I’m known as the “king of queer sleaze” in the gay media for Christ sake. I was VP of marketing for Playgirl for 3 years and I hired Chris for a shoot: how could I be anti porn? This is between two guys who were lovers and one needing distance – anyone who was in a relationship should be able to understand that. Oddly Chris left out that we were in a 3 year relationship not that long ago. I respectfully asked him not to participate – he wasn’t banned. If he had any respect for my feelings, he would have complied. At the end of the day, it’s a gig, that’s it. Is it worth all of this over a gig?”
It is clear that Harder won’t go quietly. In his own response to the producers, he said:
“While I would not back track on my words, in fairness to the producer’s of the New York Boylesque Festival, I do recognize that there were personal issues involved in the decision to not allow me to participate in this year’s 2014 Boylesque Festival. Specifically this: I was involved with producer Daniel Nardicio in a long term relationship which ended in June, 2012. While I would never imply that either producer is “anti-sex worker,” I do feel that my recent porn career was one of the main reasons for my exclusion from the festival apart from the fact that Nardicio and I were former lovers. This becomes even more apparent to me after taking into account that I was allowed to participate in the 2013 Boylesque Festival almost a full year after ending my relationship with Nardicio. I’m thus left with the conclusion that , making the decision equally personal and well, “porn-y.” Again, I feel this “Boylesque benching” is hypocritical and unfair, but I also know it’s not my place to tell anyone how to cast an event. However, it is apparent to me that my sex work is definitely a huge deciding factor in their decision, relationship or no relationship.
“My final thought: The Boylesque Festival is not the “Chris and Daniel Show.” And while unfortunately there is no doubt now a “coloring” to the event, ultimately the Boylesque Festival is and should be a celebration of male striptease, free from personal and professional grievances.”
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