Devoid Magazine

* * * On a cold night in New York City many years ago, Kristine stepped off the train in the Bronx and found herself in the pouring rain. Walking alone, she headed over to a Dominican night club for a gig that was paying a measly $50. “When I was eight,” Kristine says, “[my parents] took me to see Swan Lake. And then I just fell in love and wanted to be a ballerina ever since.” Beginning with mastery of the ballet barre, the South Florida native developed an aptitude for multiple styles of dance.

Local drag queens announce the start of a roping event while a babble of brimmed contestants practice their toss behind cattle gates. The valley winds kick up glitter and dust with the holler of sinewy horses ready to run, while Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” can be heard bumping in the distance. A rider suffers a blow to the head after riding Banana Boat, the only bucking bull on site. This is the annual BigHorn Rodeo, Nevada’s very own queer roundup.

We’ve all seen him, but do we know him? Curtis Goodman, the tall glass of water who towers above six feet in platform heels, has been setting the standard for go-go dancing in Las Vegas and beyond for more than two decades. A familiar face at Piranha Nightclub, Curtis is like a sparkler on the Fourth of July, stealing the eyes and hearts of those who linger in the dark.

The idea for this piece arrived in Chicago while Clara swayed with the crowd at a TOKiMONSTA performance. “I just felt like everyone was very present and having a great time,” she says. “That sentence just came to my head, because I was like, I bet so many of these people are wishing this night could last forever — because they're having the time of their lives,” she explains. Her piece welcomes reflection, to digest what it says and how it speaks to you.

At Green Valley High in Henderson, Mrs. Silva said, “This is good, but you could do so much better,” encouraging Cherry Jayne to pursue art. “I was like, ah shit, no one has ever told me that. So now if I’m happy with an art piece, I think...I could do a little more.” What are Cherry’s favorite things to draw these days? “I love drawing girls. Boobies and booties. Wolves and monsters.” You may have seen Cherry Jayne’s artwork on local band fliers.

On the opposite side of the spectrum is the competitive card game. Players often forgo the gambling aspect of the hobby and buy single cards they need to build an effective deck. Each deck is limited to exactly sixty cards, and players craft decks that can consistently provide the necessary Pokémon and resources they need to knock out their opponents’ Pokémon before their opponent can do the same.

There’s a moment of displacement in flying trapeze where you’re forced to fall in faith. It follows your jump from the top, after you’ve expelled every ounce of power and thrown your trick, when you hear the catcher shout, “Hup!” and you just…let go. In this moment, the sky holds you. There’s no turning back and the landscape swirls around so much you can’t tell up from down. If your hands are sweaty, the chalk consumes.

Amidst a mountain of pizzas, blank skateboard decks, zine kits, and a wealth of free stickers, a UNLV panel discussion commenced on Feb. 28 that aimed to answer questions exploring Apache youth and Youth of Color skate culture.

An exploration of the trust-fall in local trapeze culture + community

An exploration of the trust-fall in local trapeze culture + community