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Strike a Pose
Start date: Jul 13, 2014, End date: Jan 12, 2017 PROJECT  FINISHED 

In 1990, seven young dancers joined pop star Madonna on her most controversial world tour. Their journey was recorded in Truth or Dare, one of the highest-grossing documentaries ever. Madonna used the film to take a stand on gay rights, freedom of expression and the fight against AIDS. Madonna’s flamboyant dancers soon became icons of sexual freedom, inspiring people all over the world to dare to be who you are. In this film we encounter the dancers on a new journey. 25 years after the tour and film that marked pop and gay culture as much as their own lives, they reveal how hard it has been to live the liberated life they were promoting on stage and camera. In the public eye the dancers were Madonna’s paragons of pride, in reality they have been fighting their own secrets, fears and lies. At the height of the AIDS epidemic Truth or Dare introduced audiences to fun-loving, bold and larger-than-life gay characters, including two guys kissing passionately during the Truth or Dare scene. The dancers displayed a world where you could be yourself; a promising new world far away from shame-filled communities and disapproving families. Even today, the dancers receive thank you letters from people around the world recalling how the film changed their lives. But while Madonna was provoking America, dancer Gabriel wasn’t proud of being gay at all. He filed a lawsuit after trying to persuade Madonna to cut the kissing scene that would out him. A few months after the case was settled, Gabriel died of AIDS. Carlton, the big, bold dancer, was HIV-positive and almost collapsed under the secret that he was carrying on tour. A third dancer is still living with a secret and finally wants to open up. Strike a Pose tells the touching story of seven young men who brought hope to a generation but lost their own identity along the way. As the dancers reveal how they managed to overcome their fears and shame, they inspire us once again. What does it really take to express yourself?
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