Carlton T. Jones (1959 - 28 January 1993)

[reviews_and_ramblings]

Carlton T. Jones was the Rainbow Tribe Founder and Artistic Director. A dancer and choreographer, Carlton T. Jones began his dance training in New York City at the Martha Graham and Alvin Ailey schools, after which he danced on Broadway and in Los Angeles and choreographed for television and film.

With his charisma and powerful physicality, Carleton T. Jones was a natural on stage. His talents took him to the Broadway stage, where he appeared in A Chorus Line (as Richie), A Broadway Musical and Dancin’, and led to his groundbreaking music video and television work with Janet Jackson, Paula Abdul and Tracy Ullman. Along the way, Jones developed street-smart choreography that ultimately dominated the visual components of music videos for the MTV generation.

After introducing the street-funk trend at the Jeannette Neill Dance Studio in the early 1990's, Jones believed that his “Rainbow Tribe” could cement his passion for dance with the desire to help others embrace motion to develop self-confidence and bridge cultural differences. The dance company emerged onto the scene at the Boston Dance Festival Showcase in 1992. Jones’ life was claimed by AIDS in 1993 but his vision for Rainbow Tribe lives on.

Source: http://www.rainbowtribe.org/dpl/History

Further Readings:

Beyond Shame: Reclaiming the Abandoned History of Radical Gay Sexuality by Patrick Moore
Paperback: 264 pages
Publisher: Beacon Press (January 14, 2004)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 080707957X
ISBN-13: 978-0807079577
Amazon: Beyond Shame: Reclaiming the Abandoned History of Radical Gay Sexuality

The radical sexuality of gay American men in the 1970s is often seen as a shameful period of excess that led to the AIDS crisis. Beyond Shame claims that when the gay community divorced itself from this allegedly tainted legacy, the tragic result was an intergenerational disconnect because the original participants were unable to pass on a sense of pride and identity to younger generations. Indeed, one reason for the current rise in HIV, Moore argues, is precisely due to this destructive occurrence, which increased the willingness of younger gay men to engage in unsafe sex.

Lifting the'veil of AIDS,' Moore recasts the gay male sexual culture of the 1970s as both groundbreaking and creative-provocatively comparing extreme sex to art. He presents a powerful yet nuanced snapshot of a maligned, forgotten era. Moore rescues gay America's past, present, and future from a disturbing spiral of destruction and AIDS-related shame, illustrating why it's critical for the gay community to reclaim the decade.

More LGBT History at my website: www.elisarolle.com/, My Ramblings/Gay Classics