HAUS AWARD

@theebumper

Bumper is DC's pole dancing alien superstar and producer. Originally from Orlando, FL, they got their start in New York City as a gogo dancer and club kid but the car-part-named entity of Bumper was formally born in Austin, TX. They began studying pole dancing at Austin's Black Box Creative under the training of owner Shelbi Aiona and have shaken their Puerto Rican ass across DC at 9:30 Club, The Kennedy Center, Echostage, TRADE, Dance Place, The Nail Salon, and Flower Factory.

Bumper is not just a performer, however. They also work to curate and construct fantastical experiences beyond the stage including set designing for PBS and large-scale embassy events in DC. Their latest project, SAFESPACE, is a queer party at Black Cat (originally launched at JR’s with the support of Jesse Jackson) that combines Bumper’s many talents into an unforgettable night of dancing. Bumper is a creative force that produces, manages, performs, and transcends. In the iconic words of Grace Jones, "pull up to the Bumper baby,” you might just like it.

@kingmolasses

Molasses (they/them) is a nonbinary drag king based in Washington D.C. Known for their signature beard and smooth moves, this performer is a fusion of masculine expression, feminine swag and that special sauce that rockstars are made of.

First stepping on the scene in late 2018, Molasses debuted with Pretty Boi Drag during an open casting night for new drag kings. Since then, they have performed in some of DC biggest productions and parties and have gained wider acclaim around the country. They played the lead role of Seymour in Highball Productions’ A Love Letter to Little Shop of Horrors, are a principal performer at the 9:30 club’s BENT and on cast in the acclaimed rock-and-roll drag show BANSHEES. This year, Molasses has been invited twice to perform at the prestigious Berlin Nightclub’s Saturday Night Drag Show in Chicago, and have shared the stage with legendary local and national performers, including favorites from Dragula and RuPaul’s Drag Race. They are currently co-producer of Half & Half, the monthly drag show at As You Are Bar in Southeast DC.

Molasses is guided by the belief that liberation is found in connection – moreover, connection to Self is connection to the world around us and drives all creative expression. They explored these themes in collaboration with the haus of bambi’s production of Pantheon, an exhibition that called in their identities as nonbinary, first generation Nigerian struggling to find alignment in their body while balancing their divine gifts and human traumas.

@missgregdavid // missgregdavid.com

Greg David (they/she) is a Black, queer, and non-binary femme movement artist based in the DMV area. Their work and film has been commissioned by Dance Place in Washington, DC, BlackLight Summit hosted at The Clarice at UMD , and shown at The Kennedy Center. By using character performance, textile production, world-making, and storytelling, while exploring themes of grief, fear, care, and solitude, the work they construct connects human emotion and personal experience with movement, persona, and visual abstraction.