NYTimes.com – Lola Ogunnaike
Willi Ninja, known as the Grandfather of Vogue, a dance form that he helped move from the New York club scene of the 1980?s to the concert stage, died on Saturday in Queens. He was 45.
The cause was AIDS-related heart failure, said Archie Burnett, a close friend.
Vogueing ? with its angular body movements, exaggerated model poses and intricate mimelike choreography ? and the colorful characters who populated Willi Ninja?s world were introduced to the public at large by ?Paris Is Burning,? the award-winning 1990 documentary about New York?s drag vogue-ball scene. Later in his career, Willi Ninja also performed in works by postmodern choreographers including Doug Elkins, David Neuman and Karole Armitage.