(Note: This is a reflection paper in my class Sociology 243 Popular Culture SY 2008-2009.)
Introduction
Last week’s planned trip to the UP Fair led me and two other friends to a spur-of-the-moment visit to Adonis, a gay bar in Timog, Quezon City. Jane was not so eager compared to Rowell. Among us three, I can be considered the neutral. I have not been to a gay bar yet so I was quite interested to try it out. However, concerns about our safety were also in my mind. What if there was a sudden police raid and the media would also be there? That would inevitably mean my 15 seconds of fame would end up as an expose on gay bars in national television.
Obviously, we seized the moment, and as a participant observer, I would like to share my experience describing the mis-en-scene of Adonis: setting and props, costume and makeup, movement positioning and performance, and lighting.
Setting and Props
We walked towards Adonis, and a man, who seemed like he worked for Adonis; approached us immediately. We asked how much the entrance fee was and we were told that it differed for men and women. It was P100 for men and P200 for women. The bouncer did not inspect our bags and we were ushered straight inside a dimly lit room. All the tables and chairs faced a relatively small stage. The spotlights were focused on the bare platform with two small drums for props. I noticed that the chairs did not make it conducive to talk but more conducive to look at the direction of the stage.
Rowell ordered beer and pulutan for everyone. I still had my bottle of mountain dew from UP but was not charged for corkage. I did not notice a bar area, or if ever there was one, it faded in the shady background. A waiter took our order with the aid of a flashlight to maintain the room’s dark ambience. The only well-lit area was the room where the macho dancers stayed in between dance numbers.
Movement positioning and Performance
Loud music filled the room and the songs ranged from club music to Rnb. A few seconds later, several macho dancers flooded the stage, and the songs shifted to a slow tempo. Some leaned on the stage wall, some centered themselves on the stage, some used the poles while others used the drums for props. They all gyrated to the tunes of Celine Dion, Chris Brown, Mariah Carey, George Michael, Ne-yo, or whatever song the DJ played.
Other macho dancers seemed like they just moved to the beat of the song, swaying their bodies ever so slowly, their hands touching their own erogenous zones, their facial expression conveying orgasmic yearning. But there were also some who seemed like they rehearsed the song’s choreography. There was a build up on the excitement on the thought of nudity, taking off their shirts and shorts one by one, showing their chests and abs, performing brief acts of masturbation; all boiling down to seduction. One dared to show his penis for a few seconds. I noticed that there was a two-way mirror at the back that the macho dancers looked at while they carried on with their dance numbers.
Costume and Makeup
A macho dancer’s usual getup was composed of plain t-shirt, vest or sando, skimpy denim shorts or tapis ng bandana, white or black bikini briefs, and black cowboy boots. Two wore caps and only one wore a necklace as an accessory. Some probably wore facial and body makeup but every macho dancer seemed to possess common attributes: tall, fashionable haircut if they had hair/bald, flawless and white skin (there was not even one moreno and my friends and I saw only two macho dancers who had noticeable scars), muscular/defined muscles, smooth/almost hairless body (everyone was clean-shaven), and celebrity-like features (chinito, mestiso, etc).
Lighting
The room was dimly lit and spotlights showcased what was on the stage. The lighting depended on the music being played but it was generally to emphasize the macho dancers and their bodies. The customers are “excluded” from the performance.
Deconstructing Adonis
First of all, the big difference between the men and women’s entrance fees showed the bar’s inclination towards male patrons, most especially, gay men. This establishes Adonis as a gay bar that caters to gay men, its employees made up of macho dancers. In a sense, there is an alienation of women patrons even though they have the right as much as any gay men to enter and find entertainment in scantily-clad straight men gyrating on stage.
The security in the establishment was questionable. I saw that the entrance served also as the fire exit. The placement of the tables and chairs facing the stage, isolating the bar area, made it sure that all eyes were on the establishment’s main attraction – the macho dancers. The lack of production design on the stage also made the audience assume that only the macho dancers were worth looking at. Hence, men and women alike can become voyeurs, but this time, men are the objects.
Furthermore, these men accommodate this sense of commodification by dancing to the song played in the background and “dressing up” on stage. The macho dancers’ choreography exhibits the same sexual undertones, gratifying both the audience and themselves, quite narcissistically, via the two-way mirror at the back.
It is interesting to note Roland Toletino’s definition of the “feminization of male workers” (in the entertainment and sex industry):
“…ang puwersado at himok na proseso ng paglahok ng pagkalalaki sa larangang hindi tradisyonal na nakaugnay sa kanya…na sa edad ng transnasyolismo…kinakailangan na ring maging di-lalaki ang pagkalalaki para makaagapay sa mga bagong dikta ng transnasyonal na kapital.
Tinatanghal ang feminisadong pagkalalaki sa transisyonal na yugto mula sa panahong ang lalaki ang sineserbisyuhan tungo sa panahong ang machong lalaki ay hindi na ganap na lalaki at sumeserbisyo na rin sa iba, mapakapwa-lalaki man o hindi…”
He even states that at present, there seems to be no difference at all between men and women in the service sector. The macho dancers have adopted the feminine practice of hair treatments, skin whiteners, weight loss and diet and feminine attributes such as pagiging magiliw, kagandahang-asal, pagbuhos ng drink ng guest, etc. He also mentions how it was also important for the macho dancers to match their eye candy bodies with pleasing personalities:
“Natuto ang kalalakihan sa entertainment work na magkaroon ng McDonald’s o SM (Shoemart) personality – magiliw kahit ayaw nila – dahil kailangang suportahan ng personalidad ang katawan bilang atraksyon sa kapital. Disimulado ang personalidad – kinokopya ang pagkilos ng pera.”
Nevertheless, it is not to be understood that these men are giving up their manliness in making a living out of their bodies. According to Tolentino, despite their effeminate choreography and the nominal empowerment of their gay patrons (code-sharing between the two), the heterosexual macho dancer still prevails:
“Sa huli, ang relasyong pang-uri, kung saan may kapangyarihang ekonomiko ang guest sa macho dancer, ay bibigay sa tradisyonal na relasyong kasarian at sexualidad…laging nakabukas na ang heterosexismo ang mangibabaw kahit pa mayroong kapangyarihang kapital at kultural ang bakla.”
It seems like being a macho dancer can be seen as another means that men employ in adapting to the political, cultural and social changes caused by globalization. It is just another means to achieve the Filipino dream: to make money and rise from poverty, regardless of the answer to the question how. In fact, my friends and I saw one macho dancer wearing a wedding ring while he was performing on stage.
Be it fortunately or unfortunately, gay bars and macho dancers are still being frowned at to this day. On the other hand, they seem to find a growing number of empathizers on the internet. One blog called “Denz: ang mananayaw! Ang Kwento ng Isang Macho Dancer / Colboy na Isang Nursing Student!” is gaining reputation with 11,314 hits and counting. It also has a following of thirteen bloggers and received as much as 51 comments in one of its post.
Conclusion
After two hours, my friends and I decided to leave. Our bill totalled to P900. My experience at Adonis has shed light to my curiosity about the world of macho dancers and gay bars. I found a new appreciation for men who can dance in the same erotic way as their female counterparts, and that there is such a thing as effeminate macho, i.e. snake-style dance moves. It opened my eyes to the unique consumption of macho dancers as commodities by their patrons, and that tables have inevitably turned with women as voyeurs. However, instead of finding answers in our small exploration, I ended up with more questions than I had before setting foot in Adonis. Why did the macho dancer who looked like he came out from a Kenneth Cole runway settled for a gay bar as a workplace? How do they share intimacy with their ka-tables so easily? When and how did they lose their hiya in dancing naked? Do they enjoy working as a macho dancer? How do they see themselves as straight macho dancers in a gay bar? Do they feel societal pressures to conceal their work from other people, including their families and friends? These questions merit answers, and might even deserve another exploration, a bigger one. But that’s another story.
References:
Tolentino, Roland. B. Kulturang Popular Aklat 6: Lalaking Pin-up, GRO, at Macho Dancer. Pasig City: Anvil Pub., c2004
“Denz: ang mananayaw! Ang Kwento ng Isang Macho Dancer / Colboy na Isang Nursing Student!” http://denztarca.wordpress.com/
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