'Not going to let fear stop me': Corpus Christi native to compete on HBO Max's 'Legendary'
When it came to making a life-changing decision in 2008, Charles Roy sorted out the pros and cons.
He was set to graduate from Ray High School and had to choose whether to stay in Texas for his college education or move to Los Angeles and attend Loyola Marymount University, a private institution.
Roy said the only con of the latter was the cost of living; everything else was a pro.
"I told myself, 'I'm not going to let fear stop me,'" Roy said. "I took a leap of faith, plus a s***-ton of student loans, and started my new life."
Born and raised in Corpus Christi, Roy, 31, has been in the world of dance since he was in high school. Having played sports since he could walk, Roy traded in touchdowns and track for pirouettes and precision.
He started a hip-hop dance group at Ray, Teens of Krunk, and started to attend a dance studio with his cousin Alexis Anderson-Chaves, who is now a dance professor at El Paso Community College.
The fall after graduating from high school, Roy booked a gig in LA to perform with pop-R&B singer Rihanna at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards.
Fourteen years later, Roy is set to compete in HBO Max's voguing reality competition streaming series "Legendary." The program follows LGBTQIA+ ballroom house members as they compete through nine balls — dancing, voguing and walking events — for a chance to win $100,000.
Ballroom is a subculture that originated in New York City by the African American and Latino LGBTQIA+ community. Attendees would dance, vogue, walk, pose, perform, lip-sync and model in numerous drag and performance competition categories for prizes and trophies.
The third season premieres Thursday.
Roy's house, House of Ada, is the first gender non-conforming house to compete on the show. The house hails from Portland, Oregon.
Houses are where chosen families of friends live in households together, forming relationships and communities separate from their families of origin.
"We are a house full of immigrants, essentially," Roy said. "I'm from Texas, but the African American story is one scary immigrant story in itself."
Other house members are from Mexico, Cambodia, Vietnam and a mix of nationalities and races including Indian, white and Black.
"Our house is a reflection of where ballroom has come today," Roy said.
Roy joined the House of Ada in 2020, he said. He'd met his house father, Daniel Giron, in 2018 when they would "battle" on the ballroom floor in vogue competitions in LA.
"Our chemistry was dynamic, and it guaranteed to lift the energy in the room," Giron said.
Roy said he's excited for people to watch "Legendary." He said he and his new family grew closer because of the competition.
"The show was so challenging, especially during the pandemic," Roy said. "Right before we went there, cases were rising again. We had to quarantine so no one would get sick. Then when we got there, we had to quarantine again."
Roy said the show was emotionally challenging.
"You will become closer with anyone when you go through something that hard and overwhelming," Roy said. "It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
Roy's stage persona, Virgo, is a force to be reckoned with, Giron said.
"He encourages us as a team player, yet leads with love and loyalty as a friend," Giron said. "He has quickly earned the trust and respect from every member of the house and is often seen as another parental figure in the group."
Anderson-Chaves, Roy's cousin, said she's excited to see where Roy ends up in 10 years. She said she is proud of him for being his authentic self.
"As a gay Black man, he's in a career field that is hard to be successful in," Anderson-Chaves said. "For him to be taking the world on headfirst is not only incredible, but he's representing young individuals everywhere who are just like him."
While Roy said he didn't have someone like himself to look up to when he was young, he's honored to be that figure for someone else.
"I was so unsure of what or who I was in high school," Roy said. "I didn't know what I am now was an option. I really wish I could've saw someone who was so different. Someone Black, gay and ambiguously femme.
"The biggest thing that got me to where I am now was facing my fear. If fear is the only con, that's not a practical enough reason to take a risk when it comes to living my dream. That one choice led me here. Don't choose into fear."
MORE COVERAGE
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John Oliva covers entertainment and community news in South Texas. Contact him at john.oliva@caller.com or Twitter @johnpoliva. Consider supporting local journalism with a subscription to the Caller-Times.
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Corpus Christi native to compete on HBO Max's 'Legendary'
