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14 May 2014

Octavia St Laurent (1964 – 2009) performer, singer.

As Octavia would openly admit in later years, she started with the name Jeffrey. A native New Yorker, she started walking the New York balls in 1982. She joined the House of St Laurent and at age 26 was featured in Jennie Livingston's seminal documentary of the balls, Paris Is Burning. She then had a small part in the film, The Saint of Fort Washington, 1993.

Afterwards Octavia, already HIV+ and addicted, moved to Connecticut and worked as a motivational speaker and HIV educator. She was a talented singer and worked with Connecticut resident Greg Field on a series of recordings. However Greg got an extended gig in Iceland, and the recordings were never released.
Out Magazine, 2005

In 2005 she was the hostess at the Pill Awards. Also that year she was quoted in Out Magazine as "embarrassed" to have appeared in such a "depressing and degrading film"; but Next Magazine quoted her: "Paris is Burning was huge for me and I loved it".

She did appear in the next ball-scene film How Do I Look, which came out in 2006, and was open about her struggle with drugs, and her sex work.

She died at age 45 after a battle with cancer.
  • Jennie Livingston (dir) Paris is Burning, with Dorian Corey, Octavia St Laurent, Pepper Labeija, Angie Xtravaganza and Venus Xtravaganza. US 71 mins 1990.
  • “Still Burning” Out, Oct 2005: 54-5. Online at: http://rodonline.typepad.com/rodonline/2005/10/still_burning.html.
  • Gregory T. Angelo. "Strong Medicine: The Heavenly Angel Octavia Saint-Laurent Manolo-Blahnik hosts ADD-TV’s Pill Awards. Fourteen years after Paris Is Burning, her fire is still burning as bright- and as hot – as ever". Next Magazine, Oct 21, 2005. 
  • Wolgang Busch (dir). How Do I Look, with Tracy Africa, Octavia St Laurent. US 2006.
  • Michael Musto. "RIP, Octavia St Laurent". The Village Voice, May 19 2009. http://blogs.villagevoice.com/dailymusto/2009/05/rip_octavia_st.php.
  • Xem. "The Legacy of Octavia St Laurent". XemSays, July 22, 2012. http://xemsays.com/?p=240.
IMDB      EN.WIKIPEDIA

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