Paris Is Burning: Part Deux

Eight years ago, Gallic club habitués Cyril Blanc and Alexandre Barouzdin, bored by the jaded scene that surrounded them, set out to re-create some of the energy of earlier eras. They innovated a dance technique called Tecktonik, a series of post-vogueing, manic movements that echoes the same stylized glamour of its predecessor. Today Tecktonik is all the rage in France, with sell-out club nights, a clothing line, chewing gum (we don’t quite get that one, either), and, starting next month, a series of international flagship stores. The Tecktonik look is Boombox meets American Apparel—think neon colors, eye-catching tees, and lots of leggings—and its obvious youth appeal and reasonable price points explain why the shops already sell upward of 1,000 T-shirts a week in France alone. Now, with fans like Janet Jackson taking notice, it’s only a matter of time before the House of Tecktonik becomes the next big thing stateside.