House

In ballroom culture, a House is a chosen family that competes together at balls and provides community, mentorship, and a sense of belonging, especially for Black and Latino LGBTQ+ people who may have been rejected by their birth families. Houses emerged in mid-20th-century America as Black and Latino performers built their own spaces in response to racism in earlier drag balls. Each House carries a name, often taken by its members as a surname, such as LaBeija or Xtravaganza, and a family structure headed by a Mother and/or Father who guide the "children." Members walk in ballroom categories under the House banner, and long-running Houses build lineages that span decades.