BEYOND THE STARDUST to Open at The Flea With Full Cast Announced

The Flea has announced the cast of Beyond the Stardust, the immersive nightlife show conceived by Flea Artistic Director Niegel Smith and The Illustrious Blacks, running September 10 - October 18 at The Flea. Featuring 12 original songs, stunning visuals, and a host of nightlife's most enchanting aerialists, dancers, go-go boys, girls, and they/thems, Beyond the Stardust is an Afro-disco-space-punk-extravaganza of no-f-cks-futurist-fabulousness, inviting audiences into intercosmic dance floor liberation.

Starring The Illustrious Blacks—Monstah and Black!—the production also features vocalist Amazonian Rockstar, vocalist, dancer, and choreographer Courtney J. Cook, aerialists DeShawn Marshall, Blaine Petrovia, and Queen Ravenden.

The Beyond the Stardust creative team is The Illustrious Blacks (Co-Creator, Lyrics, and Music in collaboration with W. Andrew Raposo), Niegel Smith (Co-Creator, Book Writer, and Director/Choreographer), Oscar Escobedo (Scenic and Props Designer), Kate McGee (Lighting Designer), DeShon Elem (Costume Designer), and German Martinez (Sound Designer).

Monstah said, “Beyond the Stardust is a gloriously, sexy, funky, immersive, sonic, and visual experience sprinkled with sparkle. It shakes loose stagnant belief systems, daring you to dream bigger. Lead with love. Live fully, unapologetically, and ferociously.”

Black! said, “With Monstah coming from a background of experimental choreography and me coming from music and theatre, we've always envisioned creating a piece that combined all of those art forms with our love of nightlife—which brought us together and has played an important role in our lives individually and as a couple. We, along with our main musical collaborator, W. Andrew Raposo, drew upon the sounds of the music we love, fusing Disco, House, Funk, Punk and Synth Pop to make people dance, but also make people think. Niegel has been the perfect collaborator to see a vision that feels authentically us.”

Niegel Smith added, “The Flea exists to support experimental art by Black, brown, and queer artists. Part of that experimentation is how do we create an inviting space to engage in tricky, beautiful, dangerous live works? When I wake up in the morning, I'm either singing or dancing or meditating, and the place of shift and change for me is in a fully embodied self. I'm excited for people to be awash in the vibrations of other folks in the room and from each performer bringing the virtuosity of their own badass selves. The Flea is not interested in works that tell you how to be or move or behave, but inspire you to be conscious of those choices for yourself.”

Tickets for Beyond the Stardust are on sale as of today at theflea.org/stardust.

ABOUT THE CAST

The Illustrious Blacks

Once upon a time in a galaxy not far away, there lived two Kings. Each was the ruler of their own deliciously glorious planet. The first King, Black! (fka Manchildblack), was known throughout the cosmos for DJing booming beats and celestial sonics with earthy musical messages. The other King, Monstah, was a star in the solar system for their gravity defying performances, genderbending fashions and ethereal vocals. One magical night, an inexplicable ultramagnetic pull forced the two planets to collide. A technicolored explosion occurred, turning night into day, with a feast of aural and visual delights. It was then that the universe was changed forever. Black! and Monstah united and became The Illustrious Blacks!

With inspiration from alien superstars such as Prince, Grace Jones, David Bowie and George Clinton, The Illustrious Blacks have descended to Earth with a mission to fuse futuristic funk, high vibrational house, hypnotic techno and spacey synth disco into their own electrifying and transcendental performances that bring pulsating positivity to the planet. Mixing DJing, performance art, fashion and live vocals, YoHoMo described their live show perfectly: “Self-proclaimed Afro-Electro-Disco-Space-Punks, DJ/Music duo The Illustrious Blacks are unlike anything you've ever seen. Part DJ set, part dance performance, part Studio 54, part Berlin underground, this NY couple know how to put on a SHOW!”

In 2017, the music duo The New York Times hailed as Bed-Stuy's “favorite creative couple,” released their highly anticipated debut EP, Neo Afro Futuristic Psychedelic Surrealistic Hippy. The EP featured the anthemic “Black Like Jesus,” whose music video premiered on Billboard.com. In the same year, they found time to work on a remake of the 90s dance floor classic “Funk That!,” which spawned a popular music video. Subsequent singles followed including the joyous “Revolutionary Love,” which received major praise from Paper Magazine and Out.com.

As the result of a viral DJ set on Facebook live for the Questlove (The Roots) founded music platform Okayplayer, The Illustrious Blacks garnered international fame and found themselves touring Asia, Australia, Europe, the UK and Canada. They were booked to perform in iconic venues like Sydney Opera House (House of Mince), Ministry of Sound and Hi Ibiza (Glitterbox). Also, major music festivals came calling: Roskilde, Splore, Clockenflap, Beyond the Valley, Return to Rio, Pitch Music & Arts, Latitude, Milkshake, The Mighty Hoopla, Fusion and Robot Heart. Back in NYC, the globetrotters took their live shows to respected venues like the legendary Apollo Theater, Central Park Summerstage, Lincoln Center, The Shed, House of Yes, Good Room, Avant Gardner, Brooklyn Museum, Le Bain, Elsewhere, Knockdown Center and Public Records. The Illustrious Blacks also performed alongside a diverse array of musical artists like Doechii, Tove Lo, SG Lewis, Jessie Ware, Big Freedia, Cupcakke, Chaka Khan and were booked as the supporting act for the 2026 Australian tour of the legendary Grace Jones.

Even with their hectic touring schedule, The Illustrious Blacks continued to put out new music. 2020 saw the release of their celebrated sophomore EP, Technegrocolor. Of their lead single, “Step Back,” Gaytimes raved, “The Illustrious Blacks have delivered one of the most unapologetically queer anthems of the year.” In 2023, they collaborated with producer Seven Davis Jr on the Pandemonium EP, which featured remixes by the incomparable Osunlade. More collabs followed, including tracks with David Morales, Hilit Kolet, Floorplan, Luke Soloman, Nickodemus, Tedd Patterson, as well as their own solo projects on the Defected Records/Classic Music Company label.

In 2025, the illustrious ones dropped the Velocity EP, on Soul Clap Records, that reached #12 on the iTunes Dance Music Albums Chart. The lead single “Suck My Disco” also became the title of their monthly residency at Brooklyn hotspot C'mon Everybody. DJ Mag says of Velocity: “the duo's core message resonates, making it a worthy manifesto for this moment.”

As The Illustrious Blacks continue to work on their debut album and new live show/spectacle Beyond the Stardust premiering at The Flea Theater in the fall of 2026, they have expanded their creativity to music production and remixing. Jody Watley's uplifting song “Everlasting” features a version produced by Amara Jaguar and the dynamic duo themselves. Individually, Monstah and Black! illuminate the galaxy with equal magnitude. As The Illustrious Blacks, they have combined their superpowers to save the world one beat at a time and encourage all to LIVE THE HYPE LIFE!

Amazonian Rockstar (they/them)

Amazonian Rockstar is a non-binary powerhouse vocalist whose soaring voice commands every dance floor it touches. Rooted in house, disco, blues, funk, and soul, their sound is deeply soulful and irresistibly uplifting—equal parts carnivalesque energy and raw emotional resonance. With a vocal presence that is magnetic, warm, and electrifying, Amazonian Rockstar has become one of the most sought-after voices in the underground dance music world.

Formerly known as Nicki B The Vagabond, they cemented their artistry by lending their powerhouse vocals to the official Studio 54 Music label, the newly launched imprint of the legendary Studio 54, on the soulful disco track “Got To Have Loving.” Since evolving into Amazonian Rockstar, they have collaborated with acclaimed producers across house and disco, delivering vocals that don't just ride a beat—they own it.

Courtney J. Cook (she/her)

Courtney J. Cook hails from Norfolk, VA and is now residing in Brooklyn, NY. She is a graduate of the Virginia Governor's School of the Arts and holds a B.F.A. in Dance and Choreography from Virginia Commonwealth University. Since 2013, she has performed as a company member, BOLD facilitator, and later Associate Artistic Director with Urban Bush Women. She is a recipient of the 2018 “Bessie” Award for Outstanding Performance for her work with UBW, Maria Bauman (MBDance), and Marguerite Hemmings (we free). She has had the privilege to build work in collaboration with interdisciplinary artists Tendayi Kuumba and Greg Purnell (FLUXX 2018–2019) exploring movement, sound, theater, and visual art. In 2022, Cook was involved as performer/choreographic collaborator and vocalist in Cannabis! A Viper Vaudville, created by Baba Israel and Grace Galu Kalambay (Soul Inscribed). In the fall of 2023, she made her debut performance with Houston Grand Opera as a dancer in the World Premiere of Jake Heggie's Intelligence under direction of Jawole Willa Jo Zollar. Additional opera credits include The Met Opera in John Adams' El Niño, directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz and choreographed by Marjani Forte-Saunders, and the '25–'26 season production of George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess, choreographed by Camille A. Brown. Since the fall of 2025, Cook has been performing as a company member with Camille A. Brown and Dancers, joining the tour for Brown's latest Bessie-nominated work, I AM. She is thrilled to continue deepening her practice as a freelance performer, dance educator, organizer, and art maker.

DeShawn Marshall “Marshall” (he/him)

DeShawn Marshall “Marshall” is an aerialist, dancer, and US National Pole champion who performs, teaches, and produces art in New York City. He began his dance training at Colorado Ballet, was a trainee at BalletMet Columbus, and danced with various US companies including Oklahoma City Ballet, Dayton Ballet, and Boulder Ballet. He graduated summa cum laude with distinction with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Colorado, Boulder. Marshall's classical and contemporary training heavily influence his artistic and movement choices. He has taught pole and aerial classes in Denver, Oklahoma City, Chicago, and currently in various studios across New York City. He is a founding member of the New York City-based pole company, Pillars, and has performed extensively in the New York circus and nightlife scene including at established venues like The Box, The Slipper Room, and Brooklyn Art Haus.

Blaine Petrovia (he/him)

Born and raised in New York City, Blaine Petrovia is a world-renowned performer and award-winning pole dancer. From a young age, training in dance and gymnastics unknowingly led him to discovering circus arts. Since then, traveling the world and bringing joy with his performance has become his life's mission.

Queen Ravenden (she/her)

Queen Ravenden is a multidisciplinary aerialist, dancer, and performance artist raised between St. Croix, USVI and Baltimore, Maryland. She studied theatre at the Baltimore School for the Arts and later trained in circus arts at The Muse Brooklyn. With more than 20 years of performance experience, her work spans aerial arts, dance, stilt-walking, immersive performance, and festival arts.

She has performed alongside artists including Denzel Curry, Nitty Scott, and Kacey Musgraves, and has appeared at spaces and festivals such as House of Yes, Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival, and Life Is Beautiful Festival.

In 2024, she received the CSAW Award for her two-person show “Black Joy: An Ancestral Journey To Liberation,” a Black queer dance-circus production exploring ancestral healing, liberation, and celebration, which premiered at the Philadelphia Fringe Festival.

About Niegel Smith (he/him)

Niegel Smith is a Bessie Award-winning theater director and performance artist. He is the Artistic Director of NYC's Obie Award-winning theater, The Flea, guiding the organization through its refounding as a hub for experimental art by Black, brown and queer artists. He is also a board member of A.R.T./New York and was a ringleader of Willing Participant, an artistic activist organization that whips up urgent poetic responses to crazy shit that happens.

He has helmed the productions of theatrical concerts by John Batiste, Taylor Mac, Suzan-Lori Parks, Lady Rizo and En Vogue; music theater works including The Hang, Plays for the Plague Year and The Ritual of Breath Is the Rite to Resist; and the world premieres of new plays and musicals at The Alley, BAM, Goodman Theatre, The Flea, HERE Arts Center, Hip Hop Theatre Festival, Lincoln Center, Magic Theatre, Mixed Blood, New York Fringe, Phoenix Theatre Ensemble, Playwrights Horizons, The Public Theater, St. Ann's Warehouse, Summer Play Festival, The Sydney Opera House, and Under the Radar. His participatory walks and performances have been produced by Abrons Arts Center, American Realness, The Brooklyn Museum, Dartmouth College, Elastic City, The Flea, The Invisible Dog, Jack, The New Museum, Prelude Festival, PS 122, the Van Alen Institute and Visual AIDS.

Niegel is the recipient of the Black Theater Alliance Award for Best Direction, City and State's Trailblazer in the Arts 2025, and Sainthood from The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.

About The Flea

The Flea was refounded in 2021 with the mission to support and invest in experimental art by Black, brown, and queer artists. The Flea provides space, financial support, producing partnership and other resources so that they may develop and share their vision in community with audiences.

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