Tamsier Joof

Biography

Tamsier Joof Aviance or Tamsier Aviance (né Tamsier Joof; born 17 May 1973,), formerly known by the stage name Tam Jo, is a British dancer, choreographer, actor, model, entrepreneur, radio presenter, and author. He took the name "Aviance" after joining the House of Aviance, one of the legendary vogue-ball houses in the United States. As well as appearing in several musicals, and as stage backing dancer for Mary Kiani, Take That and Janet Jackson, he was also known within the London voguing scene during the 1990s and is among the original London vogue dancers of that era.

== Early life and education == Tamsier was born in North West London (Kensal Rise) into a Senegalese-Gambian family. His late father was a Gambian barrister and solicitor, and his mother a business woman. Tamsier left the UK when he was two years old after his father decided to move his family back to the Gambia and establish his chambers there. He returned to the UK couple of years later to pursue his education. In an interview with West Africa magazine, Tamsier said:

Coming from an African family where education is everything, I felt I needed to please both my parents and myself. I love dance and hated accounting, but accounting provided respectability in African circles so I studied both. Tamsier studied classical ballet, jazz, African, contemporary, Latin, tap and labanotation. He attended Middlesex University, the University of Wolverhampton and the London Studio Centre and holds an Accounting and Finance Honours Degree, a PGCE and a Performing Arts Dance Degree. As of 2006, he was a non-active qualified teacher and an Associate of the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing and the International Dance Teachers Association. Tamsier also took additional classes at London's Pineapple Dance Studios and Danceworks in various dance styles such as breaking; commercial jazz with the late Nicky Bentley (one of the earlier dance teachers at Pineapple Dance Studios) and with choreographer Shanie, whom he describes as influencing his commercial funk and jazz style. He also studied popping and street locking with Jimmy Williams - one of the early UK street lockers, and attended workshops with internationally renowned guest choreographers like Bryant Baldwin (USA) and Mauro Mosconi (Italy).

== Career ==

=== Dance and choreography === Tamsier worked as a stage backing dancer for Mary Kiani, Kym Mazelle, Jocelyn Brown, Martha Wash, MN8, Take That, Honeyz, Impact Dance Productions (UK, Sadler's Wells) and also appeared on Janet Jackson's 1995 World Tour at Wembley Arena (London leg of the tour, small portion). Some of his musical theatre work include Starlight Express, Fame, Rent, Hot Mikado and The Wiz. Choreographic work include "Consecrated Love" for the Yozo Fass Dance Theatre Company, which he co-choreographed and performed in; "Dance Fusion" for the Choreographer's Ball (London); and "Our Town Story" for East London (London Borough of Hackney) with Ujamaa Arts, supported by McDonald's for the year 2000 Millennium Dome Show. Along with his experience in mainstream dance genres such as jazz and ballet, Tamsier was also involved in the underground London vogue scene during the late 1980s or early 1990s. By the early to late 1990s, Tamsier was one of the most recognisable New way voguers within the London underground scene and worked extensively in several London clubs as a podium dancer / voguer including Heaven Nightclub, Equinox, The Tube, Lowdown, Trade, Vox and Busby's. It was whilst working as a dancer in the early 1990s at Heaven that Tamsier met the legendary Jean Michel who will become one of his closest friends and vogue mentor. The two regularly frequented the London club scene giving performances and engaging in vogue battles with other London voguers. In 1997 whilst working for Heaven Nightclub's host and performer — Miss Kimberley as a backing voguer, Tamsier was interviewed and photographed by the alternative culture magazine Bizarre. Tamsier's "interesting look and voguing talent" made him a prime candidate for an interview. Tamsier credited his old friend and mentor Jean Michel for teaching him the elements of vogue and for mentoring him, as well as watching legendary U.S. voguers like Willi Ninja and Hector Xtravaganza. As a regular user of Pineapple Dance Studios in Covent Garden and Danceworks in Bond Street, Tamsier encouraged his mentor to run vogue classes in these studios. When Jean Michel was finally given a spot at Danceworks, Tamsier helped spread the word among his dancer friends "some of whom have had no exposure to real voguing other than what they've seen on Madonna's 1990 Vogue video." Tamsier regularly attended the class and supported his mentor.

=== Teaching === Tamsier was a dance teacher and lecturer, teaching jazz, ballet and contemporary. He taught at Carol Straker Dance School in London, Wood Green High School College of Sports, the University of Birmingham and the London Guildhall University. Tamsier ran workshops in various inner city schools in London and the Midlands. He was a dance coach/consultant for Sandwell and Dudley Borough Council in partnership with the region's development agency (Advantage West Midlands) and ran dance workshops throughout the West Midlands and also taught the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority's GCSE and A-level dance syllabi at various schools in the region including the A-level labanotation syllabus. He also taught advance/professional jazz at various dance studios including Adage Dance Studios in Harborne (Birmingham).

=== Retirement and comeback === Tamsier retired from professional dancing (on-and-off) in 2001 to pursue other business ventures, taking only non-lengthy dance contracts or teaching. In March 2015, Tamsier came out of retirement to appear on FKA twigs music video "Glass & Patron" as a vogue dancer starring alongside Javier Ninja, David Magnifique and Benjamin Milan. The video was officially released on FKA twigs YouTube channel on Monday, 23 March 2015.

== Acting and modelling == Tamsier did some acting and modelling during his career working with artistic directors like Michel Wallace (the French choreographer and artistic director of the Yozo Fass Dance Theatre Company) and Paa C Quaye (the Ghanaian actor—director and artistic director of Ujamaa Arts). Tamsier appeared as background actor in the 2002 drama Dirty Pretty Things; in the 2003 comedy Love Actually.; and in the 2024 American musical fantasy film Wicked (and Wicked: For Good (2025) as Ozian dancer)) as an Emerald City dancer and salon owner, reprising his role from the 2000 and 2001 Flymonkey Productions of The Wiz (also starring Sharon D. Clarke, 2000). He also appears as a dancer in the upcoming Netflix film Eloise, directed by Amy Sherman-Palladino, and starring Ryan Reynolds. Tamsier was also a film, television and theatre costume model for Academy Costumes, and one of his major modelling jobs was modelling the costumes of the Tomb Raider 2 film directed by Jan de Bont and starring Angelina Jolie.