STREET / STAGE

HIP HOP 360: 3^rd Edition

Friday, July 24, 2009 - National Arts Centre Studio - 8:00 PM

Tickets: $20 General Admission available through Ticketmaster / NAC Box Office

The Canada Dance Festival presents its 3^rd Edition of the Hip Hop 360 project with Street/Stage, Friday, July 24, 2009. A family friendly event highlighting the development of the ‘Street to Stage' concept and the exploration of urban and Hip Hop influences in contemporary dance, the performance will feature works by bboy / bgirl crews Bboyizm (Ottawa) and F.A.M. (Toronto), juxtaposed by the work of urban contemporary dance company 605 Collective (Vancouver). Performances by Bboyizm and F.A.M. will explore how street-based bboy / bgirl forms (popularly known as breakdancing) can be presented in theatre settings, while the 605 Collective will illustrate how street-based forms are increasingly influencing the contemporary milieu.

The 605 Collective have been taking the Vancouver dance community by storm with their risk-taking choreographies inspired by both urban and contemporary dance. These uniquely talented individuals craft dances that satisfy their passion for many disciplines, resulting in highly athletic and visually stirring creations. Performing their newest creation Audible, the artists jump, dive and collide to transform today's hyper-communication into a highly athletic contact sport. With the group's extreme versatility they pull from each other's diverse movement vocabularies, past their individual limitations towards new possibilities. Experimentation and a desire to find the most original orchestration of movement results in extremely physical and powerful work by a new generation of emerging choreographers, representing the exciting possibilities for the future of Hip Hop in Canadian dance. 

www.605collective.com

Bboyizm is a dance company mandated to promote and preserve the foundation, authenticity and true essence of all street dance forms. The group is choreographed and led by Gatineau resident Bboy Crazysmooth (Yvon Soglo), known across Canada and internationally as a leading educator of the art form who was also the first bboy to ever receive a dance creation grant from the Canada Council for the Arts. Bboyizm's artistic philosophy of self-expression and motto "Dance to express! Not to impress" are the foundation for their creation of honest poetry in movement, combining some of the world's best street dancers in an exciting stage performance that is unique and memorable.

www.bboyizm.ca

F.A.M. (aka Floor Assassins Militia or Future Art Movement), are a Toronto-based group of young artists, dancers and musicians from diverse backgrounds who cemented their status as a major force in the Canadian bboy scene by winning the B-Boy Unit Canada battle in 2007. They went on to represent Canada at the world championships in Korea, and followed up in 2008 when they took home the trophy in Ottawa's very own national bboy / bgirl battle House of PainT. The group's close friendship allows them to be inspired, motivated, and innovative as a creative group that reflects the positive values of Hip Hop culture: teamwork, power, innovation, health, fitness, respect, tradition, history, style and originality.

Stay tuned to www.canadadance.ca and the Hip Hop 360 Facebook group for updates on events, workshops, outdoor cyphers, dance master classes and House of PainT from July 22 through 25.