If you want to truly appreciate hip hop dance, you need to see it live. Most of the community is not on TV and most of their work is not on Youtube. Case in point: this week I attended Hip Hop Generation Next's "Hip Hop Kung Fu" show at New York's Asia Society. The performances paid tribute to the ways that Asian culture (kung fu, Shaolin, Tai chi, drumming, dance forms, anime) and American Hip Hop have influenced and reinforced each other to great advantage. This live show, which was choreographed by hip hop pioneer Buddha Stretch, represented hip hop in all its power, vibrancy, growth, and humor, in a way that TV and pop culture cannot convey.
Hip Hop Generation Next is part of Dancing in the Streets, a group that provides free public dance and site-specific performances. You can see the group (including Buddha Stretch and the Hip Hop Kung Fu ensemble) at a block party at Simpson Street in the Bronx tomorrow August 6. Click here for all the details and to learn more about the group. And, two videos to represent what you might see: a promo, and an interview (with some illustration) by Buddha Stretch.
Hip Hop Generation Next is part of Dancing in the Streets, a group that provides free public dance and site-specific performances. You can see the group (including Buddha Stretch and the Hip Hop Kung Fu ensemble) at a block party at Simpson Street in the Bronx tomorrow August 6. Click here for all the details and to learn more about the group. And, two videos to represent what you might see: a promo, and an interview (with some illustration) by Buddha Stretch.
