JOIN USWhen storm came calling
The lecture demonstration came after a press conference where Hans Günter Löffler, Deputy to Consul-General, Consulate of the Federal Republic of Germany, announced the opening of the multi-city event, ‘Germany and India 2011-2012: Infinite Opportunities’.
This is to celebrate the 60th anniversary of India and Germany’s diplomatic relations.
The lecture demonstration was for the dancers of the Attakkalari Centre for Movement Arts and a few outsiders as well.
Niels Robitzky, who is in the City for the first time, has been dancing for 30 years and was in Mumbai two years back to train dancers for the reality show, ‘Dance India Dance’.
“I would like to think of myself as an ambassador of hip-hop and I want to school people about the dance styles of hip-hop — ‘bboying’, ‘locking’ and ‘popping’. It is a beautiful art and became my medicine,” he said.
Storm started the lecture with an insight into the history of hip-hop which originated in the African and Latin-American communities in the 1970s in USA.
He spoke about how the dance was previously called ‘break dance’ by the media. He also referred to Afrika Bambaataa as the godfather of hip-hop culture.
He then went on to perform different steps to the awe-struck audience as he danced to various funky tunes. He showed how the dance got the name ‘break dance’ with its breaks and fast movements. Storm clearly illustrated the evolution of the dance and the hip-hop culture — from the fights in the ghettos, to the baseball caps and even the baggy clothes, clearly showing the history behind the tough lives of the people in the ghettos and their defence mechanisms for survival and to make their own space in society.
“Our dance is synchronised to the music as music really moves us. This is different from other dances and is without doubt, the most physical dance on the planet,” said Storm during the lecture. He performed different steps such as ‘baby freeze’, ‘six steps’,’waves’ and ‘robot’ to the mesmerised audience and ended his lecture with the famous ‘windmill’ step.
Joel, a big fan said, “I have always seen him in his videos. Now to actually see him here giving us a full picture of the history of the dance as well as show some of the steps was really great.”
Storm will be training ten dancers in a week-long workshop and this will be integrated into a dance performance, ‘Solo for Two’, by Storm on September 24 at 7 pm at Good Shepherd Auditorium on Museum Road.