Urban Funk Spectacular Why not try it at home? BY RACHEL CARNES Just in time for the holidays, grab the kids; get grandma out of her rocking chair, pull grandpa away from his workbench and head to the Hult on Tuesday, Nov. 29 for BREAK! The Urban Funk Spectacular. This fast-paced show features a live DJ and a 14-member troupe of hip-hop masters. Kick up your heels as you take in a genuine world art form with roots in Africa, the West Indies, South America and Urban America. Feel the pulse of identity and culture as you soak up the illustrative moves that touch on indigenous rites, Brazilian Capoeira, modern politics and personal artistry. Hip-hop isn't just the videos you see on MTV or the knock-off fashions at the mall. It's not just the thumping bass from the car in the next lane. It's a movement, a calling, and a way of connecting, relating, and making sense of past, present and future. Groups like BREAK! owe a debt of gratitude to artists like Rennie Harris, whose masterful blend of hip-hop movement, modern choreography and bracing theater have earned him a earned him a place in the territory explored by the likes of Alvin Ailey. Harris's work walks the line between flash and substance, taking on rich subject matter - race relations, sexual abuse, and economics — within incredible, dazzling, heart-breaking dance. BREAK! may not carry the weight or choreographic content of Rennie Harris/Puremovement, but the show does profess to trace the evolution of hip-hop dance over the last thirty years, incorporating five styles of hip-hop into the performance: Dance, MC (or "rap"), DJ, Graffiti, and Fashion. I've no idea where the interpretation will land, whether choreography will measure up to skill, and create a package with punch. But in performances like this, it's assured that the spectacle of acrobatic, aerobic, body-defying movement is sure to delight. Presented at 7:30 pm Tuesday, Nov. 29 in the Silva Concert Hall.
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