Breakin' Convention

Hear dis! Norwich, grab the opportunity to catch some of the world’s top hip hop crews rapping and dancing alongside our own homegrown talent at possibly the least ghetto of our venues, Norwich Theatre Royal, as part of Breakin’ Convention on May 13th. Artistic director Jonzi D who’s been actively involved in British hip hop culture, rapping and b-boying since its genesis in the early 80s, told me about his love of hip hop and what’s in store for rap fans at the theatre. Slammin’.

How did Breakin’ Convention begin?

It was a result of me making hip hop inspired theatre work. I connected with a contact at Sadler’s Wells because I wanted to do more with hip hop and create a festival at a theatre. Many present what you might call high art but I have always had an argument with that. I think what we do with hip hop is contemporary and of today and surely there should be some exploration of this. The first one sold out and got five star reviews. The rest, as they say, is history.

The idea is to present lots of events in the run-up to an evening performance featuring top international acts, which in Norwich are Just Dance, Tentacle Tribe and Soweto Skeleton Movers, alongside crews drawn from the local area. Do you ever worry it will be hard to attract and engage the hip hop community?

As long as I have been doing Breakin' Convention, there are always places that surprise me. I didn’t realise Blackpool had such a buzzing hip hop community and so many of them are under 18. There is always something regarding this type of culture which permeates some areas of the arts in society today. It is almost inevitability.

Let’s check out the three crews from East Anglia who are taking part - firstly, Fly No Filter will be presenting a piece which contains mostly speech which is a different approach.

It is a style which I am personally really interested in to use text and music in an abstract way. They can come across as opposing forms but if they are coming across in the same way and saying the same thing, I think it works beautifully. Fly No Filter are very experienced in this way of working and I am very excited by them.

Next, Legacy who were formed after the search for young male dancers to appear in Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures production of Lord of the Flies in Norwich. They now work independently and are going from strength to strength.

What is really good about them is that they come from an institutional background of ballet and contemporary dance but they also have hip hop as part of their fabric. It is really good to get a crew who have had a lot of opportunities in ways in which the traditional hip hop community haven’t. This is a really good example of a really talented group.

And finally Parallel Dance Studios, whose hip hop crew work in the heart of rural Norfolk in Reepham.

For me, what is exciting is the bridge-building exercise that we do within Breakin’ Convention. We have got a responsibility towards artists from the Arts Council of England to address the rural areas and so called dark spots. If you have got a telly, there is no reason you are not going to have hip hop in your life. Unearthing groups like Parallel is so important and it shows that so many people are engaging with hip hop.

How did you get into hip hop yourself?

I grew up before hip hop. I remember watching a TV show called Arena and seeing breaking for the first time and thinking ‘what on earth is that? I want to do it.’ Some of my friends thought that too after seeing the programme. For me, it was not just the dance but the whole subculture and the rules and disciplines associated with it like rap and scratch DJ-ing. For me, it was just a completely new way of expressing myself as a 13 year old. Rolling around on the floor and calling it dance appealed to me. It was an empowering thing as well as I didn’t need ballet shoes. You didn’t have to come from a privileged family or have a certain kind of background. It was for everyone.

And is that what you want to do? Pass on and share your love of hip hop?

I would like people to experience what I experienced. I want people to have that power. There is a strong essence of passing it on within hip hop. It is not just for young people. We need to get rid of that misnomer. Again, I think that is a way we separate young and old. It has been around for 40 years. If it has been around for that long, it is getting old. Ha ha!

Breakin’ Convention is at Norwich Theatre Royal on Saturday 13 May at 7.30pm. Tickets £7-£24.