Breakdancers visit Chch

Press, 17 May 1984, Page 12

Breakdancers visit Chch

The James Hay Theatre in the Christchurch Town Hall will pulse to the sounds of bopping and breaking on Saturday evening. Usually the venue for somewhat more genteel attractions, the theatre will be host to a breakdance demonstration by Auckland’s Boppalympic Crew, in which 26 young dancers with an average age of 16 will twist, roll and contort on the stage to the strains of rap and funk music. Local teams will then compete for ?450 in prizes, and as a finale the locals will compete against the Aucklanders.

The Boppalympic Crew is made up of three Auckland breakdancing teams who are strutting their stuff in a 21-venue national tour. The three-week tour be-

gan in Whangarei on May 4, and finishes in Auckland on May 27. The public relations spokesman for the crew, Mr Kelly Pene, said that the aim of the tour was to establish breakdance support groups around New Zealand, and to set up a national network of groups. Breakdance groups in Auckland were composed mainly of the unemployed and street-kids. Mr Pene said another aim of the tour was to raise enough to start an unemployment centre there.

“We want to join together youth of different races and religions, and give youth their pride back,” he said. Breakdancing had become extremely popular in Auckland over the last two years, with 15 groups in

Mangere alone, said Mr Pene. “It keeps a lot of people out of trouble,” he said. “A lot of bop groups in Auckland are using their talents for positive things, like getting employment and travelling overseas.” Their tour has cost $28,000, including uniforms, accommodation, and bus hire. Of this, $15,000 was raised before leaving from dance demonstrations, bottle-drives, and dole cheques, said Mr Pene. The group hopes to offset the balance from admission fees for their performances. Breakdancing began in America, but the New Zealand movement, which is 95 per cent Maori and Polynesian, was “streets ahead of everyone else,” said Mr Pene.

“We have our own moves and perfections,” he said. One of these was the “four-man wheel” in which four people bunch up into a ball, roll across stage, and break up at the end. Mr Pene was not keen on giving too much of the show away, but hinted at a spectacular grand finale. The show begins at 7 p.m. on Saturday, and tickets are available at the Town Hall. Admission costs $4 a person, and $2 for children under 12. Incidentally, “breaking” is performing dance movements on the ground, and “bopping” involves dance movements standing up. And why do they call themselves the “Boppalympic Crew?” “Because we want to make breakdancing an Olympic sport,” says Mr Pene.