"Sita Sings the Blues" is one of those multi-thread, multi-cultural vanity projects that shouldn't work, but somehow does. Producer / animator / director / writer Nina Paley manages to blend the ancient Indian myth of Ramayana with 1920s jazz provided by diva Annette Hanshaw , as told by three contemporary Indians represented as shadow puppets. …
Category: Dancing / Music
2010 Red Bull BC-One B-boy Competition: Pluto vs Luigi (video)
Here’s another one of my favorite matchups from this year’s Red Bull BC-One b-boy competition in Tokyo: Pluto from Ukraine versus Luigi of the USA. Pluto and Luigi have similar styles, including good floorwork, uprocking, and power. I’m still not sure how I would call this match. It’s interesting how frosty the reception of the…
2010 Red Bull BC-One B-boy Competition Final Match: Neguin vs Just Do It (video)
I woke up mad early to catch the Red Bull BC-One b-boy competition, streaming live online from Tokyo. Here's some quick video of the final match between Neguin of Brazil and Just Do It from the Netherlands. Neguin is a seasoned veteran, with a distinctive style, mad powermoves, and an aggressive stance. Just Do It…
Mini-review: Red Bull BC-One B-boy Game for iPhone / iPad / iTouch
Red Bull BC-One has in the past few years established itself as the gold standard of b-boy / breaking competitions, with top notch events, world class dancers, and film quality videos. Now the BC-One folks have added gaming to their offerings, with games for the Nintendo-DS, online, and now for the iPhone / iPad /…
Teaching Kids about Mass Extinction and Capoeira
Today I had a group of Brooklyn high schoolers do research on the Permian-Triassic mass extinction 250 million years ago and then do a demo of capoeira for a group of Chicago teens over Skype. I have the best job in the world. More about my day here.
Jitterbug Kids doing lindy hop demo at NY Swing Dance Society (video)
Check out these cute kids doing a very classic lindy hop routine at the last New York Swing Dance Society Dance on Sunday! According to my friend Jun their names are Merika and Andre of Brooklyn. Go, swing kids!
First B-Boy Show Done: One More Show Tonight!
Last night my peeps Eugene, Will, Brooke and I did the first of two b-boy performances for the Dance Showcase at PMT Studios. It was a lot of fun bringing this piece before a crowded and supportive audience of dancers and dance enthusiasts. I think half the audience was Eugene's friends and famiy! I think…
B-boy Show Tomorrow and Saturday: Tickets Going Fast!
I've been busting my ass rehearsing for my b-boy performance at the PMT Dance Showcase this weekend. I, along with 3 other b-boys / b-girls, will be doing a fun subway-inspired piece that I'm very proud of. Here's a pic of most of my costume. Guess which archetypal New Yorker I am? Our shows are…
Interview with Minn Vo about Lindy Hop and the LXD
Check out this neat interview Spuds and I did with lindy hopper / b-boy Minn Vo, who talks about how he got lindy (albeit briefly) onto the Legion of Extraordinary Dancers webseries. Minn is a champion lindy hop dancer, with a long history of 1st place titles in the dance competition circuit including American Lindy…
First Dancer’s Review of “Dance Central” and Kinect for Xbox 360
My buddy Spuds posts to Yehoodi.com his review of the new XBox 360 game "Dance Central," the flagship dancing game of the new "Kinect" controller system. It's the first dancer's perspective review of "Dance Central" that I've seen on the web so far. Kinect is what might be a paradigm-changing system for interfacing with your…