Hip-hop dance is a tough gig where only the most resilient survive. Traditionally it’s been a male dominated dance style.
Women and girls, although fewer in numbers, are just as fearless. When performing in unison, they stand tall and even eclipse their male counterparts.
Lisa Beztilny, 17, is one such dancer. A student of Vince Akinyode, founder of St. Albert’s Eye Candy Studios, she is part of 52 dancers performing at World of Dance Seattle 2014 on Nov. 15. All but three are female.
World of Dance Seattle is the largest international urban dance competition with a focus on the art of street dancing and new age choreography. It is an event where hundreds of North America’s top street dancers and thousands of spectators flock to see the best.
For dancers such as Beztilny, it’s an unparalleled experience in scope, artistic achievement and the opportunity to build an enthusiastic reputation for this growing art form.
“I never thought we would go on that stage and everyone is really thankful for Vince doing this,” said Beztilny. “We’re not going with big expectations. We know there is going to be such good talent. I’m happy just to go because it’s such a good experience.”
Akinyode, who gained a foothold in St. Albert’s hip hop dance scene teaching at DanceCo, has operated Eye Candy for five years. Although boys and girls are equally professional and energetic, they approach street dance in different ways.
“Boys like to be active and jumping around. Boys gravitate to street dance. They want to be part of the break dance scene with crazy flips. Boys are more independent and want to create.”
“Girls on the other hand pick up dance way faster than boys. They are focused more on learning one thing before they progress to the next level. Girls are more perfectionists. Girls will take it home and work on it.”
He developed his own breezy street dance stature in the fivesome White Chocolate. Borrowing from that experience, Akinyode plans to turn heads in Seattle using three different forms of choreography: house, footwork packed with free flow movement; animation, robotic sharp movement, and the sharp aggressive movements of street dance.
Four teams hope to catch the judges’ eyes with their physical prowess. Beztilny performs with two crews. In Tactical Squad, a fun whimsical character dance, the Grade 12 Bellerose High student is in a janitorial cleanup crew keeping the pace with brooms, bags and garbage cans.
In the second flashy showcase special, dancers wear two-tone costumes: front all black, back all white. About 15 dancers will also sport LED lights and everyone carries coloured panels that are flipped in different formations.
“You have a ripple of colours. It’s very visual, a very snappy formation. It has to be very precise in what colour is on. If you mess up, it really highlights your mistakes.”
Judges score on the smoothness of transitions and the level of entertainment.
An exuberant Beztilny finishes off saying, “We’re here to pull it off. We will pull it off.”
After the upcoming Saturday eliminations, World of Dance Seattle posts top tier dances on YouTube. Visit worldofdance.com for more information.
