Showing @ Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, Sat 24 Nov only

As shows like Strictly Come Dancing rekindle the passion for traditional dances within the nation’s younger generations, Jonzi D and Breakin’ Convention’s Open Art Surgery pushes the relatively new discipline of Hip Hop Theatre past its conventional parameters. A collection of six short sequences, each dance is performed by a different artist/group. After each set of three, the dancers are invited back to the stage for a quick Q&A.

Despite having only been devised and rehearsed in five days (apart from Xena Productions’ piece) the short segments aren’t just mesmerising capers, but thought-provoking statements on modern society. Ranging from topics such as alienation, online media, heritage, identity to the characteristics of sociopathy, the meaning behind the gyrations is as important as the beguiling movements themselves.

But the evening isn’t entirely about the performances; the subtitle Experiments in Hip Hop Theatre expresses an acceptance of the unknown about the production. These pieces move away from Hip Hop’s usual plain-speaking milieu to operate more within a theatrical field; sweeTe’s monologue is an intoxicating cloud of poetry, dance, rap, mime and theatre. Although the discussions interrupt the fluency of the evening, they’re a justified requirement because experiments need results, which only the audience can provide. The projects are held together by D’s passionate and charismatic energy so that even the feedback has a bright and positive atmosphere.

Hip Hop Theatre is a new, flourishing genre still exploring its own boundaries and potential, and its predominantly through organisations such as Breakin’ Convention that the young artists who are shaping it are able to learn from the audience and each other. While the dances are engrossing, they’re a by-product of what Open Art Surgery is really hammering at; it’s less about the performances and more about their influences, structures, limits and how they interact with one another and society.

Showing as part of the Traverse Dance Festival 2012.

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