"Breakin' Convention 2016"

Nottingham Royal Concert Hall.

From the title of the show you may be mistaken that this show will be non stop hip hop and break dancing, well not so because the title of the show actually could mean that this show is breakin' down conventional ideas of dance.

What do i mean by that? Well I'll tell you.The dance performances covered quite a few genres of dance, as did the music. i know that a lot of people, probably my age and older, some younger, may not be fans of today's hip hop, grime, two step, whatever the latest term is, but the music itself borrowed from classical, jazz, r 'n' b and a wonderfully hypnotic routine to the music of Nina Simone.

The billing is "An International Festival Of Hip Hop Dance Theatre" and the clue is in that last word, "theatre". This show is theatre, it is performance. It tells a story in vignettes of music and dance.

Hosted by the legendary Jonzi D, dancer, spoken word artist and director and local dance legend, Duncan Mitchell aka "Frisco Boogie", they presented seven amazing but very different dance acts on Tuesday night.

Local dance group, Take 1 Dance, kicked the show off with a tribute to 90's hip hop artist Lauryn Hill. the dancers aged between 8 and 15 years olds clearly showed their love for dance in this uplifting and joyous celebration.

Hal Mayer, from Nottingham,gave a performance with a mannequin, called "Mannequin" about a young man obsessed with the female form. Quite a startling piece of contemporary dance depicting a certain amount of violence to the mannequin, which then came to life.

Then came BeatBots consisting of dancers from Nottingham and Derby, They presented a fascinating piece called "Runners".Loved this group.

The incredible Iron Skulls Co.kick off the International feel of the show as they hail from Barcelona, Spain. They mix acrobatics with contemporary dance and hip hop with a stylish fast moving piece of dance theatre to close the first half of the show,

Part two of the convention ramps up the class with Compagnie Antoinette Gomis from France. A beautiful woman who pays tribute to the music and words of Nina Simone with a brilliantly seductive and hypnotic piece of dance theatre.

And finally, from the Netherlands, the most amazing set of dancers I've seen on a Nottingham stage, The Ruggeds. With an incredible light show they show why they are at the top of the B-Boy league with some incredibly athletic moves. They show amazing strength and a wonderful fluidity in their moves. The enthusiasm, comedy elements and physicality of their dance just blew the roof of the place. A brilliant close to an excellent evening of dance.

"Breakin' Convention 2016" is back on Wednesday night at the Nottingham Royal Concert Hall with the second part of this show and is not just a must for dance fans, but for anyone who loves great entertainment in dance.

A brilliant way to kick off NEAT 2016 in the city.