Curated by: Jonzi D.
Choreographers: Mounia Nassanger, Jamaal O’Driscoll, Jessy Kemper, Roy Overdijk, Keron ‘Sir’ Proverbs and Leroy Curwood
Birmingham-based Jamaal O’Driscoll embodies Breakin’ Convention’s ethos with an extraordinary breakdance and hip-hop performance, The Garage, choreographed to a slow 60s-style jazz piece. A meditation on urban loneliness, this hauntingly unusual piece that uses a backdrop of metallic transport sounds as its base is an unexpected and unexpectedly powerful combination of contemporary dance and music. Returning to Sadler’s Wells for its annual takeover, the Breakin’ Convention weekend is a highlight of the year and this opening night collection of top talent, Fierce Friday, doesn’t disappoint.
O’Driscoll may appear quietly from the Sadler’s Wells mosh pit to make an understated entrance onto the stage, but his fellow artists in Act One arrive ready to make an impact. WeGrowTogether present The Party created by Keron ‘Sir’ Proverbs and Leroy Curwood with a 16-strong company telling the story of street dance since the 1980s, taking the audience through the origins and key evolution points of the form, referencing its African base and the arrival of the Windrush, as well as nodding to the musical influences including jungle, grime and reggae. The dance is a mix of collective and individual showcase moments, measuring the years against a 24-hour cycle of music from 6am to the after-party well beyond midnight.
Part One ends with Dutch troupe The Ruggeds, a huge draw for Breakin’ Convention fans, themselves celebrating their 20th anniversary inspired by this Festival, naming their piece 20yrs, choreographed by Jessy Kemper, Roy Overdijk. Their jungle-based set thumps through the seats, shaking the Sadler’s Wells metalwork in a way only this weekend can, an extraordinary acrobatic performance by the six-strong dancers whose pace and balance are unrivalled at this opening show as they twist and roll into almost unbelievable shapes throughout, a masterclass of breakdance tumbling and energy.
The second part of Fierce Friday contains only one, lengthy performance which opens with what is surely a Sadler’s Wells first – a dancer having their head shaved live on stage, an introduction to Mounia Nassanger’s piece STUCK that surely can only be performed once. This unusual 40-minute dance is infused with a European avant-garde aesthetic, filled with dramatic lighting design and theatricality that focuses on the head and repetitive staccato arm movements drawn from the whacking genre. First-time French choreographer Nassanger creates multiple phases for her six dancers, each presenting a rhythm and style that infects and connects with one another. It is overlong and slow to get going, but the physicality required by the company over such a prolonged piece is demanding, although delivered with tireless precision until the end.
Opening Night host Fee Mack only appears to top and tail the show, but speaks of dance unity, and Fierce Friday leaves you craving a few more acts in this weekend primer. And with performances from across the UK and Europe that explore pace, intimacy and storytelling as well as athletic and acrobatic skill, this looks set to be another convention-busting weekend.
Breakin’ Convention 2025: International Festival of Hip Hop Dance Theatre runs until 4 May 2025
