reviewvancouver: IZM

The hip hop and street dance scene has brought waves of new creativity to the dance world in the past twenty years. This creativity has found its way to mainstream dance and popular shows on television.

One has to be impressed with the sheer inventiveness and unique style of choreographer and dancer Yvon Soglo (B-Boy Crazy Smooth) for bringing this fast, colorful and energizing dance art to the stage - the result dazzled!

Soglo has been dancing for ten years and studied with some of New York’s most hip street dancers. He is the first B-Boy to receive a Canadian Arts Council grant- proof that the council still has some creative bones. Along the way Soglo was an instructor for Cirque du Soleil and won the Most Valuable B-boy Award at the annual Kings of NY Competition.

With a full house and a stark stage for a backdrop, Soglo opened the show with an informal talk to the audience about the origins and meaning of street dance. His humor and wit shone through.

Next, the dance troupe came out to dazzle the audience with twists, turns and gyrations that had the audience enthralled from the get–go. One has to see this type of performance live because the energy is riveting and the detail of the moves is more difficult than one would imagine. These dancers work and they do it with edgy street beauty.

Dancers Melissa Flerangile, Marie Pier, Mathieu Ulrich, Mathieu Bilodeau, Rahime Gay-Labbe, Jean Luc Fournier, Marie Benoit and Mathieu Dumoulin are superb and energetic and demonstrated excellent control and footwork.

One popular piece in the repertoire had a lighthearted spoof of classical show tunes to the music of ‘That’s Entertainment’ that was fun to watch. Then there was a soulful piece of dancing with saxophone in the background that was a beautiful fusion of street dance and moody, soul music. It was their finest moment.

A little playful teasing and sensuality closed the evening as Crazy Smooth’s dance partner had him slowly peel off three layers of sweaty t-shirts to reveal a nicely sculptured body that definitely pleased the ladies.

The Cultch has been renovated and is expanding. There is a good vibe to the theatre and works like IZM will keep the vive humming along - like a good B-boy.