FRESHMESS Hip hop and c0ntemporary rub shoulders
Turning up for the first day of rehearsals with Freshmess. choreographer Frank McConnell met quite a team. An integral part of the Scottish dance scene for over 20 years, McConnell has pretty much seen it all, but even he was daunted by the prospect of moulding Allan Irvine‘s hip hop- cum—contemporary dance crew. ‘lt's a bizarre mix.‘ McConnell says. ‘They‘ve got two contemporary trained hip hop
peOple. one very modern. off—the-wall improviser. one up for it, in-your-face jazz dancer and one dancer
who‘s just hip hop. At first I thought. what on earth am I going to do here? But the mix really does work.‘ That it does. Irvine‘s company has a refreshing, humorous style that blows the cobwebs off all who see it.
Its Fringe double bill features Irvine‘s Maintain. a humorous, funky blend of hip hop and contemporary. and
multicultural melange
venue 22
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
DOUBLE BILL
L . Bijayini Satpathy
McConnell‘s hip hop debut. Innit. . .Innat. a melting pot of styles influenced not only by Allan's dancers but and Charan Pradhan
by the music — a multicultural melange by two men working at the cutting edge of Scots music. Martyn Bennett and Quee MacArthur.
‘There was a motif of Indian raga in the background of this traditional Scottish score.‘ says McConnell. ‘So in the same way that I was working with four completely different types of dancers, I became fascinated with how I could use bits of Indian dance. bits of hip hop. bits of pure creative dance and some very old Scottish traditional dance — without making any one of them dominant.‘ (Kelly Apter)
dance
Situated in the Grassmarket, in the heart of Edinburgh’s old town, Dance Base is a fully accessible building offering state-of—the-art
facilities with 4 stunning dance studios and a
unique programme during the Edinburgh Festival.
Upside-down tango Performances to showcase some top
home-grown talent as well as international dance from Nepal, India and Austria.
Performances from 8 — l6 August at various times Tickets £8 ((6) or book for all 4 shows for £20!
°A programme packed with classes and workshops for all ages and abilities. 0 Guest teachers including Mika’s Polynesian Workout and Shaka": Kundalini
Workshop.
0 Summer holiday fun with Boliywood for kids. Haka for kids and Popdancer classes
0 Free access to the Dark Room - a new facility showing award-winning films of dance on camera. °Fullproyammeofpmfessiomldassesatdiehigheststandar¢
To book tickets, find out more about us or to join our mailing list, contact O|3| 225 5525
or dancefydancebasetouk Or visit www.dancebase.co.uk
THE LIST FESTIVAL GUIDE 37