Nick Power:
Cypher

To ‘battle’ with each other in a circle and to enter into a playful rivalry is the most important ritual of b-boying. Cypher – which means zero, round like a circle – is the arena in which individual skills are presented and judged. The circle represents community and individuality, competition and unity. With Cypher, the Australian hip hop artist Nick Power and four b-boys don’t just invite the public to be amazed by their skills – they also open up the circle and offer an up-close-and-personal insight into this vibrant subculture. Breaking developed in the 1970s in New York and is associated with block parties, street gangs and hip hop music. While urban dance has long since developed into a virtuosic form of stage dance, it has retained the heady energy of its beginnings. Nick Power utilizes this energy in Cypher, and combines it with a sophisticated choreography which, in addition to the spectacular hip hop moves, emphasizes the bodily formations in the space and individual sequences of movements. Accompanied by the beats of the sound designer Jack Prest, Cypher is also a rigorous choreographic composition about contemporary rituals.

CHOREOGRAPHY Nick Power PRODUCTION Britt Guy SOUND DESIGN Jack Prest LIGHTING DESIGN Mirrabelle Wouters WITH B*BOYS Akorn, Tass, Stevie G, Blue

Presented as part of Dance Satellite curated and produced by Britt Guy, an initiative supported by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts, Junction Arts Festival and Darwin Festival. The development of Cypher was supported by Stalker Theatre Inc. A co-operation with SOPHIENSÆLE.

photo © Amy Hetherington