Works & Process Announces “Gather Round: Celebrating Street Dance and 50 Years of Hip-Hop”

Arts Brookfield partners with Works & Process for a series of four free performances at Manhattan West celebrating street dance and the 50th anniversary of hip-hop featuring The Missing Element with The Beatbox House, LayeRhythm, Ladies of Hip-Hop, KR3TS dancers with DJ FrancoTh3Artist, and Ephrat Asherie Dance’s UNDERSCORED culminating in a dance party led by DJ Bravo LaFortune! Manhattan West is a new destination for food, culture, retail, and hospitality, located steps away from Moynihan Train Hall and Madison Square Garden on the new West Side. For more information, visit https://manhattanwestnyc.com/events/gather-round/.

The pieces presented were commissioned by Works & Process to marry performing arts traditions created in the cypher (an open performance circle) prevalent in hip-hop and street dance with the Guggenheim Museum’s renowned circular rotunda space. Originally conceptualized in-the-round, this series therefore adapts naturally to the performance circle on Manhattan West Plaza. Each Wednesday night will spotlight a different artistic group and feature beatboxing, breaking, flexn, krumping, live bands, DJ sets, and MCs. On the final night, the performance morphs into a full-blown dance party with fabled DJ Bravo LaFortune and other club legends. All are encouraged to gather round.

The Missing Element, featuring The Beatbox House (KR3TS dancers open with DJ FrancoTh3Artist) on July 5 with sets at 6, 7, & 8 pm.

See what happens when traditions that are accustomed to battling each other on the stage, come together and collaborate. A genre-fusing performance of beatbox and street dance, The Missing Element will feature world champion musicians from The Beatbox House in collaboration with dance expert in the styles of break dancing, flexn, krump, and more. Connecting generations, the dancers of KR3TS, a pre-professional dance program that has launched the careers of top street dancers will open the evening; The Missing Element’s co-creator, Anthony “Invertebrate” Rodriguez is an alumni of KR3TS. DJ FrancoTh3Artist provides the beats between sets.

On July 12 at 6 pm, enjoy LayeRhythm.

Join this game-based performance celebrating the vibrancy of street and club dance culture. A live band takes its cues from freestyling street dancers, while MCs gather inspiration sourced from the audience. (layerhythm.org)

July 19 is Ladies Night! Enjoy the Ladies of Hip-Hop with sets at 6, 7 and 8 pm.KR3TS dancers open with DJ FrancoTh3Artist.

Celebrate the strength, power, and diversity of women in Hip-Hop with this all-female intergenerational dance collective that centers around feminist narratives examining the intersections of gender, race, and resistance. Observe the origins of street and club dance culture, including freestyle dance, cyphers, and call and response. All woven together with one-of-a-kind choreopoems. (ladiesofhiphop.com). Connecting generations, the dancers of KR3TS will open the evening; many members of Ladies of Hip-Hop trained with KR3TS early on in their careers. DJ FrancoTh3Artist provides the beats between sets.

Finally on July 26 at 6 pm, enjoy Ephrat Asherie Dance: UNDERSCORED highlights with NYC club legends and DJ set by Bravo LaFortune.

Experience UNDERSCORED, a multi-faceted project rooted in the intergenerational stories and memories of NYC underground club heads. The exhilarating journey will culminate in a dance party with DJ set by Bravo LaFortune on his birthday. (ephratasheriedance.com & instagram.com/bravobrahms)

Championing the creative process from studio-to-stage, Works & Process, is an independent performing arts organization that supports artists from both the world’s largest organizations and from underrecognized performing arts cultures by providing rare, sequenced and fully-funded creative residency, commissioning, and iterative presenting support.

Visit https://worksandprocess.org/ to learn more.