Janine OngAudiences were treated to a feast of sight and sound as top-notch dancers like Hilty and Bosch, Wrecking Crew Orchestra and Quest Crew took the stage by storm during The Big Groove (TBG) concert held at Singapore Expo on July 11.
Themed “the Year of the Champions”, this year’s TBG brings 11 crews who have featured in major dance championships and have pursued the art of dance passionately in their lives.
One of the biggest highlights from the international front would be Quest Crew, a dance crew formed by a family of close friends who was eventually crowned as MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew (ABDC) during its run in the third season.
Ever since their win at ABDC in 2009, they have been performing all over the United States and gaining numourous fans from around the world through their website and Youtube videos.
Their performance at TBG last night was a dream come true for fans who have been eagerly anticipating their appearance since O School, a performing arts centre established as a social enterprise in 2006 with the support of the Ministry of Community Development, announced their upcoming arrival in Singapore’s biggest hip-hop festival.
Quest Crew drove the crowd crazy as they performed their famous routine from ABDC’s third season (Week 7).
“It feels so great watching them live instead of from a laptop screen!” says Ulric Sng, 19, a third year polytechnic student who also bought a Quest Crew shirt for SGD$30 at their merchandise booth set up at the concert.
Other than the powerful choreography that got the guys shouting for more, Quest Crew’s boyish and charming looks earned them the screams as the female fans swooned over their favourite members. The female fans at the first row of the audience scrambled up the stage as soon as their performance was over to ask for their autographs and a chance to snap a photo with them.
Although these powerful dancers are amazingly skilled in different genres of dance (such as breaking) and even martial arts, they remain humble and were also looking forward to meeting other crews during TBG.
Born in Tokyo, Japan, Hokuto “Hok” Konishi, 26, is ecstatic to be able to meet crews like Hilty and Bosch and Wrecking Crew Orchestra (WCO) from Japan. “I[‘ve] watched them on TV when I was in Japan before I started dancing and I looked up to them…this was TEN years ago and I finally got to meet them!”
As this is the first time that most of their members are visiting Singapore, many of them were surprised at how ‘modern’ Singapore is. Hok added that, “This place is amazing. The architecture (is so modern) and [the streets are] so clean… It’s like the future of Asia, but in the present.”
“I like the food in Singapore,” says Ryan Feng, 27, who majored in Studio Art in the University of California, Irvine and owns a photography blog on Tumblr.
With all the stunts, tricks and musicality they display for each and every one if their performances, Quest Crew reckon that they are open to all genres of dance.
“Every dance has something good to offer, that’s what makes dancing enjoyable,” says Ryan Conferido, 27, who was also a finalist for the first season of American television reality programme and dance competion, So You Think You Can Dance (SYTYCD).
The Big Groove 2010 was organized by O School, powered by National Youth Council and the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports in conjunction with the SHINE Youth Festival.