Break Dancing 101
By Kristy Demas
Students are teaching their own course in the art of breaking.
Aaron Valdin Laeno Brown flips and spins with the best of them.
“It took me eight months to master flares,” he says, of the scissor-type leg movements that propel his body in a circle. “I can do 28 in a row now.”
Brown and his fellow dancers in the campus break dancing group, Element 1, practice their flares, windmills, head-spins, and intricate footwork three times a week in the basement of Mason Hall.
Element 1’s mission is to promote b-boying/b-girling (breaking) and the various funk styles (popping and locking) as true art forms through performing and teaching. The group welcomes breakers of all levels to weekly open sessions. Each year, Element 1 performs at charity and student events, and once a year they put on a b-boying and popping competition called Master the Art, which is attended by more than 500 students.
Brown, a senior in Asian Languages and Cultures, is a Canton, Michigan, native with a long history of break dancing. “I started break dancing in high school with a crew called Canton Clan. Part of the crew’s mission is to reach out to the community and mentor kids by teaching them how to break,” he says, something Brown does in Element 1 and in another community break dancing organization, Lunchbox Jams. To Brown, breaking can be a way to connect to young people by helping them get involved in a medium that transcends race and ethnicity.
Not only is break dancing physically demanding (Brown maintains his five-foot-eleven, 145-pound physique through the rigors of training and performing), but the medium also requires intense mental concentration and a deep commitment.
“It’s a great way to develop a strong work ethic because break dancing takes hard work, and not everyone has what it takes to stick with it,” Brown says. “Element 1 recruits new members every fall, usually about 50 in total. By the end of the year, we’re down to 20 core members who actually stick with it.”
Brown has also learned a bit about break dancing from a historical perspective. “Break dancing can be seen in ancient tribal dances in Africa, in ballet, jazz, tap, and even swing,” he says. In the late 1970s, a culture of break dancing began, one that encouraged inner-city youth to express themselves artistically, rather than through gangs, violence, or crime. It served as a connection to others, spurring creativity in both music and movement.
For now, Brown, along with his fellow b-boys and b-girls, is enjoying the resurgence of this medium and plans to keep break dancing as long as he can, even after graduation.
“I will always be a b-boy,” he says. “Maybe not for a living, but for me, it’ll always be a hobby and an important part of my life.”
Break Dancing Essentials
Here’s what Brown says you’ll need to break dance:
Music: Pick songs that have a strong beat and upbeat tempo, with pauses for dancers to perform their sets.
Floor: A wooden dance floor is preferred. Concrete should be covered with a foam mat with a piece of linoleum on top.
Comfortable clothing: Wear something you can move in.
Hat: Bring a foam hat, spin hat, or skull cap (only used for more challenging power moves).