Step up… to Warwick

On Sunday Warwick hosted ‘busta’ move’, an inter-university dance-off, in TES as part of One World Week. The competition brought together many different students and many different styles culminating in what was a dazzling dance extravaganza.

Five trophies were up for grabs, with the categories of Hip-Hop, Bollywood, Salsa and Freestyle, and with competitors travelling from across the country it wasn’t going to be an easy fight. Battling it out were Imperial, Bristol, Oxford, Kings College London, Nottingham, Birmingham and of course Warwick University, and from the word go the atmosphere was rife with a healthy and friendly rivalry.

{{ quote Five trophies were up for grabs, with competitors travelling from across the country }}

With the arrival of the guest judges – dance company ‘Dance 2XS’ and hip-hop violinist Miri Ben-Ari – hundreds of adrenaline filled spectators and supporters, and the dimming of the lights, the competition kicked off. First on with the dancing shoes (well, sneakers) were the Hip-Hop crews, after which the Bollywood competitors shimmied on. A short interlude saw Dance 2XS perform a routine that inspired the remaining groups – the hip-shaking Salsa competitors and the Freestylers – to give it everything they had. All groups used a mixture of modern beats and tunes that had the audience itching to dance along, except for Oxford’s surprising performance in the Freestyle category. Oxford replaced recorded music using their own voices, singing and shouting as they stamped and clapped in their wellington boots producing interesting rhythms. Their combination of drama – acting as farm workers- their respective costumes and their own voices and bodies creating the sound, made it a unique performance. The sheer amount of energy and passion displayed by all Universities was phenomenal, and there was never a dull moment throughout the competition.

After a short wait, the judges took to the stage displaying the shining trophies ready to announce the winners. Silent suspense filled the TES and the first winners for the Hip-Hop section were announced… EQHO! The eruption of screams and cheers was loud enough to lift the roof as Warwick group EQHO took to the stage to receive their award. A very proud Emmanuel Ene, dance co-ordinator of the group, lifted the trophy with the nine performers beaming behind him. We spoke to Emmanuel who said that ‘I am extremely proud of EQHO, we have worked very hard choreographing and rehearsing the routine and it feels fantastic to receive something for our efforts.’ King’s College swept the board taking three trophies, for best Salsa and best Freestyle, and they also took the edge winning the Bollywood category. There was some speculation about their winning the Bollywood award because their choreography included a lot of hip-hop moves (the judges’ speciality) rather than pure Bollywood moves such as displayed by Warwick’s Bollywood Dance Society and Nottingham University. However King’s College were ecstatic with their wins.

The judges then announced a surprise award, producing a tall trophy for the best overall performance, and the award went to EQHO from Warwick University. EQHO took to the stage again in jubilation to receive the award and were truly elated by their success. Michael Boham, president of EQHO society, said ‘Thanks to everyone for their great support, we had a fantastic time competing with the other universities and look forward to future competitions and performances’.
There were no losers in the competition, every group performed extremely well, and the mixture of different styles, moves, costumes and music made the whole event thoroughly successful and entertaining. Nimisha Mistry, student at Warwick and one of the organisers of the competition, said that ‘The event was a huge success for the first one that we have hosted. It brought together many different universities and showed what a great amount of talent there is out there. Let’s hope it continues and is as successful in years to come!’

If you missed the event and would like to see EQHO or the Bollywood Dance Society from Warwick perform, both groups are performing at One World Party and also at Pizazz which takes place on February 8th, Week 5

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