The call comes from Brett Goebel – yes father of the very famous Parris Goebel and chief wrangler and producer of the Royal Family – just a couple of hours before the show that, he can find me a ticket to their sold-out-one-night-only performance at the State Opera House in Wellington.

 I arrive, a hip-hop rookie, panting and a little late. The place is jam packed and the high-pitched squeals from a mostly young, with parents, audience. Brett Goebel is the MC for the evening and there is no doubt about his mana and status in this context.

Thus begins my initiation into the passionate, full tilt, 120%, dance competition meets music video world of hip hop dance. Morphing from the realm of street dance cypher where dancers take a challenge to each other, these performers take their challenge out to us in the audience. The mega crew, 56 Dancers form the Royal Family Company dancing out of the Palace Dance Studio in Auckland, are formidable. Their unison impeccable, every move imbued with deliberate execution, the intensity of their focus is powerful, bordering on intimidating. They strut, limbs flurry and snap, torsos undulate, legs swivel, pelvises twerk. It is as if the crowd is wired to every change in dynamic. Each lighting change, and choreographic shift, each pelvic thrust elicits shrieks – the noise in deafening! It is a raucous night with one setting – FULL ON!

The woman are strong, take no prisoners, strident and staunch, whilst the men flirt in the androgenic realm. There is a curious representation of sexuality, I wonder how this lands with the young viewers.

The eye travels to certain dancers who exude an X factor and I am sure the audience is playing favorites whilst appreciating the whole. Soloists cleverly pop out of chorus action. Facial expressions are feral and constantly changing, from snarl to smile, to wide open to pout. Suddenly there is a pause and nuanced detail in a head move or a hand gesture. Costumes are used cleverly, right down to fluorescent finger nails. A more lyrical piece by the men in white shirts a welcome change of pace.

 Parris Goebel (with lead tour choreographers: Cullen Neale, Isla Potini & Teesha Taulepa) is the choreographer for a series of dances that display exceptional choreographic craft with waves of dancers moving on and off stage, progressing with lightening swift accents to the front of the stage before being replaced by the next wave.  Recognizable moves are repeated in endless iterations, rhythms are exceptional, there is artistic genius at play here. No wonder Parris Goebel is working with big names like Justin Beiber, Rihanna, Beyonce, Jennifer Lopez (last year’s superbowl) and more.

 Each dance, some re-runs of winning sets from the World Hip Hop champs, is interspersed with video footage from overseas gigs and made for film dance routines. They also are tightly crafted and compelling.

 The  finale is the routine from the video for Justin Bieber’s song Sorry which has had a whooping 3.4 billion hits on You Tube!. 

The alumni, former members now with highly successful careers overseas, come onto the video to offer encouragement to the young fans in the audience: chase your dreams, have a strong work ethic, be kind, express yourself. Good values to impart. Everybody leaves buzzing, smiling, ears ringing.

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