Fifty young men… boyz-to-men, actually, who can all keep time, is a wondrous thing to see. These same fifty boyz-to-men furthermore have both the courage and intention to put themselves ‘out there’ on stage, sans props, sans special effects, just the raw exuberance of their energy, their obvious pleasure of each other’s company and their very good training.

The BoyzDance dancers performed 8 items: ranging from hip hop to tap to capoeira to groove to stunts and tumbling and back to (mostly) self-choreographed ‘favourite moves’ (program note).

All the dances were competent and coherent in their choreographic intent to display the boys’ skill at whichever level they presently are. The really little boys were quite astonishing in their ability to stay in time and stay in line – proven by the tap dance routines during which I didn’t hear too many syncopated off-the-beat taps at all.

One young man, Henry Grey from the Victoria Phillips Academy, gave a fine jazz solo. His performance would be enhanced if the lip-synching was done without but his work was a great demonstration of his lithe body and strong technical skill.

The Carter Chan Performance Centre gave us a dance and singing number ‘Do you remember?’. And yes we will remember, not for the microphone which didn’t work but for the strong presentation.

Thomas McClintock of the Mount Eden Ballet Academy gave one of the evening’s highlights with his classical ballet solo. This young man has far to go: his technique is strong, his lines clean, his presentation mature and his consistent ‘close fifth’ make him a joy to watch. Keep watching.

The Capoeira item under tutor Mestre China showed the boys’ willingness to work together. Eathen Robson from the Raewyn Burgess School of Dance is a fine tapper and his cane work dapper, a little more smile would have charmed me even more.

The ‘Boyz to Men’ crew of 6 young men courtesy of the Victoria Phillips Academy showed great virility and the Identity Dance Crew showed something to which the younger dancers can aspire – skill, masculinity, grunge, roguishness and pride all there together. WOW.

WELL DONE: tutors Richie, Andrew, Josh, Simon and Mestre China; the announcers for each piece; the guest dancers; the students of the BoyzDance studio; Jacqui whose idea it was way back in the first place.  

If all the boys and men in NZ danced, just imagine!
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