B-Boys, Krump kings, and pop lock princesses will battle tonight.
They are going to dance their way to gold in the Hip-Hop Olympics at the WOW Hall.
The event is hosted by local dance group Phenomenon Hip Hop Company and will feature six local dance crews, including Phenomenon, Dance Northwest, King’s Krew, and Urban Pulse.
MCs, B-Boys and Krump dancers will battle it out for cash prizes.
Vanessa Fuller, director and choreographer of Phenomenon, said most of the crews are local and independent.
The dance performances will happen on the WOW Hall’s small stage.
“Usually when we do shows there, we dance on the floor, but we just decided to rock it up there and get the crowd really pumped,” Fuller said.
There will be a live video feed from the crowd during the event, so attendees will see themselves on the big screen.
“When we do the break dance battle, it’s going to be on the floor. We want people to do a circle,” she said.
“We’re going to have a video camera right down in there, getting all the stuff that you can’t see.”
Fuller started her career in tap classes at the age of three.
“I got put into dance lessons when I was a kid so when I got into high school, I worked with the dance team,” she said.
After high school, Fuller went to college in San Francisco for one year before returning to Eugene to attend the University.
She realized the School of Music and Dance wasn’t for her.
“I decided I didn’t like the program,” she said.
“The stuff in the community wasn’t real enough as far as hip-hop goes, and I wanted to bring some different flavor.”
Fuller has been involved with dance companies for more than six years and started Phenomenon in 2004.
She said Eugene doesn’t have a big hip-hop scene, but she’s hoping to change that.
Her main goal with Phenomenon and events like the Hip-Hop Olympics is to get people more involved and connected.
“We’re trying to keep it real and bring it down to that level here,” she said. “It’s important to get out in the community and put on events that we wouldn’t have otherwise.”
Fuller said the company is hoping that the pull of the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials will increase the event’s attendance, but the focus is community awareness.
“I think it’s going to be a good week for people to be out and about and downtown,” she said.
“We thought there might be more spectators and artists that want to come out and see something like this, but it’s mostly for the community.”
Hip hop, according to Fuller is an urban form of self-expression, and there is no better way to express oneself than through music, art and dance.
The show starts at 6:30 p.m. and admission is $8.
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