PLATFORM HIP HOP FESTIVAL

If Shakespeare was hired to write a hip hop sonnet, what would he have said? We speak to Festival Organiser Nick Power as he reveals the mysteries of hip hop in Sydney.

This is a four-week festival packed full of activities. How did you ever put it all together? Well, firstly, I’m part of a great team. CarriageWorks does an amazing job producing the festival. I had to dig deep into my little black book and called up some old friends. I keep an eye out as to who’s making noise on the local street scene.  I also connect with the community leaders who are making it happen in all elements of hip hop culture. A puzzle that’s slowly but surely come together.

Which events are you excited for the audience to see, hear, experience or take part in? Flexing Skills is always a favorite because you don’t know what’s going to happen – it’s totally freestyle. Plus, you have some of the dopest B-Boys, MCs and DJs mixed up into teams and given three topics and five minutes to rock a live set.  We’ve got the crew from Sketch the Rhyme coming onboard this year as well as funk heavyweights, The Resin Dogs.  It’s gonna be a great night!

Why the venue CarriageWorks? When I first walked into CarriageWorks, I was completely amazed and immediately thought you could put on a dope hip hop jam in here.  The crew at CarriageWorks thought the same thing and away we went.  I feel like we’re fully utilising the venue this year.

We hear Shakespeare is making a hip hop appearance. Please explain. Yea, I’m really looking forward to Funk It Up About Nothing. It’s a hip hop adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic Much Ado About nothing.  Chicago Shakespeare produced it and the show features the Q Brothers.  It’s got great reviews from all over the world.

In previous Platform Hip Hop Festivals, which were the most popular events? Freak the Technique is always super popular.  It’s the day where all elements of hip hop are represented and come together as one.  We’ve got a Graffiti comp, beatbox battles and Sydney’s best MCs rocking the mic. On the dance stage, we’ve got popping, locking and breaking battles.  In the evening, we go into the theatre for the finals of the breaking comp with Australia’s best B-Boys and B-Girls battling it out alongside killer DJs and live hip hop acts.  Plus, it’s all totally free!

Who are your top five hip hop local/international acts of all time? I’m going to represent the 5 elements in my answer: Beatboxing – Rahzel, Graffiti – Mistery, MC – KRS ONE, DJ – Grandmaster Flash and B-BOY – Storm.

Mar 12 – Apr 2. CarriageWorks, 245 Wilson St, Eveleigh, Free-$35, 8571 9099, platformhiphop.com.au, carriageworks.com.au

SOAP

I never knew I was maternal until I saw Soap. Be warned readers, this production brings out the mother in you. You’ll gasp, cover your mouth and wished the performers would just wear a helmet for god’s sake! Hanging off aerial straps, tip toeing on the ledge of a wet bathtub, a pair of very mesmerising legs, an operatic diva with cougar-like tendencies and a cheeky trick the audience won’t see coming, Soap is a visually stunning performance of new circus, comedy and dance on a water-soaked stage. Add one portion water to seven artists performing to the music of Mika, Sia, The Doors, Nina Simone, Gnarls Barkley, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, Curtis Mayfield, Goldfrapp amongst others and watch as they grow into a bathroom spectacular. Even though the performers lack the dexterity of better known circus acts like Cirque du Soleil, there is no denying the pure novelty of this production. A rough start with a few synchronisation problems did not stop the riotous opening night audience from whistling and shouting ecstatically in German. (Soap is a German production making its Australian debut after a quick stopover at the 2010 Edinburgh Fringe Festival). Like a modern family, the amalgamation of talents worked like a mismatched charm. This is liquid gold! Speaking of which, I recommend a visit to the toilet before the show starts.

Until Jan 23, Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House, $44-55, 9250 7777, sydneyoperahouse.com

A PYJAMA JAMMY JAMM

Can you believe it’s been a decade since the 90s? A whole decade since little tube tops coupled with baggy overalls, a whole decade since hiding your belly button piercing from your parents and a whole decade since we were warned against chasing waterfalls. Ahh the 90s… When the world was rife with R&B music and AIDS was the hot topic. Finally, enough time has passed for us to relive the 90s. Join Mike Champion,  Berni Love, DJ Nasser T, DJ Sam Boutros and live band The Harlem Knights for a night of 90s fun. The cheese factor will be shooting through the roof with hits from Boyz II Men, TLC, Bobby Brown, Kid n Play, Foxy Brown and many more. Oh and ladies, get shopping for sexy jammies, as one lucky pyjama jammy jammer stands to win a $500 hair makeover. We’ve waited a whole decade for this day. Who knows, the 90s may very well be the new 80s.

29 Jan, Notes Live, 75 Enmore Rd, Newtown, $20-$30, 9557 5111, noteslive.net.au

FAME

Remember, remember, remember… Yes, it’s that song you just can’t get out of your head. And it’s back on stage in a mega-watt production produced by John Frost and starring 2009 So You Think You Can Dance winner Talia Fowler in the lead role (pictured with co-star Tim Omaji playing Tyrone). Before the days of pregnant teenagers imitating Madonna and Britney at the glee club, students of the New York High School of Performing Arts were the original dreamers begging audiences to remember their name. It’s been a few years but it looks like there’s no taming the Famers. Oh why the hell not, bring on the legwarmers!

Until 28 Nov. Capitol Theatre, Campbell St, Haymarket. $79.90-$109.90. 1300 723 038, ticketmaster.com.au