Faculty
Gwoping Yang
Hip Hop for Adults & Popping
Wednesday 7:30 & 8:30
Gwoping Yang (goes by Gwo which rhymes with flow) has been training at the DC Dance Collective since 2004, and has been dancing and performing in the DC area since 2006. In both classes, a heavy empasis on basic isolations, footwork and muscle control is covered in the curriculum. In addition, an overall appreciation for hip hop culture and its many forms will be gained as students learn about the culture and music within the hip hop community. His adult class is geared towards beginners. Students will learn to listen to the music and follow the various beats and rhythms. West Coast, East Coast, Funk, Popular Hip Hop Hits, Old School… are among the flavors of music students will learn to appreciate. A physical vocabulary will be taught to accompany the listening skills gained from the class. Students in this class will begin to develop skills to innovate for themselves and have the tools to enjoy the dance culture in ways they have not previously experienced. The popping class focuses specifically on the funk dance and street dance style based on the technique of quickly contracting and relaxing muscles to cause a jerk in the dancer's body, referred to as a pop or a hit. This is done continuously to the rhythm of a song in combination with various movements and poses.
Over the years he has traveled to learn from some of the established funk style dancers in the community including Popping Pete, Skeeter Rabbit, Jazzy J, Damon, Bam, Shallow, Acky, AKA Kin, Bionic, J Smooth, and Kid Dynamo. Locally his influences are well known local poppers Mark Flux, Frequency, and Wookie.