FREE, but reservations required 

In this lecture/demonstration, Mason Artist-in-Residence Versa-Style Street Dance Company—named “Los Angeles’ Best Dance Troupe for Hip Hop Empowerment” by LA Weekly—introduces the audience to the electrifying world of Hip Hop and street dance culture. Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the troupe provides an “uplifting and joyous” (Maryland Theatre Guide) experience with its unique blend of choreography and freestyle elements, “a stylistic smorgasbord” (New Yorker) representing the diverse experiences of the BIPOC communities of Los Angeles.

This residency event is offered in conjunction with Versa-Style Street Dance Company’s February 15 performance at the Center for the Arts of Rooted Rhythms, a mixed repertory program of its most popular works, paying homage to street dance styles such as whacking, popping, and house dance, as well as a blend of Afro-Latin styles including salsa and West African.