ILL-abilities.png

San Francisco International Hip-Hop Dancefest

Mark MacNamara on November 8, 2012
ILL-Abilities
ILL-Abilities

This is all Micaya’s doing. She’s the one who founded this event in 1999, and incidentially this has become the most prestigious hip hop festival in the country. She’s the one that brings the groups together. They come for her, and from all over the world.

The two programs feature:

    Boy Blue (London, U.K.) – "Blu-Nighted Kingdom"; Mix'd Ingrdnts (Oakland) - "We Are Every Woman”; Goodfellas (Sacramento) - "We always called each other GoodFellas"; Physical Poets (L.A.); "Physical Graffiti On A String"; MVP (San Jose) - “BOS vs. BOM”; Lux Aeterna (L.A.); “Eponym”; Chapkis Dance (Suisun City) - “Asylum”; The U.N.I.T (Santa Rosa) - "Gangsta"; SoulForce Dance Company (San Francisco) - "HELLO"; Bliss Dance Company (Vacaville) - "Old Folks"; Academy of Villains (San Mateo) - "Haunted Mansion"; Decadance (New York) - "4" (Four Concerto) Versastyle (L.A.) - "Facing the Wall"; dEEp doWN dopEiZM (Norway) - "The Biosis"

We reached Micaya for just a moment. She’s like looking for electrons. When she’s not teaching a class, she’s teaching another class. Her best bets: MVP, Bliss, and ILL-Abilities (Montreal, Chile, Holland, L.A., Tokyo) - "No Limits." “You definitely want to look for this group,” she told us. “They are a phenomenally skillfully crew and incredibly inspiring.” They’re all disabled; their motto: no excuses, no limits.

Along with the festival, Boy Blue and members of ILL-Style Peace Production (Philadelphia) will offer hip-hop master classes on Nov. 17. At the Metronomie Dance Center in San Francisco. Two 90-minutes classes: at 11:30 and 1:30. $20 per class or $38 for both. All levels.

All ages? “As long as the child knows how to behave,” Micaya told us. And like the snap of your fingers she was gone.

San Francisco Hip-Hop Dancefest, Palace of Fine Arts Theatre, Nov. 16-18. Two Programs. For details go to: sfhiphopdancefest.com., $39.99 for single program ticket; $75 for one ticket to each program.