Breaking it Down
Raphael Xavier knows a thing or two about breakdancing and hip-hop. Informed by 30 years of firsthand experience, the Philadelphia-based dancer and choreographer funnels the dance and dialogue of the streets into The Unofficial Guide to Audience Watching Performance. An autobiographical work Dance Magazine calls "artful and mesmerizing," the piece sets poetry, spoken word and rap lyrics against bursts of breakdancing. Developed by Xavier over the course of 20 years, then fine tuned by award-winning choreographer Ralph Lemon, it explores sacrifice, passion and transcendence while tracing the arc of a maturing performer's career.
