Photo courtesy of Shermaine Singh, Staff Photographer
On Saturday, April 21, the Taiwanese American Student’s Association (TASA) put on a dance show headlined by Instant Noodles Crew, best known for their performances on MTV’s “America’s Best Dance Crew,” in Douglass Dining Center.
The show featured numerous dance groups, including Radiance, a dance group that’s part of RIT’s Asian Culture Society (ACS), Rice Crew and a “Bad Boy’s Dance” by members of TASA. The performances were excellent, though they tended to be so quick it seemed as though you could blink and miss them. The performance part of the show was only an hour long and, with this many groups, the event could have really benefited from being a little bit lengthier.
The show kicked off with a tap/hip hop number by members of Radiance, a performance group that performs many different styles of dance. The two dancers performing this night had great energy and really intermingled hip hop and tap without letting one overwhelm the other. The moments where hip hop was more prominent seemed to be the most popular with the crowd, but that might have been because of the target audience — after all, the headliners were far more akin to hip hop than tap. Regardless, they were a great way to start the show.
Hot on Radiance’s heels was RIT’s ACS. This group was particularly talented, although the introduction to the song was far too long and awkwardly left the dancers waiting on stage in the dark. Despite this, the time could have been better spent by letting the headliners perform longer, since they are a non-UR group. But they were certainly entertaining.
At this point, Instant Noodles Crew performed free style for a few minutes, and they were definitely impressive. The main problem with this dance was where they were placed in the show — it’s understandable that TASA wanted to spread out the performances by the main group, but everyone who performed after the free style had to live up to this performance. And unfortunately, none of them did. The show was have been better arranged if Instant Noodles had done their entire piece at the end.
That’s not to say that anyone who came after Instant Noodles was bad — RICE Crew was, as usual, excellent and a big hit with the crowd. It was just difficult to follow up professional dancers with on-campus groups. But, finally, the time had arrived for Instant Noodles’ full performance. They were incredible to watch — their stunts seemed to defy gravity, and the speed at which they were able to move while still maintaining their grace was astounding. However, it was over all too soon.
After the dance portion ended, there was a question and answer session for Instant Noodles Crew, which was fascinating to listen to. The five members of the crew who came to the performance were very likeable, managing to tell their stories, joke with each other and still entertain the audience. The crowd favorite seemed to be the tale of the “fist-pump moment,” which, according to the crew, “is when you’re at a point of physical and mental delirium and everything is the best idea ever.”
The only real downside to the evening, however, was the location. Douglass was a strange choice, and it didn’t really work. The stage was barely elevated, making it impossible to see the footwork of the dancers unless you were in the first or second row. The aisle between the chairs was exceedingly narrow and only one person could fit down it at a time. Really, it was just a shame to not get to see exactly what was happening on stage.
With the exception of a few minor issues, the show was rather enjoyable. Instant Noodles was incredibly entertaining, from their dance moves to their ridiculous high school stories. It was a well-executed event, and a great way to spend an evening.
Howard is a member of the class of 2013.
