Give them a break

by Kasia Kozlowski

When you think of the UAL Hub, nothing too exciting comes to mind, floors filled with offices, blinking computers and lots of stressed staff.

It seems an unlikely place to stumble across a break dancing class, but each week in the basement, the Hub hosts a space for the UAL Breakdance Society to meet and practice their moves.

Getting stuck in

Joining the group mid-warm-up, which appeared pretty intense, we stood at the front of the practice room attempting to keep a low profile by keeping our heads down and our feet firmly on the ground, an obvious mistake now that I think about it.

We were quickly told “Girls, you’ll get kicked if you stand there” and we most certainly would have, the warm-up looked like a workout in itself with arms and legs all over the place.

Ude Okoye, the class teacher, has a natural and informal way of teaching.

Humour and joking is the key to making the task of attempting to move your body in seemingly impossible ways morebearable.

A laugh a minute

The class all seemed at ease with themselves and each other and with the small number of students, Ude was able to help each student personally practise on their weaknesses.

With a room filled with laughter, interaction and a great deal of respect for one another it was clear there was a strong bond between the class.

There were legs and torso’s swinging about in all directions and yet no one invaded each other’s space, as though everyone was subconsciously aware of each other.

Dedication

Max, a second year student from Central Saint Martins, pointed out that although the lessons could often be quite difficult due to the facilities being “pretty poor, with small spaces and no air conditioning”, it still hadn’t deterred him from practising the skills that he has honed during the last two yeas.

He even participates in university Championships, but never through UAL, due to lack of numbers, “We never have enough people to make up a team for competitions so last year I went with Kings College, and this year UCL”.

The society puts this problem down to two things: firstly not enough members and secondly past teachers have had a great deal of skill but unfortunately not enough teaching practice.

Ability assessed

Because of this the class does not follow a particular pre-planned lesson.

Ude, who works with the members who turn up, assesses their ability and then adjusts the class to suit.

This technique requires a lot of thinking on the spot and although unusual, proved to work a treat.

It was easy to see the improvements the group had made with each move during just one class.

With an inspirational teacher and friendly atmosphere it’s a wonder why the class is so small. If the stereotype that surrounds breakdancing is putting most people off, then fear not.

The class is not male dominated nor filled with muscles.

Siobhan Warrender, a first year student from Wimbledon, is keen to reassure women that “it may be a little bit difficult, but it helps greatly with fitness and the society is very encouraging by sending us videos to keep our morale up”.

It’s the perfect way to get back on track with that New Year’s resolution to keep fit, and maybe with enough members UAL will be able to compete in a championship one day!

Place: Hub, Davies Street, WC1
Cost: £20 per year + session fees
Contact: breakdance@su.arts.ac.uk