WITH VIDEO: Student dancers freestyle daily on campus, perform for bystanders
Blasting music, pumping feet and flinging arms made the scene Tuesday afternoon in east campus.
A group of students, with no specific name or designated meeting time, spend their time four days a week freestyle dancing near the water fountain outside the Market in the east area complex.
The students' hobbies simply brought them together.
Two of the students knew each other from their hometown of Grand Rapids, but the remainder of the group met in a hip-hop dance class they took at Central Michigan University in the fall of 2010.
“Before we danced in front of the fountain, we used to dance in the studio in Larzelere Hall,” said Junior Ashleigh Kline, a native of Grand Rapids. “Now we just meet out here and dance until we are too banged-up and bruised to dance anymore.”
Kline said "breaking" is the main type of dance they do. It is a style of dance that was started back in the 70s in clubs when DJs would extend breaks in music and dancers would freestyle.
The group does popping, locking, krumping, footwork and more commercial dances such as the "Dougie" and the "Cat Daddy."
The group dances to a variety of different music such as hip-hop, pop, Motown and mixes.
On Friday, when they aren’t dancing in front of the Fountain, they go to Wayside Central, 2000 S. Mission St., and meet up with other dancers from the area to show their moves.
“I started dancing about three years ago in the Grand Rapids original 'Swing Society,'” said sophomore dancer Evan Schulz. “When I dance, it's like the best feeling a person could ever have, times two. I get to clear my head about so many things and that helps me focus on other stuff.”
Many students stop to watch the dancers as they perform.
“They are really dedicated and they are out there for a good two to three hours everyday," said Detroit Sophomore Tamika Williams. "It’s good to see people so passionate about their craft."
Kline credited living and performing in Grand Rapids to her interest in dancing near the fountain at CMU.
“Before I came to CMU, I used to dance with Evan and my ex-boyfriend in Grand Rapids," Kline said. "We danced in (the) Rosa Parks circle for four to five hours in July and August until we couldn’t move anymore. It was sort of similar to dancing out here in front of the fountain."
