Ottawa To Hold B-Boy Festival This June

The Canadian city of Ottawa will hold a new hip-hop dance festival this June called Hip Hop 360. According to CBC.ca, the five-day event begins on June 19 and will mix contemporary ballet with break-dancing. Among the b-boy crews competing will be Toronto’s Bag of Trix, Edmonton’s Freshly Squeezed, St. John’s East Rock Crew, Montreal’s Illmask and other Ottawa groups. “There’s a tremendous underground scene in Ottawa,” Noora Sagarwala, associate artistic director of Hip Hop 360, told CBC Radio. “We have some of the best b-boy crews in the country, including Canadian Floor Masters, which is the oldest b-boy crew.” The events for Hip Hop 360 will take place between June 19 and 23 and will be held at the National Arts Centre and other local Ottawa clubs. “We sort of decided that b-boys needed more than just another spot to battle. They needed recognition from the dance community,” says Sagarwala. “They also wanted to hone their skills…. do a little bit of professional development and also meet each other. Canada is a really big country and they’re from all corners of the country, so they don’t often get a chance to meet or to dance with each other.”