Pottsville Republican from Pottsville, Pennsylvania • 58

POTTSVILLE (PA.) REPUBLICAN SATURDAY, JULY 7,1 984 PAGE 5 say their moves I A a- tro eep city yo 0 Hi 14 3 No matter what the age, anyone can get into breakdancing. Shaheed Muhammad, 7, practices sometimes with the Pottsville Breakdancers. Dance craze hits Pottsville necks, cuts or scratches from the dancer's body hitting the pavement or the daneefloor. To breakdance, one must relax and then "freak-out," he said. "When you fall when you're breakdancing, people might clap, because they think its part of the act," Carter Carter said.

"You can do anything and not worry about looking bad." But breakdancing does take a small bit of athletic ability, Fred Carter said. Before breaking out into breakdancing, breakers should stretch and warm up as they would for any physical activity. of Carter's group have sustained many minor injuries from the jumps, flips, spins and turns involved in breakdancing. They have also had bones broken, suffered bruises, pulled muscles and ligaments. They have damaged their pride with their mistakes and have caused brushburns from hitting the daneefloor or the street too hard, they said.

But with all the pain, strain and time it takes to be a breakdancer, Carter and his clan all agree that breakdancing will live on. It will not fall by the wayside like the hula-hoop, the hustle, the twist and the fox trot. "You never saw anyone on the street corner discoing did you?" Carter Carter asked rhetorically. "Breakdancing brings unity between kids of different races, cultures and classes. It will evolve, change and somehow survive, a lot like rock 'n' roll has." f't' -1! ft Rasheen Roberts, right, a member of Fred F.

Carter's Free and Easy Breakdancers, flips around as fellow member John Pattie watches. Youths in the cities have flipped over breakdancing, because it is something they can do well by themselves without having to spend a lot of money. 1 s'i1' if IS i 4 "Ssf Slip By CAMERON TEXTER Staff Writer Breakdancing an art form that involves twisting, turning bodies spinning endlessly along a daneefloor and youths flipping in the street does more than move its participants' bodies. Other dances such as the twist, the hustle, the jitterbug and the tango also pushed many people out on the daneefloor. But to Fred F.

Carter's Free and Easy Breakdancers, a professional breakdancing group out of Philadelphia, breakdancing is an institution. According to the members of Carter's group, breakdancing gives an identity. It stops fights, vandalism and keeps youths out of trouble. "In the cities a lot of kids had problems with getting into gang wars," Fred F. Carter, group president, said.

"The advantage of breakdancing is that it has almost eliminated the wars on the streets. The gangs, instead of seeing who can fight the best, challenge each other through breakdancing and see who can dance the best," he said. His dancers, Rasheen Roberts, 24, Troy Crump, 16, James Davenport, 18, all of Philadelphia, and his son Carter Carter, 13, and John Pattie, 13, both of West Chester, all said breakdancing has changed their lives. They have shown their moves in various forums including the Fairlane Village Mall last month, at the Penthouse Disco in Adele, Canada, at the Advertising Club of Metropolitan Washington, Washington, D.C., and on the Shelia Adams show on WJFB-TV, Augusta, Ga. They also appeared on the June Stewart show on WRDW-TV, North Augusta, S.C., on Evening Magazine shows in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, on the Morning Show in Philadelphia and on the Pittsburgh 2-Day show on KDKA-TV.

All breakdancing requires, they said, is music, which can be made with a "box" (slang for a portable stereo radio-cassette deck). They said many youths in Philadelphia grab a piece of cardboard large enough to fit two or three people and break on the streets to the sounds of funky music. "Breakin' keeps people out of trouble," Troy said. "By giving kids something they can do and do well. A lot of my friends stopped fighting and started dancing instead." "Kids who breakdance don't have time to fight or get in trouble," Troy added, "because they have to put so much time into dancing to become good at it." "Breakdancing has given meaning to my world by giving me a way that I can express myself.

Not everyone can do it like you do. You can make your own moves, your own faces. You act as you dance," Rasheen said. "You can't drink or do drugs and breakdance, because you constantly have to know what you're doing. Most breakdancers, if they were on drugs, got off them," "It gets you into yourself in forcing you to maintain your senses," Rasheen said.

"You keep your coordination and if you get good you can measure yourself with other breakers," Breakdancing has steps all its own, the younger Carter said. A few basic breakdancing moves are "Popping," "Electro boogie," ''King Tut," and the "Moonwalk," he said. Rasheen said that whena person breakdances, he or she is really doing a little bit of disco and a little bit of rock It adds a touch of jazz and a little small amount of funk and soul. Breakdancing also borrows some gymnastic tricks and mime moves, he added. A person adds his or her own touch to give each breaker an individual look.

"Anyone can breakdance," Rasheen said. "You just have to learn a certain way to do it." Rasheen said the dancer must learn how to tighten up his muscles in synchronization. A breakdancer also must throw away a self-conscious fear that people will laugh at the dance. The dancer must overcome the fear of flipping, spinning and turning, if done incorrectly can cause serious injury bruises, broken bones, twisted II I Members of Fred Carter's Free and Easy Breakdancers of Philadelphia are, kneeling: Carter Carter, 13, and John Pattie, middle; Troy Crump, 16; and Rasheen Roberts, 24 and James R. Davenport IV, 18.

Pictured on the cover of this section is 7-year-old Shaheed Muhammad of Pottsville as he dances with Carter Carter and John Pattie. I 4 By CAMERON TEXTER Like in most cities across America, breakdancing has had an effect on the youth of Pottsville. Though not many downtown corners here sport a group of breakdancers prancing and dancing about, one group has gotten its act together and puts on shows for clubs, at malls or on street corners. Members of the Pottsville Breakdancers, who practice their moves weekly at the Pottsville Mission, said breakdancing puts some rhythm in their lives. Pottsville Breakdancers are: Dwayne Johnson, 14, Kevin Stevens, 17, Craig Stevens, 15.

Shaheed Muhammad, 7, and Andy MeFarland, 16. Danell Stevens, the group's publicist, said the Pottsville Breakdancers got together one night when they had nothing to do and tried breaking with their tMxiies. Breakdancing "keeps us off the street," Andy ment that they decided to get together weekly and try to become good at dancing, she said. Breakdancing "keeps us off the street, Andy MeFarland said. "It's fun and when we do it, it draws people's attention." "When we perform for groups or practice in the street, then wherever we go people know us as the Breakdancers.

I've already walked in downtown Pottsville and heard people say, look there's that breakdancer. That's a good feeling," he added. "It's like any form of art, it's very competitive," Kevin Stevens said. "You want to try to be the best." "Wherever we go we have to pay something, and we don't have the money." Andy said. "Breakdancing gives us something fun to do for free." Kevin said the main reason why not as many Pottsville kids breakdance as those in big cities, such as Philadelphia, is because Pottsville lacks a facility, like a YMCA, for the kids to practice at.

He said his group was lucky to get the Pottsville Mission to practice at and without the help of the people there, the club would never have gotten together. Even though breakdancing looks easy. Kevin said the group expended a lot of time and sweat in getting their rhythm down. And sometimes it takes a little pain to get a lot of satisfaction and get good at breakdancing. "One time I was breakdancing and I went down to one side.

My knee popped out." Kevin said. "I found out that I pulled some ligaments and the doctor put me on crutches for a couple of weeks. I went to the practice a couple of weeks later to see how the group was doing and it felt so good being there that I started breakin' on my crutches." Despite all the effort needed to become good at breakdancing; members of the Pottsville Breakdancers said they will continue dancing in the streets, in their homes, at the mission and aify where else thev can. "I like to dance period." Andy said. "That's the opinion of the whole group.

1 fry 1 89 SW IKSSSK IISJ. tSSK SSSK JKSSSSJ tECmnH JtSSKBIJ -i'1 '4H ttSt jBMip''i''''-sijiji i fejiw iiwm i hi mm wmsm mm wmmwmmwmwmmzawsswrf mm, msMi W8H fswa wat hpi wb pat jm' XJL vs tr i (BBSBSI JiSJ BSSSSH BSJ ISJ feii 0 im fS Some breakdancing moves require teamwork as Kevin Stevens, 17, Andy McFarland 16, and Dwayne Johnson, 15, demonstrate as they swing around on the street. These Pottsv ille Breakdancers all said since they discovered breakdancing, they have avoided trouble in the streets. John Pattie and Carter Carter, two members of Fred F. Carter's Free and Easy Breakdancers move together in a breakdancing demonstration at the Fairlane Village Mall last month.

Both said breakdancing has given meaning to their life by giving them something to work hard at. (Staff photos by Phyllis McNlis and Ray Sileox).