Hip-hop battles in South Portland celebrate the love of dance

Story by Bonnie Washak/Staff Writer • Photo by Briana Sukup/Staff Photographer

Dancers will battle it out on Saturday at The Exchange, a hip-hop dance competition held at the South Portland Community Center.

Inside the South Portland Community Center on Saturday, the dancers faced off and had a “battle.”

Their battle was a friendly hip-hop competition during “The Exchange,” an annual event that has been canceled for three years due to the pandemic.

Elizabeth Lau, Portland Youth Dance Outreach Director, said: “People are ready.” The event was sponsored by a nonprofit that provides free lessons to youth in the community.

For hours, the dancers performed high-octane street moves, including freestyles blended with pantomime, hand and shoulder athletic spins, and backward body flips. Hips, heads, and knees rolled to the rhythm of the lively music.

“Breakdancing is the foundation of hip-hop,” said Lau. But hip-hop includes a wider range of movements. “You’ll see people pop out, lock their doors, and stay home. It’s amazing.” House is a musical genre characterized by a repetitive “four on the floor” beat.

The exchange attracted about 50 dancers of all ages from Maine and New England. There were two age groups his under 10 and her over 10.

Two contestants, a girl and a boy, from the young group took turns dancing in front of the judges, and the audience applauded their movements. Both dancers received accolades and a winner was announced. The two then shook hands and took a picture.

Another battle ensued.

The duo will compete together in Saturday’s dance battle.

Josh Cronin celebrates with his mother Heather Cronin after the winner of the dance battle is announced.

Crowds gather around dancers competing at The Exchange, a hip-hop dance competition and community event held Saturday at the South Portland Community Center.

One was two teams of dancers from a previous competition. One of the dancers was Josh Cronin, an 18-year-old from Lisbon who teaches dance at Alma-Lea’s Dance Studio in Lisbon.

Cronin went solo, thinking he would find someone to compete with him in the partner dance. “I didn’t have a partner. I turned around and my mom was there. I thought, ‘Oh, she’ll dance with me!

Without rehearsing together, mother and son danced separately. With a positive attitude, the mother shook her body, arms, hips and stamped her feet to the music. The crowd appreciated the mother and son’s move and gave them enthusiastic cheers when the judges announced Cronins had won the round.

Heather Cronin said it was a last-minute decision to compete. “He’s fighting, not me. My son is registered.”

Cronin says he has been taking dance lessons at a studio in Lisbon since he was 38. “Dancing has always been my passion. I am lucky to have a son who has the same passion as my mom.”

Josh Cronin says he attended The Exchange for the first time this year. “I wanted to go there a few years ago, but it was closed due to COVID.” He was happy to have his mother as his partner. “I always wanted to do her one of these events with her mother. She’s a huge inspiration to me.”

Other students at the dance studio came from Portland, Bath, Camden, Arundel, Buxton and Westbrook.

Observing the competition were Aria Pines, 17, Sapphire Ensworth, 17, and Savannah Swann, 18, who teach dance and outreach classes to children at Portland Youth Dance.

The Pines were dancing on Saturday. The event is “very cool,” she said. “It’s a celebration of hip-hop.” In Maine, the dance scene isn’t that big, she said.

Ensworth, a modern dance performer and teacher, said she volunteered to support the event. For her, dancing is “a big mental health issue. It keeps me happy and active and I meet other people who love to dance.”

But she wasn’t dancing on Saturday. She was run over by her car a few months ago, and Ensworth has weeks left in her boots, she said.

At the end of the day, the battle round ended with three winners. According to Carolyn Perazio Volunteer President of Portland, Team “Eli” has her children under the age of 10, “Ready for Everything” won the boys vs. girls contest, and “Grace and Robo” in all style categories. Won. Board of Portland Youth Dance.

According to Pellagio, Saturday’s hip-hop extravaganza will showcase dancers from other communities inside and outside Maine.

“Dancers and kids really understand that hip-hop is a culture of sharing, an expression of dance, and a great extension of our community.”

8-year-old Eli Connally will compete on Saturday.

Milena Campos hugs mentor Megatron at Boston’s Slaughterhouse Hip-Hop Dance Studio after competing at The Exchange at the South Portland Community Center on Saturday.

Crowds cheer dancers as they compete in The Exchange.

Declan Sutton, 15, and Adrian Pearce, 19, will compete on Saturday. The two boys met four years ago at another Exchange event and have remained friends ever since. “Dance was the connection that really brought us together,” Pierce said.

The duo will compete together on Saturday at the Exchange at the South Portland Community Center.

Samantha Jenkins, 14, known by her dance name “Little Bit,” competes with her sister, Simone, 16, in a dance battle. The two girls who won the fight are dancers from her Slaughterhouse studio in the Boston area.

Milena Campos, also known by her dance name “Betty Boop,” joins a dance battle on Saturday.

Alanna Logan (right), known by her dance name ILLana-Popz, hugs her friend after competing at The Exchange on Saturday.

Maia Puckett, 16, left, and Charlie Sydner, 15, celebrate their victory in a dance battle at the South Portland Community Center on Saturday. The girls dance together at the Sharon Arnold Lux School of Dance in Arundel.