As introduced by Area Coordinator and B-Boy Club co-founder and co-president Joel Estrada '00, the five required elements for a proper evening of hip-hop culture were the b-boys, a deejay, MC's, graffiti and knowledge. All but graffiti were supplied throughout the course of the night in an eclectic program that incorporated many students from Amherst, as well as artists from, among other places, New York City and Lynwood, Calif.
The first hour provided the foreplay for the main event, the b-boy competition. That hour was chock full of performances from MC's (from both Amherst and NYC), Dancing and Stepping At Amherst College (DASAC), Wushu Club, Capoeira Angola, ravers and poppers, as well as useful histories of aspects of breaking and a quick rundown of its history. Audience enjoyment remained high throughout, as measured by the amount of noise made by the spectators.
However, once the b-boys started moving, it became clear that people could get much louder. The 12 breakers participated in teams of two, who competed against each other for three rounds, with 40 seconds allotted per breaker per round. Each advancing team then had the chance to break again, against a different team, until one team was left undefeated.
The judges for the battle, composed of guests from outside the College, based their marks on the creativity, originality and power of the contestants. The battle was eventually narrowed down to Lil' Rock and Ruin, who went head-to-head.
For this last round, the audience judged, voting by the amount of noise they generated. They were explicitly asked not to judge on "cuteness," which was an especially difficult proposition, given the small size and adolescence of both the final contestants, which, when coupled with their ability, looked eerily incongruous.
Throughout, Little Rock's cockiness drew attention, as did his ability to back up the attitude. One oft-repeated move involved scuttling over on his head to the opposite team, before folding his legs in a vaguely mocking manner and balancing his weight on one hand.
However, despite Little Rock's bravado, Ruin eventually won, with the help of moves that seemed to come straight from "The Matrix." One especially impressive act showcased his ability to run up one of the columns in the frontroom and flip 360 degrees to land on his feet.
With his victory, the night came to a close, and students filed out of the now-steamy frontroom. They departed with a little more knowledge about the b-boy culture and no doubt anticipating the spring show, which should prove to be even bigger than this one.