Habibi

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www.stjohnsmiamibeach.com/arts

Hip Hop and Bellydance Come together for World Peace!

The HABIBI REMIX is an interdisciplinary work created, developed, produced and co-directed by Tiffany “hanan” Madera. The original work was performed on April 19, 20, 26, & 27 at PS 742 and co-presented by ARTEMIS Performance Network in Little Havana, Fl. The long awaited dance theater work: The HABIBI REMIX is the 2004 remake of the original. This provocative, sexy, often militant and tender love story unfolds in the languages of today’s most controversial and misunderstood modes of expression; hip hop and bellydance. The story is one woman’s search for a love that inspires passion, creativity and global peace.

Critically acclaimed and internationally renown bellydancer Hanan, plays HABIBI’s heroine. She symbolizes a Utopian “Miami”; an international melting pot that bridges cultures and peoples through the spirit of LOVE. The narrator of the show, spoken word artist Kimani Kenyatta serves as Greek Chorus and eases in and out of every scene manifesting different characteristics of humanity; lust, creativity, EGO, jealousy, forgiveness. The “love battle” takes place between our two male heroes “Coppa Kidd”, the rapper- who leaves our heroine for the promise of a glorious rap career in New York and “Chillski”, a popper (breakdancer), who dances tirelessly in hopes of winning Hanan’s heart. The DJ, the “omniscient observer” mixes and scratches live onstage as if “orchestrating” the events that unfold with a master, spiritual plan. Mad Cat Theater Company’s award winning Artistic Director, Paul Tei, joins HABIBI as the Director and adds his out of the box and cutting edge flavor to the interdisciplinary work.

The HABIBI REMIX is the theatrical answer to the East-West global conflict. Juxtaposing two art forms that come from a distinct economic and social underclass that transformed pop culture; the dance play operates at different symbolic levels. Through choreography, DJ mixes and spoken lyrics the global political battle between the East and West serve as a backdrop in addressing the East Coast vs. West Coast battles in U.S. hip hop. Sexual politics and gender roles are also addressed as our heroine demonstrates her feminist ideals and exercises her feminine power in unexpected ways.

The HABIBI REMIX is a remarkable innovative and unique dance theater work that is not only daring, sensual, whimsical and controversial, but it is a piece that offers a unique opportunity for intercultural appreciation and dialogue.

Willy "Chillski" Perez is the founder of the dance crew known as the Deadly Venoms. He has been performing the dance known as "Popping" or "Electric Boogie" since 1982 and "Brooklyn Uprocking" since 1984.Chillski formed the Deadly Venoms in the mid 90's when a renaissance in b boy culture emerged. He has performed in various productions and musical conferences including The B Boy Pro Am,Ultra Fest, and Beyond 2002. He has opened for such musical acts as The Sugarhill Gang,Doug E Fresh & Slick Rick,and Debbie Deb.He also has appeared in several television shows in Mun2s, Fox,and Univision television networks such as The Roof, Deco Drive, Control, and Ritmo y Sabor,as well as being featured in The Spam Allstars music video "Descarga Gusana".

Chillski also performed in the original " Habibi" along side Hanan.

CHOREOGRAPHER, and STAGING DIRECTOR, AIREEN:

Inspiring, charismatic, passionate and exciting, Aireen is a dancer of elevated artistry. Poetic and deeply sensual, her grace evokes the mystical beauty of the Oriental world, yet her elegance and dynamism captivate audiences from East and West alike. Her life long experience in theatre and dance give her a mastery of the stage that, coupled with the fresh effervescence of her style, make her truly unique among the nations top performers of the genre. Musical and internal she captures the authentic sentiment of Middle Eastern dance and brings a powerful modern expression to this extraordinary art form.

Aireen's talent also extends to her charitable work. As an unprecedented accomplishment, she has single handedly choreographed 2 full Oriental dance concerts, with over 40 dancers- spanning 6 decades in ages- to raise nearly $20,000 to benefit the St. Jude Charities! Aireen's humanity, together with her extraordinary musical sensibility, landed her the prized role as choreographer of the interdisciplinary theater work; The HABIBI REMIX. Her vast dance vocabulary, patina of choreographic storytelling and inter-cultural understanding has Aireen revered as a “high art” choreographer, par excellence.

In constant demand by the Arabic community, she has shared the stage with Superstars Nawal Sougbi, Wael Kafoury, Saber al Roubai, among others, and was invited as opening artist of the Fadl Shaker tour of the U.S. A resident of Miami she teaches Oriental dance at the University of Miami, and travels abroad to instruct and perform.

Coppa KIDD: Coppa Kidd is an emcee & deejay with dreams of achieving inner heights. Originally from Kingston, Jamaica, the self-proclaimed dreamer is “a member of the dancehall generation,” so his early childhood was spent absorbing the sounds of Roots, Rocksteady and Dub mixed with Reggae and a touch of Rock
and R&B.

After relocating to Miami, Florida, his love for music continued to grow alongside this thing called Hip Hop, and it began to bear fruit in Gainesville at the University of Florida, where he joined up with the underground collective called 101 VIBES. As part of the101, Coppa cultivated his craft through numerous performances at local venues and countless nights in the studio. This led to other opportunities where he collaborated with different artists, musicians, and social activists in the community on a variety of
projects; which also included taking the stage before a diverse list of recording artists such as the Ying Yang Twins, Spragga Benz, and the Roots, to name a few. With this experience in hand, he went back to the basics, and found refuge once again in Miami, where he now embarks on his own mission of self-discovery through the art of words and sound.

After bouncing around on various underground compilations, mix tapes, and other solo projects, the time has finally come for him to reside on his own. In addition to being one of the original members of the 101, he is also closely associated with the Boogie Institute in Tallahassee, where he has begun work on his first solo project with producer extraordinaire Dobie Gillis among others.Nevertheless, his unique flavor and delivery brings a refreshing element to any track he resides on, and his words are merely reflections of life and
lessons learnt through experience.

Mr. Cisum, born Larry D. Fowler, Jr., chose his moniker for one reason, the ever growing interest in the mystic power of music. Coming from a trumpet background, 'Cis' as he's called by colleagues, applies traditional music theories to the device with fast growing social acceptance as a legitimate musical instrument, the turntable. Crafting his sound out of the soulfulness of the blues, the intricacy of jazz, the rawness of funk, the attitude of hip-hop, and the drive of dance has created a style that is sought after by everyone from party promoters to theatre directors. Holding down a DJ residency at the now defunct Wilhelmina's Bar and Lounge in Philadelphia (1997-1999), working with acclaimed theatre director Ozzie Jones (1995-present), and touring with award winning dance troupe Rennie Harris Puremovement (2000-present) has given Cis the proper foundation in knowing how to move crowds of different ages and cultures. His aim is to engage listeners in a conversation where rhythm and sound are the words of choice.

Aside from the DJ life, the hats of producer and sound engineer are also worn. Having a small studio set up in mommy's basement at age 15 with borrowed pieces of equipment from friends led to the pursuit of a career in music production and studio engineering. While attending the Art Institute of Philadelphia (1994-1996) Cis co-founded seminal hip-hop group 'Name' with friends Ozzie Jones and Jared Taylor. The group released a series of tapes, cd's, and vinyl on all of which Cis has production credits. Also to his credit Cisum has worked with the likes of world reknown artists such as King Britt, DJ Miz, James Poyser, Vikter Duplaix, Poor Righteous Teachers, The Mountain Brothers, Common, The Roots, Jill Scott, Schoolly D., Nou, and Grand Agent. Most of this due in part to an internship that turned into a full time position as recording and mix engineer at Third Story Recording Studio in Philadelphia (1996-1999). This is where Cis learned to shape sound through old school techniques from working on older equipment. He feels that the knob twiddling approach is better for him than the more visual computer approach to mixing because he gets to mold the sound with his hands. He still practices that method to this day.

The produciton work also extends into the theatre world where Cisum helped to score and soundscape productions of "Fires in the Mirror" (Venture Theatre, Philadelphia, 1996), "Blacknativity" (Lincoln Theatre, Wahington, D.C., 1999), "Rome & Jewels" (Rennie Harris Puremovement, Philadelphia, 2000-2004), and "Habibi-The hip-hop and bellydance love battle" (Hanan Arts Cooperative, Miami, 2004). Many of these productions have travelled extensively to as many continental U.S. cities imaginable, across the border to Canada, and across the waters to England, Holland, Italy, and France.

Being able to travel has broadened the outlook for future endeavors. One being the turntable/ traditional instrumental band, 'First Element'. It's here that Mr. Cisum amalgamates all of his experiences as DJ, producer, and sound mixer into a groove fueled unit of 3 DJ's, a keyboardist, African drummer, guitarist, and flutist to further elaborate on the ideas presented by pioneers and inspirations Grand Master Flash and Herbie Hancock. By fusing the electrics of the DJ with the natural elements of acoustic sound, it is the hope that a movement will arise toward what he calls the New Jazz.

Habibi show performed April of 2002 at ps 742in miami.

Starring: Tiffany "Hanan" Madera, Richard "Speedy Legs" Fernandez, Willy "Chillski" Perez, FATHI on drums, and DJ Le Spam on the turntables.

Photos by: Pedro Portal