Versa-Style Street Dance Company marked its 20th anniversary at the Carpenter Center March 13, 2026, presenting a rousing performance titled “Tribute: Guardians of Street Dance.”
The celebratory, high-energy event honored the legacy and evolution of hip hop and street dance, paying homage to the artists of this genre who are still here such as Rennie Harris, Damita Jo Freeman, Toni Basil, Popping Pete and Buddha Stretch, who were present but for Harris, on this night, as well as those who have passed on, including Stephen “Twitch” Boss and Marjory Smarth.
Versa-Style and Friends – Photo by George Simian.
“Tribute: Guardians of Street Dance” was a milestone performance for Versa-Style, in which West Coast hip hop and the street dance styles that originated in Los Angeles were brought to center stage in a theater setting.
This uplifting performance took on the exhilaration of a pep rally, as audience members’ affirmations echoed in unison to their dance peers’ fast and fancy foot work throughout the show. One might think that could be distracting, but it was definitely not. It became an organic expression to the spirit of the work.
Performers, ranging from possibly late teens to young adults, executed astute technical skills; popping – from early 1970s roots, locking – late 1960s — both originating in California — and agile break dancing – going back to the late 1960s and early 1970s, in Brooklyn, New York but hitting LA with significant force in 1982-1983. The movement never stopped and surprises kept coming. Versa’s seamless blend of hip hop, stretched further, in one instance with a fast and strong presentation of the East Slavic Prisiadki or “squat and kick” move, or Russian dance that men often do at celebrations.
Versa-Style Dance Company – (L-R) Ceanne Agustin, Jackie Lopez-Foaad – Photo by John Nyboer/Nyboer Photography.
The Versa-Style dancers, in true form sported jeans or chinos and sneakers, and some embellished themselves with head bandanas. The first act, ”No Evil,” choreographed by Danzel Thompson-Stout, was performed by CSULB dance students Colin Dean, Ayanna Dowell, Lauren Kay Jade Madrigal, Elisa Murray, Rachel Oliver, Kierra Salley and Elyse Turner. Moving fast, flowing and joyfully, this set showcased a wide variety of the students’ foundational hip hop dance skills; waves, robocop, ticking and breaking in brief sequences that built upon each other, as a prelude for what was to come.
“VSNG,” choreographed by Leonardo “Inner-G” Flores & Aubrey “Siga” Mermaid, was performed by Versa-Style-Next Generation (Youth Leadership Program). Familiar tracks from the 1990s played and the “Next Generation’s” moves showcased more detailed and diverse forms featuring stylized, slow-motion isolation, roboting, dramatic whacking, wowing chest pumps, popping embellishments and more.
Visions and Voices – Decades of Dance in LA – Versa-Style Street Dance Company – Photo by Henry Kofman.
In a special treat, co-founders/artistic directors/choreographers of Versa-style Dance Street Company, Jackie “Ms. Funk” Lopez and Leigh ‘Breeze Lee” Foaad appeared often, between and within sets. Hands-down experts at performing the classic old school vibrating-shaking technique, Lopez and Foaad’s body shock waves were astonishing. Their artistry brought an infectious energy to these vignettes, in snapshots that portrayed playful competition, flirtation or sweetness.
Versa-Style dancers performed on stage in the same consciousness of street dance, which, if you saw it in its prime on the streets of LA or the Venice boardwalk, conveyed respect, camaraderie and community building. This awareness translated to the stage in pure form. There was no “Hollywoodizing” of hip hop dance. This was real. The “Hip Hop/Streetdance Company Artsists” were comprised of: Ceanne “CyKlone” Agustin; Anthony “Berry Groove” Berry; Ernesto “Precise” Galarza; Brianna “Passion” Grey; Cynthia “Divina” Hernandez; Brandon “BeastBot” Juezan; and Harry “Fallout” Weston. The technical director was Chris Hudacs.
Versa-Style and Friends – Photo by George Simian.
Around the middle of the first act a voice testified, “Street dance has the power to transform lives … It was born of power for the people, by the people, with the people, and always belonged to the community.”
Details in this performance kept getting more interesting. In one sequence, dancers formed a couple of groups walking downstage, but in flawless, sustained movement, as if in a slow motion film scene. The especially enjoyable “Moments in LA,” during the “Tribute” section featured photo and video elements of life in the city, and well-known landmarks like the Sixth Street Viaduct or “Ribbon of Light,” connecting Boyle Heights and the downtown arts district. There were street sounds and train sounds, and dancers strutting through the “Soul Train” line on screen. Versa-Style dancers strolled the stage looking at their palms as if holding cell phones and taking selfies or greeting passersby amid images of downtown and bodegas, while track samples like “Everybody Loves the Sunshine” by Roy Ayers played.
Versa-Style Streetdance Showcase – Danzel – Leigh “Breeze Lee” Faood – Photo by George Simian.
The Tribute
In two touching sets, “LA Street Dance Legends (Original Video)” and “Funk Angels,” Versa-Style brought their elders or “Guardians” to the stage through original photos and videos. It was elevating to watch the elders, who have been an impactful part of a global street dance culture, bringing their high level of skill, stamped with their unique flavor and flourishes to the artform, while dancing as if it was the most natural thing in the world to them. It exemplifies why these elders hold high status with the Vesa-Style crew and highlights the esteemed measure of hip hop dance that the young artists can achieve.
Finally, the music hit the mark, blending the soundtrack of hip hop, mixed by Gabriel “Magk” Avalos. The original score was composed by Legend the Beatslaya and additional artists included REYDY, B.B. King, Pink Floyd and Dennis Ferrer. Each track showcased a sonic blueprint of the 80s-90s generation, blending hip hop, funk R&B and jazz, featuring “California Love” – 2Pac featuring Dr. Dre and Roger Troutman, “It Was A Good Day” – Ice Cube, and many other anthems.
Versa-Style Streetdance Theatre Showcase – Danzel (Thompson-Stout) and Cris (Barreto) in “Bruddanem” – Photo by George Simian.
In this highly unique performance the Versa-Style founders dropped bits of education throughout the show. One important element to the company is to invoke thought, spirit and conversations. To be of higher consciousness, which they noted, was “literally” the meaning of hip hop.
“There are laws of consciousness in hip hop, and you have to build, and build, and build on those laws, or it dies.”
Versa-Style dance ensemble consists of committed and conscientious artists representing the diversity and complexity of Los Angeles. Founded in 2005 the company was created to promote, empower, and celebrate the artistry of Hip Hop and street dance culture
Named “Los Angeles’ Best Dance Troupe for Hip Hop Empowerment” by LA Weekly and Red Bull Magazine’s “Heroes of the Year 2019,” Versa-Style is recognized for its electrifying performances and inspiring engagement activities for schools and local communities.
For more information about Versa-Style Street Dance Company, please visit their website.
To learn more about the Carpenter Center, please visit their website.
Written by Melina Paris for LA Dance Chronicle.
Featured image: Versa-Style Dance Company – Photo by John Nyboer/Nyboer Photography.