I rushed into the Student Activities Building last Friday to find the room packed with people. "Wow," I thought to myself, "this is going to be good."
I had the pleasure of attending Mahogany's spring semester production, The Seven Deadly Sins. For those who have not heard of one of the most popular dance troupes at the University, Mahogany is the oldest hip-hop dance group on Grounds. Unlike its on-Grounds counterpart, X-tasee, Mahogany invites anyone with an interest in dancing, regardless of skill level, to join and to perform in its biannual productions.
Broken into seven acts - each of which explored one of the biblical sins through expressive hip-hop dancing - the production was choreographed and performed completely by students. The acts cleverly tackled a deadly sin and expressed an interpretation of the subject matter through a combination of choreography and music. In the gluttony presentation, for example, all of the dancers wore costumes that represented a major fast food chain.
Stunning the crowd with harmony and precision, Mahogany delivered a balanced performance that at times included about 30 people on the stage simultaneously, while other times as few as seven. Regardless of the number, the dancers were almost always in harmony with each other, with very few dancers ever out of sync.
In addition to the group's impressive precision, the variety of the choreography added to the excitement of the performance. Mahogany kept the audience intrigued by showcasing many different styles of hip-hop.
The show also included guest performances from various student groups. Sticking true to its stated goal to "bring black culture ... to the University," Phi Beta Sigma and Step it Up, two traditionally black step groups at the University, performed. Although they both put on solid performances, SIU's step routine, an abbreviated version of the main feature, was especially well done, and at many points it had me craning my neck to get a better angle. In addition, a dance couple from the Salsa Club eased around the stage with light feet and teased the audience with a titillating dance. Also performing that night was Sharaara, a competitive dance team that focuses on South Asian fusion, and B.E.A.T.S., a spoken word group that orated several poems between one of the acts.
A well organized and executed performance, Seven Deadly Sins made it clear to me why the dancers of Mahogany consistently perform in front of a full house. As the best performances always are, Seven Deadly Sins was more than a dance presentation; it was an experience.
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