Mixtape – Celebrating 20 Years of ZooNation, Sadler's Wells
With Mixtape, ZooNation, The Kate Prince Company comes to Sadler's Wells to celebrate 20 years of vibrant, exciting hip-hop
ZooNation Mixtape © Emma Cooke stemdesign
Over the past two decades ZooNation, The Kate Prince Company has done more than most to bring hip-hop – originally the street dance of poor urban youth – to the stage, turning it into diverse, multiracial mass entertainment without losing its power and vibrancy.
In the process, choreographer extraordinaire Kate Prince has mined the genre's potential for story telling, creating exciting narrative shows such as the massive hit Message in a Bottle, to music by Sting, Into the Hoods, the first hip-hop show to run in the West End, Some Like It Hip Hop and Mad Hatter's Tea Party, to mention but a few shows in what's been a remarkably fertile 20 years, which also saw the successful creation of a junior company.
A record worth celebrating, then; and ZooNation comes to Sadler's Wells, where it's now a Resident Company, with Mixtape – Celebrating 20 years of ZooNation: The Kate Prince Company, a retrospective of the best of those 20 years that will bring us extracts from some of its most marking shows worked with a twist, as well as tributes to the dancers, performers, creative teams and its audiences.
Mixtape is co-directed by ZooNation Associates Dannielle ‘Rhimes’ Lecointe and Bradley Charles, whose association with ZooNation goes back 17 years, and whose portfolios include a huge variety of West End shows as well as choreography for the 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony.
The show is designed by Ben Stones, who did such a wonderful job with Message in a Bottle, with lighting by Charlie Morgan Jones. Live vocalists and special guest performers include Nafisah Baba, Tommy Franzen, Lukas McFarlane, Lizzie Gough, Sarah Richards and Isaac ‘Turbo’ Baptiste.
As part of the celebration, Sadler's Wells foyers will host a variety of free exhibitions showcasing the productions and artists that have created ZooNation, with a special exhibition commemoration the late Teneisha Bonner, the star female performer of ZooNation, who died of cancer aged 37 in 2019.
Post-show talk with Kate Prince and other Mixtape creatives hosted by Sadler's Wells director Alistair Spaulding on Wednesday 5 October
In the process, choreographer extraordinaire Kate Prince has mined the genre's potential for story telling, creating exciting narrative shows such as the massive hit Message in a Bottle, to music by Sting, Into the Hoods, the first hip-hop show to run in the West End, Some Like It Hip Hop and Mad Hatter's Tea Party, to mention but a few shows in what's been a remarkably fertile 20 years, which also saw the successful creation of a junior company.
A record worth celebrating, then; and ZooNation comes to Sadler's Wells, where it's now a Resident Company, with Mixtape – Celebrating 20 years of ZooNation: The Kate Prince Company, a retrospective of the best of those 20 years that will bring us extracts from some of its most marking shows worked with a twist, as well as tributes to the dancers, performers, creative teams and its audiences.
Mixtape is co-directed by ZooNation Associates Dannielle ‘Rhimes’ Lecointe and Bradley Charles, whose association with ZooNation goes back 17 years, and whose portfolios include a huge variety of West End shows as well as choreography for the 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony.
The show is designed by Ben Stones, who did such a wonderful job with Message in a Bottle, with lighting by Charlie Morgan Jones. Live vocalists and special guest performers include Nafisah Baba, Tommy Franzen, Lukas McFarlane, Lizzie Gough, Sarah Richards and Isaac ‘Turbo’ Baptiste.
As part of the celebration, Sadler's Wells foyers will host a variety of free exhibitions showcasing the productions and artists that have created ZooNation, with a special exhibition commemoration the late Teneisha Bonner, the star female performer of ZooNation, who died of cancer aged 37 in 2019.
Post-show talk with Kate Prince and other Mixtape creatives hosted by Sadler's Wells director Alistair Spaulding on Wednesday 5 October
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| What | Mixtape – Celebrating 20 Years of ZooNation, Sadler's Wells |
| Where | Sadler's Wells, Rosebery Avenue, London, EC1R 4TN | MAP |
| Nearest tube | Angel (underground) |
| When |
05 Oct 22 – 08 Oct 22, 19:30 Sat mat at 14:30 Dur.: 2 hours approx inc one interval |
| Price | £15-£55 |
| Website | Click here to book |