I know that I am a particularly stoic individual but I find myself visiting the Vail International Dance Festival web-site a couple of times each week to watch the videos of the 2011 Artist in Residence Charles “Lil Buck” Riley.
My favorite video is of him performing with the Celebrate the Beat students at International Evenings of Dance but I enjoy all of them! I still remember the day he arrived in Vail for the 2011 Festival, traveling all night from London. I met him in front of the hotel and as the car door opened he “jook’d” his way out of the car – Memphis Jookin being his art form! I’m pretty sure if Isaac Newton was alive today he would make a special law for Buck that would read something like “a body that is jookin remains jookin unless acted upon by an unbalance force.”
Lil Buck and the New Styles Krew “jook’d” their way across the stages and streets of Vail last August and Lil Buck didn’t stop when it was over heading straight to the Fall for Dance Festival in New York City. I traveled to NY for FFD but wasn’t the only one that turned out to show support. Vail International Dance Festival Artistic Director Damian Woetzel and wife Heather Watts and and surprise guest YoYo Ma were also there to cheer.
At FFD Lil Buck disclosed that while in Vail he shot an audition video for the Smirnoff Nightlife Exchange Program competition to go on tour with Madonna and that he made the cut as one of the top ten finalists. Here in the Vail Valley we are pretty proud of the audition video that was shot slopeside in Golden Peak at the foot of Vail Mountain.
LIL BUCK SMIRNOFF NIGHTLIFE EXCHANGE PROGRAM AUDITION VIDEO:
On November 12th Lil Buck took the stage at the Roseland Ballroom in New York where the Material Girl named him the winner of the competition. Before Buck heads out on tour with Madonna he will make a stop in Indiana this Sunday to perform with her at the Super Bowl XLVI half-time show. I grew up in both NY and MA so I won’t be cheering for either team but I will be cheering for Lil Buck!
Enjoy highlights from Lil Buck at the 2011 Vail International Dance Festival below!
- Martha Brassel, Festival Manager Vail International Dance Festival
LIL BUCK 2011 FESTIVAL JOOKIN' HIGHLIGHTS:
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