Melbourne Shuffle 2 - 27.7.2002

Saturday 27th July… it was one of the most superb days that Melbourne had seen during winter. Whilst most of Melbourne were feeling seedy and recovering from Friday night, or preparing for a massive night out at NRG5 or Sunnyside, the truly committed were shuffling their stuff at the Metro from 2-6pm at the 2nd Exhibition of the Melbourne Shuffle.

The event was the brainchild of Steve Douglas, Matt Callander, and Sebastian Vasta and promised to deliver a spectacular showcase of the Melbourne shuffle; "a specific dance style that has risen from the early days of local dance culture to become an artform unique to the city and recognized globally."

The DJ line-up was selected to impress all genres of shufflers and included: DJ Ides (breakbeat), DJ Dallas (techno) and DJ Justin Kase (hard trance). DJ Justin Kase was a last minute supporter of the event, filling in for DJ Nexus who was injured during his set at Hard Kandy on Friday night. The dance community wishes him a speedy recovery!

To say that I have two left feet would be an understatement, but I'm without a doubt, a self-confessed people perve! So who could imagine an event more likely to get me rushin' than a showcase of Melbourne's finest! I love the outfits, I love the vibe and I'm totally inspired, but immensely jealous, by those who can achieve a shuffle!

Sebastian Vasta (aka Djned) coined the phrase "shaolin shuffling - it's not just dance, it's a spiritual thing" and my personal choices for this years Melbourne Shuffle Shaolins are…

Best female: Marnie Regan
This girl knows she can strut her stuff and she's got no anxieties about getting the dance floor started. She was an early opener while others were too shy to shake their booties. She's got energy to burn and is a true inspiration, having encouraged a prodigy to follow in her shufflin' steps. She'll need to keep the practice in and work on a few new moves for next year's event though 'cause her prodigy (Claire) is close on her shufflin' heels. The inspiration continues with Claire having encouraged her sister, Genevieve, to join the shufflin' ranks and what a great duo they make.

The competition reached climatic heights as DJ Dallas bought out the techno crowd. Quite obviously Nobuko Nakano's preferred style, and she didn't miss a beat for this set!

Best male: Tyler
It was a tough choice and I'm tempted to think Tyler got my vote not only for his shufflin' style, but because of his truly funky pants! Another early opener who barely took a break long enough for me to get his name. I figure I'm not in the running to be friends with this guy 'cause there wasn't one member in his crew who couldn't bust the moves. Special mention goes to Simone, Matt and Andrew.

Best male/female duo: Allanna and Alex
They had me excited right from the word go, but their effort to Sweet Dreams deserves a special mention. It was a remix of a fav' old eighties track of mine and their remix of the shuffle to incorporate an eighties style wiggle didn't go unnoticed. True style!

Best male/male duo: Jay C and Donovan
Brilliant in their own rights, but combined for a solo performance and the crowd got right behind them. They had the moves, they had the look, they had the ultimate shufflin' accessory (the cap). Jay C's affinity for his cap imitated the passion you'd expect him to have for a partner!

Best female/female duo: Anne Taranto and Sophie Doran
These girls take their shufflin' seriously. Anne has extended the regular shuffle to include a down to the floor move that would have me on my ass for sure! They were at it right from the minute they entered the Metro, but give them some freeshtuff echo headgear, throw down some more talc, and these girls were really rockin'.

Special Mentions
It was a tough call to narrow down my personal fav's and there Tags