Hip Op-eration aiming high

The Hip Op-eration Crew. Photo / Leila Gilchrist

New Zealand's world famous Hip Op-eration Crew is striving hard to achieve the goal at the top of its bucket list.

The dancers rose to notoriety in 2013 when they performed at the World Hip Hop Championships in Las Vegas. Last year, a feature length documentary film covering their story was released in cinemas internationally.

But the elderly hip hop dance group, based on Waiheke Island, now want to aim even higher and perform in the Bronx in New York City in November. They are hoping to raise enough funds within the next 30 days to fund the trip.

Founder and manager Billie Jordan says the dancers, aged 68 to 96, want to travel to the birthplace of hip hop and use their profile to make a difference in the lives of young people there.

"We hope to show people around the world that no matter what your age or what obstacles you have in front of you, it is possible to achieve big goals and make a positive contribution to the lives of others," Ms Jordan says.

"Going to the Bronx to inspire the young people is just part our mission; the other part is to show the world how much older people can achieve and contribute to society when they are treated as equals and have high expectations of them."

Hip Op-eration are already generating interest in the Bronx. The group was recently involved in a lengthy interview via Skype with a local news outlet.

95 year old dancer Kara Nelson (aka Kara Bang Bang) says Hip Op-eration want to surprise the kids in South Bronx youth centres and schools with a hip hop dance performance.

"We want to pay tribute to their urban ancestors who invented hip hop and show these kids that when you do something positive, which brings people together, you can change the lives of the most unlikely group of people on the other side of the world. People can view the video on Kickstarter.com to find out more," says Nelson.

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