Luther Brown: Back in T-dot
Updated Tue. Jun. 17 2008 12:31 PM ET
Lindsay Zier-Vogel, CTV.ca
Renowned choreographer, Luther Brown spent his childhood in a radio station, and in fact, didn't step foot in a dance studio until 2000. So how he one of the top choreographers in North America, working with artists like Janet Jackson, Shawn Desman and Toronto's own Jully Black?
"I observe," he says, "I always have. I just soak it all in." From watching musicals growing up, and then music videos as he grew older, Brown has broken the trend of dancing first, then becoming a choreographer. Instead, he became a choreographer in his own right. "Not everyone took the route I did -- it's unique," he says.
"Luth-er! Luth-er!"
After first making his name in Toronto, then New York and now in LA, Brown is ecstatic to be back in his hometown. But as thrilled as he might be, he's nowhere near as excited as the competitors. The moment he walks out of the wings, the dancers are on their feet giving him a raucous standing ovation and chanting "Luth-er, Luth-er."
With so much of Canada's dance talent heading to the States, he's thrilled to be able to offer dancers in Toronto the opportunity to be seen in their own country. "I'm so glad I'm on this [panel], 'cause this is stuff we've been doing forever and now we get to bring it to the front."
"Toronto's a lot of everything. There are a lot of trained kids, and a lot of street kids -- b-boys and hip hops dancers. It's gonna be a beast."
Growing up in the 'hood
Brown spent much of his youth in Jane and Finch in the north end of Toronto and before he even knew what outreach was, Brown was engaged in community-building work, bringing art and music to kids in his 'hood.
His father, Luther Brown Sr., runs Caribbean Crucible, a reggae radio program on the community radio station out of York University. During the summers, Brown would bring his friends in to take over for his dad.
Hosting the show with the now-famous singer, Jully Black, he would delegate the rest of the responsibilities to his friends. "I didn't think I was a leader, but my dad took me aside later and broke it down for me. I took a lot of kids people couldn't control and focussed them -- [giving them tasks and responsibilities]."
"We just did it"
Expanding on his skills at the radio station, Brown worked at the Driftwood Community Centre, creating arts programming for under-privileged youth. "There were just so many kids that were hungry to do stuff, so we just did it," he says, referring to his comprehensive arts programming that included dance, film, visual art and musicals.
Having grown up in Kingston, Jamaica, a place Brown describes as "Brooklyn meets South Central", Brown says he related to his participants because he knew what it was to "live in the 'hood."
"But, he adds, "I also knew what it was to strive for different things."
Telling stories
It was at Driftwood that Brown started making dance troupes. "But then, I didn't know what a choreographer was. I just knew that I could put together a crew, get a routine happening, organizing and overseeing everything."
His love for narrative and musicals shaped these original creations: "I was always telling stories physically. There was always a story and characters behind my choreography."
Brown took his love for story-telling to the University of Windsor where he studied English Literature and Black History. But while he was there, he couldn't leave his love of dance behind, so Brown created the university's step and dance teams.
Doin' Dat
While studying in Windsor, Brown was frustrated by a lack of support and recognition for Toronto street dancers. Being the go-getter that he is, Brown founded Do Dat Entertainment -- originally a dance group that morphed into an agency, a school and now even provides artist development for Toronto's leading performers.
The lineup in Toronto was full of Brown's students, who said that though he can be a clown in his workshops, he definitely knows when to get to work. "You have to be on top of yourself," one hip hopper said. "You have to push yourself and you have to be serious."
Another dancer added, "If you're not serious about it, there's just no room for you."
From teaching to judging
Brown believes his role as a teacher will help him as a judge. "My angle as a judge is to find diamonds in the rough and make them hot. I really want to find the best well-rounded dancer," he says, smiling behind his Versace shades.
And what is Brown looking for in a dancer? "You've got to have skill and you've got to be clean," he says. "You don't just want to learn the steps, but understand how to perform the steps.
"You need to take the movement and add yourself to it, make it fresh -- that's the choreographer's dream."
