Into the Hoods

An Urban Fairytale

A 'street dance' version of various classic fairytales presented by ZooNation.

Once upon a time in a land far, far away, two children ran away in search of freedom, but found themselves lost... in the hood. Welcome to the Ruff Endz Estate, the home of the vinyl spinning DJ Spinderella, who is dating the uber-confident lady magnet Prince, who, being a true 'playa' is two-timing her with the vivacious rapper 'MC Rap-on-Zel'. She lives on the tenth floor of the tower block, letting down her long hair extensions from her window so that Prince can pay her secret visits. Then there is Lil Red, a singer who has just signed a deal with Wolf, the manager of 'Big Teef Records'. She secretly has feelings for music producer Jaxx (who lives in the Basement) who is struggling with debt, is late on the rent and facing eviction. A desperate Jaxx enters into some dodgy dealings with Giant, the resident drug-dealing pimp, who lives in the tower's penthouse. The children meet the Landlord, who sends them out to work for him with the task of finding gifts for his daughter's birthday and in return he promises to see them out of the hood and safely home. They only have four days to find...

"an ipod as white as milk
a hoodie as red as blood
weave as yellow as corn, and
trainers as pure as gold"

Into the Hoods very loosely takes as it starting point for it's story Stephen Sondheim’s classic musical Into the Woods. Into the Hoods features music from Gorillaz, Massive Attack, Prince, Basement Jaxx, Stevie Wonder, Kanye West, Jay-Z, Janet Jackson, James Brown, Snoop Dogg, Dr Dre, Black Eyed Peas, Bob Marley, The Chemical Brothers, and many more.

The cast for Into the Hoods in London features Frank Wilson as 'Landlord', Teneisha Bonner as 'Spinderella', Roger Davies as 'Prince', Sacha Chang as 'Lil Red', Andry Oporia as 'Wolf', Rhimes Lecointe as 'Rap-on-zel', Rowen Hawkins as 'Jaxx', Jeffrey Felicisimo as 'Gaint', Christian 'Bounce' Alozie as 'Ugly Stepmum' and Josh Cohen as 'Narrator' along with Mr Gee. The production is directed by Kate Prince and choreographed by Kate Prince and the ZooNation company. Film and projection is by Felix Harrison with musical arrangement by Danilo 'DJ' Walde, set design by Chris Lowe, costume design by Chloe Richardson, lighting design by Adam Bassett and sound by Rory Madden.

"ZooNation's hugely enjoyable Into the Hoods takes Stephen Sondheim's fairytale melange Into the Woods and gives it an urban makeover... It's probably best not to dwell on the story... instead, just give yourself over to the pure, high-energy pleasure of the performances... it's the glorious dancing that makes the evening, with tight breakdance formations that occasionally evolve into jive or calypso but never lose their slick, street-wise delivery." The Daily Telegraph

"Inspired by Stephen Sondheim's revisionist musical Into the Woods, the choreographer-director Kate Prince has cannily applied some of the principles of narrative musical theatre to a hip-hop dance show. The result is an all-ages treat just about guaranteed to send you home smiling... Into the Hoods is both quick-witted and broadly funny." The Times

"Performed by a London-based streetdance company, ZooNation, Into The Hoods is based on Stephen Sondheim's similarly titled musical, Into the Woods. The show is essentially the coming together of four classic fairytales - Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, Little Red Riding Hood and Rapunzel. Only this time, they've been relocated to the Ruff Endz Estate, a towerblock populated by Spinderella, Lil Red, Rap-on-zel, Wolf the record producer and Prince the ladies man - with Giant in the Penthouse and Jaxx in the basement. Listed under "theatre" in the Fringe programme, Into the Hoods could just as easily call itself a dance, kids or comedy show. The choreography is stunning, ranging from pop video-style streetdance to full-on breakdancing... Rarely do you find a Fringe show that crosses both the generational and cultural divide with such ease. Or that gently hints at morality without patronising or overstating the obvious... Into The Hoods is just about flawless." The Scotsman

The smash-hit of the last two Edinburgh Fringe Festivals, and winner of a Herald Angel Award, Into the Hoods became the must see show in Edinburgh for audiences of all ages. ZooNation is widely respected for their work in motivating young people through hip hop and street dance and in bringing their unique dance presentation to a wider audience. Director Kate Prince has choreographed a range of stage shows, music videos and television shows (including BBC Strictly Dance Fever) while the professional dancers in the show have performed internationally with artists such as Kylie, Nelly Furtado, Pink, Black Eyed Peas, 50Cent, Beyonce and Snoop Dogg.