#hiplet

This came to mind as I'm looking through my work. I started to recall a form of dance that mixed ballet with hip hop. Being unique is my thing and this was definitely it. Granted, I'm a dancer, but this form of dance made me appreciate it more. (I dont do ballet though). Hiplet or The Rap Ballet. How would the guys react to their girl doin' hiplet? Shall we?

This is the video I watched when I first learned about hiplet.

LEONARDO🥢

He has seen many dances, including the traditional ballet routines and performances

When he learned that you were a dancer, he wanted to see you perform

He may have the legs but dancing....... it may take him some time

You were nervous, he brushes your dreads out of you face and kisses you

You took a deep breath, started the dance

First thought was ballet when he seen your shoes

Then you started popping, that's when he became curious

Similar to a ballerina, yet with a groovy twist

You were as precise and fluent as a ballerina but with attitude

"That was incredible. What kind of ballet was that?" He asked

You explained it was called hiplet and you've been dancing hiplet for a few years

"You have good form, maintaining balance, and you execute your next moves flawlessly. I'm impressed." He says, talking like hes your dance instructor

Even suggesting to assist with stretching and warm-ups if needed

He trains in the art of ninjutsu, so in a way this is kinda like training. Only in dance

This turtle is all about form, being precise in combat, and perfection

He smirked, kissing your hand

"Bravo!"

RAPHAEL🧶

You and him were 2 peas in a pod

He loves your curves and your slim built, always wondering how you stay so fit

One night, he discovered why during a street performance

You walked in the middle of Time Square wearing some alluring attire

Camo leggings, red crop top, your long braids in a ponytail, wearing what appears to be....ballet shoes?

He got a closer look, the best he can as you started your performance

The way you moved turned him on, executing such great moves

The way you spun around, rocked your hips

Wanting so desperately to rock those hips on top of him!

He always thought ballerinas wore tutus and skin tight panty hose

Your attire was unique compared to that of a plain ballerina

You popped and locked, the audience giving you a lot of love

When your performance was over, you went home

He had to see you

When he got to your apartment, he explained how he saw you at Times Square

"What kinda ballerina moves like dat?" He asked with enthusiasm

As he listened to you explain you being a hiplet dancer, he couldn't stop thinking of how you moved

He grabbed your hand

"Think ya can give me a better view of your routine?" He says.

You rolled your eyes, shrugged as you embraced him

DONATELLO🏓

He was working in the garage when you came for a visit

You kissed him on the cheek to motivate him

He grinned, snort laughing

He finished tuning up the tartuga and decided to check on you

He heard music near the dojo

Figuring it was Mikey doing some humiliating dance, he pulled out his camera and started recording

What he saw was not Mikey, but you

Dancing in a way that was foreign to him, yet he loved how comfortable you looked

He basically studied your every move, trying to keep his instincts at bay

He startled you,"That had to have been the most awe- inspiring dance I've ever had the pleasure of witnessing."

You smiled, telling him the history of this form of dance, how you and a few others are slowly bringing it back

"What you just seen was latin style hiplet, Sweety!" You chimed.

Him being a curious and education loving turtle, he dug deep into hiplet

"Huh, also known as The Rap Ballet? How astounding." He chuckles

You admired his drive to learn more

You whispered in his ear,"I'll perform for you anytime you like. I could be your little guinea pig to study off of."

Then you noticed his camera, tapping your toes, crossing your arms

"Babe! Were you recording me!?"

He swallowed, audibly

"Uh oh!"

MICHAELANGELO🪑

Hes a dancing machine and you loved it

He was hopping along the rooftops, getting some air

When he noticed you out on one of the roofs moving around, strangely

He got closer, careful not to scare you

Thats when he heard the music

You were like a ballerina from the hood

He watched as you grooved to the music, maintaining good balance and style

He's seen ballet but never in this form

As you turned on your tiptoes, you noticed him standing there, frozen in his place

He grinned at you, wanting to know what style of ballet that was

"You're like those street dancers only with more class!" He quips.

He was amazed when you told him it was hiplet and you happen to teach it at the dance studio

He was so enthused he begged to see you dance for him

You felt confident around Mikey so you did a number for him

You giggled when you saw him try to mimick your movements

It made you happy that he enjoyed watching and participating

When you were done, he tossed you over his shoulder

"Ya gotta show the guys, they're gonna love it!"

The batboys are getting ready to do a classical set of music for a charity event. Cass isn't familiar with instruments that don't cause pain.

______________________________________________

They're sweating for weeks about this by now, trying to squeeze in time from their night jobs, day lives, and just trying not to throw stands at each other.

Tim's at the piano, Jason on a cello, Damian cradles a violin, and Dick wields the viola while a few other musicians crowd behind them to round out the sound.

Duke has a variety of drums and chimes around him that look daunting but he's intently bobbing his head, keeping time with a tempo only the musicians can hear.

Observing from across the room, Bruce nods slowly, work tablet forgotten in his lap.

Eyes lighting on silver clips in Tim and Dick’s manes to keep back their hair, she wonders at their concentration and control. It had been a nightmare to find music that the five could play, Cass remembers as she leans through the door to the voluminous ballroom.

The arguments had crossed into the dining room several times that once ended with a piccolo in the risotto and Damian banned from his instagram. He’d caught Jason and Tim screaming Vivaldi and Rossini at each other over a very done Duke who was shown stuffing half a peeled orange into his mouth.

Stephanie had called it a masterpiece. Twitter had called it free game and had responded with a flood of memes.

Cass smiles at her brothers as they move fluidly into their third piece, an intense movement of sound that thrums in her blood with a rapid beat. Her heart is already thumping with excitement and she locks eyes with Alfred who is conducting.

His hands are still moving, like he’s coaxing magic, when he quirks a smile and gives her a nod.

They had discussed this, he and Cass, made a pact to guide the selection of music when the others argued. It’s a surprise and maybe a way that she could also participate in this as the only Wayne who never mastered a musical instrument.

She hesitates at the door, shaking out her hands and pushing up the sleeves of her hoodie as she listens. She backs up into the hall when the music drops, counts as it slowly rises faster and faster.

Maybe she’s not a musician but Cass is a creature of movement and she’s been practicing to this music since she guided their choices.

Cass rests a heel on the wall behind her and stills.

They’re nearing a peak when she explodes into the room, sprinting into a kneel that sends her gliding across the floor, hands high to announce her arrival.

Even with mouths agape, her brothers scarcely falter, covering their fellow musicians as some startle into wrong notes. The music twists and glides wildly and she lets herself fall into it.

Cass tenses her body almost like she’s a marionette and suddenly it’s like the music is pulling her strings. Up and away, mixing her ballet into the hip hop dips and bounces that Alfred had practiced with her.

She’s a storm of movement in a cauldron of sound and there’s quiet glee under a wild smile.

She thinks that maybe this feeling was the spell that Alfred was casting.

It’s an aeon in terms of exertion, the fire of her dance fueled by sound but it feels like she’s scarcely blinked before the music slowly eases. It’s a quieting diminuendo that she expresses in a final swirling pirouette and a demure reverence for Alfred that ends in a bow alongside the music.

Cass is a statue in the awed silence.

Cass is marble chiseled by a sudden irrational fear that she’d overstepped.

But hands snap into applause and Bruce is up and clapping and laughing praise. ‘He loves it and he’s amazed and she’s amazing and he loves it.’

Her brothers are chittering excitedly with their fellow chairs while Jason is awkwardly clapping around his cello, whistling in delight.

She stays in place, eyes on the Conductor, nervous still and trying to catch her breath.

“Good enough for charity?”

Alfred steps forward and reaches out to ease her from the bow, smile proud and happy.

“Mistress Cassandra, my dear girl. I took the liberty of adding your performance to the program weeks ago.”

Performed by: Homer Hans Bryant, Zipporah Wilson, and dancers of the Chicago Multicultural Dance Center

Number: “Hip-Hop En Pointe: The Rhythm and Beat of Hiplet”

Style: Hiplet

There’s a woman here in a Baby Yoda shirt, Baby Yoda leggings, and Uggs.