OCTV Presents: The Hat Trick Turn Up

Earlier this week, as a Jamaica-bound J/Z train lurched above ground and into the winter sun, two male dancers began to perform in a subway car. If you've taken public transit, you may have seen a similar set-up -- the flexin (Brooklyn), the b-boyin (NYC), the krumpin (LA), the turfin (Oakland), the jookin (Memphis) -- or perhaps a freestyle appropriation of all these. You recognize it by the flashy, turbo-charged case of showmanship, accessorized by a boom box and a flat-brim, in and out with the closing doors and the jangle of change.

The only difference is that this duo, Showoff, 24, ("the nickname is pretty self-explanatory," he deadpans) and Dre, 23, aren't kids without agenda. Both are professional flex dancers first, and friends second, having met at a past Battlefest.

"Everything is dance; it's my form of self-expression," Dre says. "We call it 'mind-labbin.' Even when I'm not dancing, I use my imagination and make up dance moves in my head, and then go home and try 'em out. It's where the best moves come from."

Read the whole story and watch the dance video on Opening Ceremony's blog