HeadSpin’s Dance Battles Foster Community and Talent in Wallingford

Ever since discovering the maritime-themed Octopus Bar in Wallingford, I have been on the lookout for their events; so when I noticed that the bar hosts a dance battle on the first Saturday of every month, I knew where I was going to be on Saturday, November 9. 

Co-hosted by the dancers Auto and Orb, these monthly battles are created by HeadSpin Productions and DJ’d by DJ Fever One. The battles are open to all styles, meaning contestants might be paired up against someone who does a totally different street style than them, though they will have the same song. The contestants compete 1v1 for a cash prize. Whoever wins in each battle progresses until there are two contestants left. 

The Octopus Bar was packed to the brim on Saturday at 9 p.m., and in the back of the bar, where trivia, bingo, and karaoke are hosted on other nights of the week, a crowd had begun assembling around the dance floor in a circle. For the next hour or so, dancers took turns in the middle, practicing moves, warming up, and cheering each other on. This also gave people time to sign up to compete. Every once in a while, Orb would lead the circle (known in the dance world as a cypher) in basic party moves as people warmed up. It was honestly hard to tell who was competing and who was just there to watch, a nod to the purposefully inclusive atmosphere of the event. 

Upside down dancer / The Evergreen Echo

Among the crowd, I recognized many familiar faces from The Beacon, a dance studio in Beacon Hill home to the Massive Monkees hip-hop crew, and the hub for street dance and freestyling in Seattle. The studio offers classes in breaking, popping, locking, waacking, house, hip-hop, and more. 

At around 10 p.m., the battle began. There were 23 contestants, meaning there would be one group of three battling it out. While most dance battles will elect judges from within the dance community, on this night, the hosts chose to let the audience decide. We were instructed to cheer for who we thought won each round, and whoever got the louder cheers overall would progress to the next round. 

Almost all of the songs were hip-hop, so it was fascinating to watch people interpret the same beats in totally different ways and with contrasting emotional tones. Each dancer conveyed a personality in their movements; some emphasized sharp, hard-hitting poses, others impressed with lightning-quick footwork and spins, and still others were smooth and stealthy, leaning into the rhythm with their whole body. One highlight was the group of three, who each specialized in a different style—animation, house, and waacking—one after the other. Breaking was the most common style, with some very impressive freezes displayed. 

Two dancers hug after a battle / The Evergreen Echo

This was less than a week after the election, but rather than low morale, the HeadSpin battle created a circle of joy, love, and support. I felt emotional several times throughout the night, especially as I watched each pair of opponents hug after battling each other. The Octopus Bar usually has a sign on their door listing the week’s schedule, but this time it was changed to a powerful message about coming together as a community to support each other.

The person sitting on my left introduced herself, explaining that she now wanted to take freestyle classes and adding, “I can’t believe this is free.” There was genuinely so much talent in such a small room, and everyone watching knew it. 

The next dance battle will be the first Saturday in December, and after my experience I hope more folks get to enjoy the community, talent, and competition The Octopus Bar facilitates.