Waltz With Love 2011

On the evening of July the 16th, 376 Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (Utar) students literally waltzed in to the Malaysia Book Of Records at the Utar Perak Campus in Kampar. Led by Wincent Ch'ng, the students took six months to organise the gargantuan record breaking event. The large cafeteria at the Student Pavilion was converted into a ballroom for the event.

Themed "Waltz With Love 2011", the evening started with a series of performances by students before 188 couples took their positions and moved synchronously and gracefully to David Cook's waltz piece, The Times Of Our Lives, for the feat. "It's good to see undergraduates nowadays being so proactive, and this reflects their strong commitment towards the university" said Malaysia Book Of Records official Zul Hairi, after presenting the certificate for the largest participation in a waltz dance to Wincent to confirm the record.

"Waltz is not a culture in Malaysia. I'm really happy to see so many Utarians who are brave enough to step out of the norm (to participate in the event)," said Wincent. "I'm very pleased to know that our undergraduates can work together to achieve something of this magnitude," said Utar vice-president (Student development And Alumni Relations) Dr Teh Chee Seng. (The Sun)

F&N Big Fun Fest 2011

Tourists and shoppers who came as spectators turned into performers and all had a great time dancing at the busy intersection of Jalan Bukit Bintang and Jalan Sultan Ismail in Kuala Lumpur as hundreds of motorists whizzed past the area. Despite the Sunday afternoon drizzle, tourists and even some local teenagers were thrilled with the use of multi-media technology "augmented reality" to enhance the feeling of participation in the F&N Big Fun Fest 2011 preview. The Big Fun Fest is back for the second year running and this time with the aim of introducing the biggest dance flash mob in Malaysia with the use of augmented reality.

F&N is blurring the line between the virtual and real worlds, with the integration of realtime interactive graphics into a live video stream. In doing so, passive shoppers passing by the busier parts of Kuala Lumpur get roped in as active performers. It enables the people to interact with characters in their own environment. F&N Malaysia brand marketing assistant general manager Jenny Wong said the screen was placed strategically at the intersection and this allowed passers-by to experience and interact with augmented reality dancers in a specially choreographed dance. It will be performed by a flashmob on July 23 at the same intersection.

Wong explained that augmented reality referred to a live direct or indirect view of a physical, real-world environment that contained elements augmented by computer-generated sensory input, such as graphics. "As a result, the technology enhances one's current perception of reality. In contrast, virtual reality replaces the real world with a simulated one," she said. "We want everyone in the Bukit Bintang area walking past the screen to learn the moves and join us in creating the biggest flashmob the city has ever seen," she added. (NB: the flashmob performance on July 23 has been postponed to a date to be announced later) ( The Star)

Elecoldxhot Is Hot!

Five-member Elecoldxhot danced their way into the hearts of the audience at 8TV's Showdown 2011 finale at i-City, Shah Alam on July 6, taking home a cool RM50,000. Comprising Ooi Kok Wei, Yin Zhen Huang, Yap Jin Hou, Ang Joo Yee and Lin Yit Zhou, they emerged victorious in the final battle against HMC Phlow. "We came to win and we're glad that all our efforts over the past six months paid off, so it was all worth it" said Yin. Ooi chipped in "We are thinking of competing at international level with our target being the World Hip Hop Dance Competition.

Elecoldxhot will be taking a week off to enjoy their hard-earned prize money. Yin said "We will definitely have a good holiday now that we are each richer by RM10,000." Mixing dance moves influence by American superstars Justin Timberlake and the late Michael Jackson to South Korean sensation Rain, the Elecoldxhot quintet were clearly a class above the other dance finalists namely, HMC Phlow, Rokusteps and Bounce Stepperz.

Elecoldxhot convincingly won with their every performance, and delivered their best choreography during songs like In For The Kill (by British duo La Roux) and Welcome To My Hood (by American trio DJ Khaled, T-Pain and Busta Rhymes). Rokusteps was eliminated after the first round for having the least text votes. Next to leave was Bounce Stepperz after their stellar performance failed to garner enough votes for the final face-off. (The Malay Mail)