Dancing takes the edge off tough days for Sebastian Reinhart, aka DJ Sabatoge, the Sylvan Laker also known for being the youngest DJ in Central Alberta. Quiet by nature, the young man is not a fan of ballet but hip hop definitely gets him moving.
The dancer didn’t come up with his stage name, a family member helped him out by initially giving him a nickname he wasn’t happy about.
“My uncle used to always call me Sabo and I didn’t really like that name,” Reinhart said. He asked his uncle to come up with some different options and one of the names that was written down was “Sabatoge.” The name felt right so it stuck.
DJ Sabatoge’s inspiration comes from his teacher Ricardo “Rico” Martinez, from the Pound It Hip Hop Studio in Red Deer as well as pop and hip hop music.
The young dancer spoke about how dancers in a street dance battle will “sabotage” each other “off the stage” during competitions. He prefers freestyling over choreographed routines and enjoys battling in competitions as a single or one-versus-one battler.
“Battling is when there’s a DJ on set and there’s like two or three judges on the side,” he explained.
The battle consists of the dancer or dancers freestyle dancing to a random hip hop song after which the judges pick the winner.
Consistent practice has led to a performance opening for rapper Madchild and victories in one-versus-one Allstyles and two-versus-two Allstyles performing alongside a crewmate at the Xmas Battle in Red Deer last December.
The young dancer will also be performing at the Winterfest community dance Feb. 16, opening for the TR3 Band.
