He gets his nickname, Mr. Fantastic, from the stretchy and flexible superhero. 'Freeze!' Muraine starts his improvised poppin' routine on the floor. Precise and angular arms. Muraine chats with the astounded hosts of Canada AM.

U.S. 'Dance' popper, Robert Muraine dances with couches

Updated Thu. Aug. 7 2008 1:16 PM ET

Lindsay Zier-Vogel, CTV.ca

From those who've been dancing since before they could walk to those who've never busted a move in their lives, Robert Muraine had everyone talking about dance this spring. He blew everyone's mind with his hilarious and extraordinary popping in the So You Think You Can Dance auditions.

The entire routine was mesmerizing, but the highlight was an extreme backbend that inspired series executive producer and judge Nigel Lythgoe to call Muraine his "favourite dancer of 2008". Muraine starts standing in this crazy move, and alternates between pushing his chin and sternum backwards until he is all the way on the floor.

He received full standing ovation from all three So You Think You Can Dance judges. "I've never seen anybody like this before," Mary Murphy laughed. "You're not human...You're brilliant," Mia Michaels added. If he can get standing ovations from these tough judges, this 21-year-old popper from Los Angeles must be doing something right.

Lamps, Couches and Vases

Robert was recently in Toronto and appeared on CTV's Canada AM promoting his dancing in IKEA Canada's New Collection TV commercials, airing in the first week of August.

In the ads, Muraine pairs his unique popping moves with those of Canadian dancer Shugamai Johnson, whose style is known as "liquid." The pair dance their way through an apartment while arranging and interacting with lamps, vases and couches.

"It was awesome," Muraine says of the filming experience. "It expanded my dancing because I got to work with a bunch of props. They were challenging to work with." He says the desk lamp was especially tricky, though in one ad, he and the lamp perform a duet of the infamous backbend move he immortalized in his 'Dance' audition.

So You Think You Can Pop?

Why isn't this amazing popper still competing on the U.S. show? Unlike hip hop, contemporary or ballroom, where routines are often choreographed, popping is mostly an improvisational dance form. "I'm an entertainer," Muraine says. "I do street performing and I'm used to working with a crowd, so entertaining people isn't a challenge for me. But doing the other styles of dance," he shakes his head. "That really didn't work for me."

"It was all a lot of fun until I had to start doing choreography," Muraine says of the U.S. Finals in Las Vegas. "I do what I do and I don't have interest or passion for other styles of dance," he says with direct honesty. "I'm really passionate about what I do, but [after the hip hop choreography] I was like, "I'm outta here!"

L.A.'s Underground Dance Scene

As simple as Muraine makes it look, his popping skills have taken years of work and dedication. "I trained my body to be able to do all this...I do all the normal stretches that everyone would do, but push harder and hold it longer."

Without any formal training, Muraine credits the extensive underground dance scene in L.A. for his dance education. "In high school, my friends and I would just get together, go over to each other's houses and stuff."

It was in these improvised dance spaces that Muraine received his nickname, Mr. Fantastic. "A lot of people think it's conceited, but it's not," Muraine smiles. Mr. Fantastic is the Marvel comic superhero with the power of elasticity and, just like Muraine, Mr. Fantastic can stretch, twist and compress his highly malleable body.

"You've got to keep the culture alive."

Where Muraine has a laid-back attitude, he's adamant about knowing the history of popping. "You've got to keep the culture alive," he insists. "Knowing the history and being able to tell it to everybody is a huge part of that. If you don't know the history and you're just doing it, it seems like you're just using the culture and not really sharing it or making the community grow."

But the origins of popping aren't clear. "I know a lot of different stories and the [exact history] is really controversial," he says. "It was a west coast thing when the breaking scene was on the east coast, but I don't think one person should get credit for everything."

Muraine can't choose just one mentor or influence, but credits all of his predecessors for where popping is today.

DJ Mr. Fantastic

In addition to his extensive dance career, Muraine has started DJ-ing. "You really really dissect the music as a DJ," he says, adding that he generally plays music at small venues. "It's definitely one of the things I love to do," he says and confesses to popping while he spins.

Poppin' Tips

So what's the trick? "Practice," Muraine says without hesitation. "There's no trick to it."

He suggests amateur poppers start by watching themselves in a mirror. "You have to figure out how your body works...But once you learn the basics, you can't rely on the mirror anymore," he cautions. Mirrors make dancers perform in one direction, he explains, where in street dancing, audiences surround the performer.

Where different geographical regions have their own popping styles and signature moves, Muraine focuses on the technique from his native L.A.: "You've got to hit hard and have clean waves. You don't want to have too much movement going on because you want to really be able to focus on one part at a time."

His Next Battle: So You Think You Dance Finale

If you missed his Canada AM performance, you're in luck, not only will Muraine be featured in the IKEA commercials, he will also be returning to the So You Think You Can Dance stage for the series finale. And if you want to see him live, he'll be performing at Buskerfest in Toronto from August 21-24.

When asked if he ever stops dancing, he laughs. "Yah. Right now I'm not, but it doesn't last for long." And before I can even ask the next question, his hand starts twitching. Soon enough, his right arms is rippling from his fingertip to shoulder.

"With popping, you don't go to a studio and dance in front of a mirror all day. The practice takes place in your every day life," Muraine says as the liquid movement transfers from his right arm down his left, nailing the clean lines required of any L.A. popper worth his salt.

 

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