Photo credit: Knight Foundation on Flickr. Growing up in a hardscrabble swath of Detroit's west side, Haleem Rasul had a start in life that wasn't all that auspicious. Dance was his escape. Rasul’s cousin got him into Breaking and Popping, dance forms popularized on the East and West coasts. But Rasul fell for the Jit, so much so that he got in touch with the McGhee brothers who originated the dance in Detroit in the mid-1970s. A series of filmed interviews with the three brothers led to the documentary, "Jitterbugs: Pioneers of the Jit," which debuts Friday at the Detroit Institute of Arts. The event, sponsored in part by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, is free with museum admission. The movie, which took five years to make, includes appearances by luminaries such as Motown singer Kim Weston, who supported the brothers, as well as footage of the McGhees performing at local parties and events like festivals and auto shows throughout the mid 1980s. It also includes a bonus instructional on Jit steps and style, so anyone can learn the dance. Rasul, 36, said the film chronicles how pioneers Johnny, Tracy and James McGhee gained local stardom only to fade from the klieg lights, leaving a rich legacy. The brothers are scheduled to perform at the premiere, along with other area dance groups including locally prominent Jit forerunners. The event, called “Jit Happens at the DIA,” also will feature top acts that have helped spread the Jit's influence beyond the Detroit area.
