SO YOUR CHILD WANTS TO DANCE!

How wonderful! Nothing can be more beneficial to the holistic development of a child than an involvement in the Arts.

It doesn’t matter whether it is Ballet or Ballroom, Spanish or Hip Hop, Contemporary or Capoeira, Tap or Irish – the intense and dedicated study of dance develops so much more than poise, grace, fitness, musicality, co-ordination and strength.

Socialization, self- assessment, memory training, humility and perseverance are all integral aspects of dance.

In the words of Dr Eduard Greyling – Ex-professional dancer, Laban Notator and

Patron of the Cecchetti Society of SA:

“Dance training, whether for the purpose of preparing the professional or for the sheer joy of organized movement, has an unprecedented place in our society.

Stimulated by music, dance is a language whose words are movements of the body in time and space”

Dance can be categorised as “social”, “recreational” or “vocational”.

In my experience, anyone aspiring to take their dance training to a vocational level should have ballet as the basis on which all the other genres are built, and versatility is the name of the game.

The question often arises – which method should I study?

All methods lay the basic foundation and have their individual values – the differences are merely style. I have been extremely fortunate to have been involved in dance for most of my life, and can highly recommend it as a vocation or as a hobby.

There are several societies, with branches in KZN, whose members are qualified teachers, offering tuition in the many different dance genres. Contact them to find a teacher near you.

                                                                             Minette de Klerk (Minette De Klerk Dance Academy)

Royal Academy of Dance: (Ballet) Jenny Walter Girout (Secretary) 031-5641498

Cecchetti Society of KZN: Hannah Brophy Bosch (Secretary) 072 519 3960

A.I.D.T.A. Modern and Tap: Di Drake (Chairlady) 084 514 7989   ddrake@ledom.co.za

I.S.T.D. Modern, Tap, Ballet, National: Michelle Clark 072 483 6222   mcclark.dance@gmail.com

Spanish Dance Society: (Flamenco, Regional and Classic) Penny Lundell 076 680 0890 plundall@cdsp.co.za

T.D. A. (Modern Tap Hip Hop and Ballet: Fiona Barnes fmbarnes@worldonline.co.za

S.A.D.T.A. (Latin Ballroom and Line Dance): Janelle Yuni 084 474 0531 janelle@dancebasics.co.za

S.A.D.T.A. (Belly Dance): Senta Duffield 082 829 3658   senta@mayadance.co.za

S.A.S.A.D. (Various Dance Genres): Cathy Barry 031 5641498   sasaadinfo@gmail.com