Dance programme billed for Maitisong Festival

Dumisani Ncube | Thursday April 23, 2015 17:45

 

Speaking to Showbiz Maitisong dance consultant Tumisang Baatshwana said there will be a number of dance activities taking place at this year’s festival.

“We will host workshops for amateurs and professionals. 

There will be a dance showcase platform called The Space for upcoming dancers,” said Baatshwana.

Workshops are scheduled to start on Friday afternoon at Maitisong. The dance workshops have been divided into two parts. The first one has two sessions, beginning with one for children aged between eight and 12 years, from 2pm till 3:20pm.

The second one is for children aged between 13 and 16 years, starting at 3:30pm till 5:00pm. Baatshwana noted that participants of these workshops would receive assistance and advice from dance professionals such as she and her colleagues.  The second will be held at Maitisong on Saturday morning.  “This second workshop is for experienced dancers working within the industry.  It is meant to expose them to other dancers and choreographers,” mentioned Baatshwana.

After the workshops have been conducted there will be a dance showcase of The Space will be held at Maru-A-Pula School on an outside stage for different dance groups. The Space will involve a number of dance genres that range from contemporary, Latin and hip hop.

When explaining the structure of The Space, Baatshwana stated that each group will be given five minutes to showcase their craft and it should be incorporated with the Maitisong Festival theme, which is Elevate.

She said the objective behind this dance programme is to lay a foundation for an annual dance festival in the country, introduce amateur dancers to the industry and to share skills through workshops held by professionals in the industry. 

Two headlining dance performances will be showcased during the festival.  Mophato Dance Theatre will showcase Inyaya, Thursday evening.  SkyBlue Dance Hub will showcase a dance play called X, Saturday night.