Durban — In an attempt to increase youth creativity and uplift society through art within the country, the Wu Tang Cru will be representing South Africa and has been invited to participate in the UDO World Street Dance Championships later this year.
On receiving the invite, director and coach Sanusha Govender said: “We love our province dearly and are always honoured to represent KwaZulu-Natal at the interprovincial tournaments. Here, the team will earn their Protea colours in dance, which has been a goal for five years.”
With expertise in visual art, education and accolades in dance, Govender and Jose Africa established Wu Tang Cru – a non-profit organisation – in 2018. Both Africa and Govender have been involved in dance since they were young.
She added that along with fellow coach and director Africa, they would head to Blackpool, England for the UDO World Street Dance Championships with six members of their dance crew. Govender added that the organisation also provides Durban youngsters with dancing and visual art lessons.
“Dance is our main focus, passion and purpose. We have always dreamed of uplifting our society through dance. Our motto aims to develop fitness, discipline and skills for the youth of KwaZulu-Natal,” she said.
Govender praised the exposure they had received at the World Cultural Dance Festival – held by the International Youth Fellowship (IYF) in Jeonju City, South Korea, as she said it helped with their teaching methods.
“The festival was truly amazing and also an eye-opener for us as a team. The countries that attended the festival executed their performances on a high level and articulated their cultures in absolute excellence,” she said.
Speaking on their approach, Govender said that the lessons were very informative, educational and they had found tools and methods to teach visual art in a way that is relevant to children and really brings out their talent after the first lesson.
“We believe in a practical and theoretical approach to the teaching and learning process. The children learn the history of street dance so they know where the dance steps originate and are able to choreograph their own dance routines based on our curriculum as well as incorporate their creativity and freestyle approach to their performances,” she said.
She added that the dance school provided opportunities for all children from various backgrounds to join in and be a part of the team.
To fully achieve their goal of attaining national colours and representing the country, Govender encouraged people to aid with sponsorship to help get the entire team to England. She said lessons take place at the Bat Centre on Saturdays from 8.30 to 12 noon.
To assist with sponsoring the UDO trip, email: [email protected]
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