The Diepsloot Combined School and the St Petersburg Ballet Theatre share the same passion – dance.
The theatre is in town to tell the classic stories of Swan Lake and The Nutcracker through the art of movement and last week it shared this with the children from the school.
As part of Montecasino’s Corporate Social Investment (CSI) project, schoolchildren were invited to join in a day filled with dance.
The children were able to meet the ballet dancers and step onto the stage.
Neo Ramokone, Diepsloot Combined School dance captain said he was so excited to step onto a professional stage and it gave him a sense of what he wanted to work towards.
Elizaveta Maltseva, the St Petersburg Ballet Theatre instructor, taught the children some of the movements at the ballet bar. The children giggled at all the strange movements and cultural differences.
After some stretches and chuckles, the children were given the opportunity to teach the ballet dancers some traditional South African hip-hop dancing.
Ramokone and Sanah Mpipi are the dance captains of Ultimate Dance Studio, a Diepsloot Combined School dance group, and said they were honoured to be a part of the experience.
Sabani Mtule (15) said this inspired her to start her own dance academy one day for underprivileged children and teach them how to dance. “It is not where you’re from but where you are headed,” said Mtule.
Maltseva explained that dance teaches discipline and perseverance and that it is a lesson every child can gain from. The ballet dancers were delighted by the new dance moves they learned and the children were amazed by the professional movements the dancers showcased.
Lisa Sukdev, Montecasino’s public relations officer was pleased to see the happy children on the Montecasino Teatro stage and made sure that they had healthy snacks while they were watching the ballet dancers in rehearsal.
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