Spilling the tea with Hillcrest’s Denya

IT is difficult not to have a beaming smile plastered across your face when in Denya Du Plessis’ presence, a most welcome contagion.

Put simply, the vivacious powerhouse exudes happiness and has an unrivalled zest for life.

As we sit at a quaint coffee shop in Hillcrest, an area she calls home and where she raises her two children with husband, Neil, she shares her life’s journey (so far).

Her love of dance has continued to be her passion since her adolescent years, and now at 41, she not only continues to take part in shows, she shares her wealth of knowledge and experience with children through her own dance school.

Denya is also a Sharks Flasher stalwart and, rocking a bikini-ready body (just 16 weeks after giving birth), still performs alongside the girls to this day.

Dance, she said, quite literally opened up a world of opportunities for her. Way back when, she joined a ship’s crew as a performer and travelled across the globe, saving as much of her salary as possible. She wisely invested her heard-earned cash in property back home in South Africa.

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When not sharing her love of dance with others, she is a trainer for the Get Fit fitness challenge, is involved with model recruitment, handles the PR for Barnyard Suncoast Theatre and her top-of-the-list ‘job’: being a mom.

She met her husband on a blind date, set up by her brother.

“My brother did the Get Fit challenge and he met Neil. I wasn’t too keen on a blind date but my brother raved about him and I honestly thought I would end up walking all over him. When I did meet him, I thought it’s love at first sight,” she blushed. “We have so much in common and he is such a genuinely wonder guy!”

One year later and he popped the question.

“We both wanted the same things, were both at the age where we wanted to settle down and start a family,” she beamed.

Her children, Skyler (3.5) and Caylum (16 weeks) are her world. “Skyler and I are always making up dance routines and putting on little shows at home. We would do it every day if we could. My little Caylum just sits there and watches with a smile on his face. He is so cute,” said the doting mom.

Always on the go, it is a wonder how she is able to fit all of this into a normal 24-hour day. Her secret, while not as extreme as time travel, is simple: “I try to be super organised so that I can find my way, plan ahead,” she said.

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Denya slowly sips at her tea across the table, her eyes gleam with joy, as if she has just shared an inside joke with her bestie. Her happiness comes from doing things that keep her inspired.

“Whether it is my work or in my spare time, I want to do things that bring me joy. I love dancing, it is my passion, and fitness. It is just great to marry the two together and find employment in that,” she said.

When asked what she does in her downtime, she spends each spare minute on weekends with her family, where they can be found lounging on the beach or, if the opportunity arises, travelling.

To add to her overflowing resume, she also runs her own website dangerouscurves.co.za.

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