Jemma gives back to local dance scene
She recently started an organisation called Unity, a one-of-a-kind platform for the arts forms of dance, music, acting, film, fitness, yoga, performing arts and all things creative operating nationally and internationally.
LA Lucia teenager Jemma van Breda is no stranger to accolades in her dance career. From winning gold at the World Championships of Performing Arts in Hollywood to winning several competitions on the local scene. She was even awarded a scholarship to the prestigious Millennium Dance Complex in Los Angeles, however, after a month, the 19-year-old turned that down to pursue a cause close to her heart, developing and nurturing talent in Durban and in the country.
“I attended the scholarship in LA for a month and from my experience there I was determined to come home and develop South Africa to those standards because we have all the talent and so much more potential,” she said.
She recently started an organisation called Unity, a one-of-a-kind platform for the arts forms of dance, music, acting, film, fitness, yoga, performing arts and all things creative operating nationally and internationally. Through cultural upliftment and the re-energizing of the arts industry in South Africa, Unity aims to provide artists, both young and old, with a reason to stay in South Africa.
“For me, Unity is an organisation like no other, it’s not a studio, not a company but a unique hub for creatives to showcase their talents. It is also a means to retain talent here in the country, because there are very little job opportunities for artists, we train and are developed here only to travel overseas to make a living.
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“So when I started this initiative in October last year, I had three main aims, creating employment and development for all artists through workshops, classes and project-x video creations. It is about providing the basis for talent exchange and bursaries that allow our artists to grow and succeed far beyond the limitations of one style/genre and creating a network platform which establishes a direct connection between all artists in the South African Arts and Culture industry,” she explained.
One of the main reaches to the international community is the creation of local videos, showcasing all forms of performing arts both on and off-camera, which people can view globally, saving artists the expense of travelling overseas.
“Artists who are part of Unity automatically qualify for the chance to win bursaries and scholarships to prestigious global institutions as part of our developmental, talent exchange platform. We aim to cover all disciplines and aspects of development whilst creating a platform for exposure and employment/exchange,” said the former Crawford College La Lucia learner.
To find out more about the organisation, visit www.unitysouthafrica.com.
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