With many students passing through their doors, it is safe to say they have built the foundation of dancers at the National School of Arts and at a few dance companies around South Africa.

The Bosmont School of Dance has been in existence for the past fourteen years. The directors and teachers of the school are Michelle Braam and Rhonda Rhoda.

Initially the two sisters were the only teachers working hands on with all of their students but over the past months they have been receiving help from their senior students.

“Lots of kids have passed through our doors over the past few years, some have remained some have left due to school commitments, and some have come back.

“We have three senior ladies that have danced with us, two in particularly want to become teachers so they busy with completing their major exams with us so that they can qualify. They are teaching the little ones so through that they get their practical part through the teaching the classes.” said Rhoda.

The classes are offered to students as young as three years old and hip hop from eight years old, according to Rhoda as long as they can listen to instruction and follow through with it they will be able to teach them.

“Over the years the school has been successful, we do exams in modern jazz, every single year we’ve completed full exams. The whole studio has been put through. The weaker girls that cannot cope with doing a full exam will do an assessment or a medal test and they still attain a medal” said Rhoda.

The ballet students do not take part in any exams because the class only provides the girls with the basics and the foundation of dance. It teaches posture, how the feet needs to work and French terminology.

The school enters the festivals where different studios compete against each other. According to Rhonda competition is tough and can be very daunting on some of the pupils because reports are made publicly form critics and some students take it very personally.

At least once a year they participate in a showcase where all the recreational centres display the talents that they each have, this will take place on July 14 and 15.

The dance school has a year-end show every year which always takes place on the first Saturday of December when school closes. Other upcoming events for the school are the festivals that are taking place in August into September.

Rhoda said: “I must say all in all, we are blessed. I’m glad that we as Michelle and I could impact on so many children’s lives in the community. So many that have left have come back saying they don’t understand why they left, but they’ve longed for dance so they come back to dancing.

“And I just hope that we can gain more of the children from the street and we would also like to extend, the youth that is so troubled with the drugs that are overpowering our youth, if we can reach out to them and call them into our studio and give them a sense of belonging.”

Braam also wishes to see their students go overseas and compete on a large scale.

“It has taught me how to access myself using movement and also how to appreciate how dance is a form of art, and also it teaches values and how discipline you become when you do dance. And also how to teach others that you know looking after your body is a good thing” said Romaine Fernandz (15), a dance student of 7 years.

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