‘So you think you can dance?’

The FJT School of Ballroom and Latin American Dancing (FJT) was named after Fred Jacob Thabeti who was a community servant in the 1970’s when Harry Job and Priscilla Myburgh, dance legends in the community used to dance ballroom and Latin.

The three promoted ballroom dancing among the youth in the community.

FJT legends are the superintendents of the school which is a non-profit organisation based in the heart of Eldorado Park and aims to bring the dance form to youngsters.

“The focus is primarily on our underprivileged and under-served community which is largely poor and overridden with narcotics,” said Trudy Brink, FJT Legends chairperson.

She added proudly, “Our kids have enough obstacles to face in the outside world and our responsibility is to make them realise that many obstacles can be overcome by making better decisions.

“When they come to dance classes, it should be a safe space for them, but they have to make it that way by being respectful to each other. We at FJT believe that there should be no barriers stopping them from dancing.”

The fact that the dance classes are a free service to the community, the number of new registrants is on the increase. They now have more than one hundred dance members.

“As mentioned before, the past year was very successful for our dance school in terms of membership and we are amazed by the talent we have in Eldorado Park.

“Besides the talent, just the eagerness and commitment the kids’ display makes our efforts worthwhile. We have participated in the Gauteng Provincial Championships and the South African Championships and our kids performed beyond our expectations,” said Brink.

In August this year, they participated in the Rumba in the Jungle International Ballroom and Latin Championships at Sun City. According to Brink, the dancers performed excellently and made it into the top five.

They also participated in a reality dance show called ‘Trippe, Trappe, Tone which will be screened on DSTV channel 147 early next year.

Brink said, “In this programme, our dancers were thrown into the deep end competed against more experienced couples at a championship level. I am proud to say that one of our dance partners made it into the top six.”

“It is a privilege for us to be part of children’s lives and to be in a position to nurture their talent. We believe that we have a purpose and obligation towards our dancers.”

On October 14, FJT will be hosting an in-house competition where their dancers can showcase their abilities to their families and friends.

Brink said that they do it because some of their parents cannot afford to attend competitions and having it locally allows them to appreciate the development of their children.

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