“If you believe in yourself and you’re willing to work for it, you can have anything you want. Nothing is impossible.” This quote by my idol, Michael Flatley is one I live my life by and one that has inspired me throughout my years of dancing.
Irish Dancing is a form of dancing that has existed for hundreds of years. Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, Irish dancing was a form of social dance performed at gatherings such as weddings, fairs and gatherings. The early 1700s marked a turn in dancing when the ‘Travelling Dance Master’ began to teach ‘step dancing’. Irish Dancing was made most popular by Michael Flatley with his shows such as Riverdance and Lord of the Dance. Today, Irish dancing consists of both solo dancing and group dancing which are competed in at competitions known as a “feis”.
My dancing journey began with my first ballet class at the age of 3. My aunt introduced me to ballet and I instantly fell in love with the expression and my passion for dancing only grew from there. At the age of 8 I went and watched my first class of Irish dancing and knew that I wanted to be Irish dancer. I loved the high energy and variety as Irish dancing is two-fold – there is soft shoe, which is more balletic and hard shoe which can be similar to tap. In 2014 I changed studios to join the Robinson Dance Studio to explore new opportunities and grow as a dancer. This move opened new doors for me such as dancing as part of a team of eight and travelling overseas to compete.
This year, I was fortunate enough to travel to Ireland and England. Together with our 3 teachers and 10 dancers, we travelled to Cork in Ireland where we trained with the very successful Kiely-Walsh Academy of Irish Dancing. It was the most incredible experience training with dancers who had competed and placed within the top 50 dancers at the World Championships. This experience was filled with learning, bonding and a lot of laughs. We concluded our trip with a quick flight over to Birmingham in England where we competed in the City of Birmingham Championships.
My most memorable moment of the trip was when the results were announced. I placed fifth overall against dancers from Germany, Ireland, Russia, England and Israel. This was an incredible achievement for me as well as my studio as South Africa is relatively new to Irish Dancing and is still working towards those top places in competitions. This was also my very first time finishing a competition with a podium finish. I was ecstatic that I, a girl form South Africa who began Irish dancing because I just loved the energy, was standing on a podium alongside brilliant dancers for around the world! The following day, our team of eight competed in the team dancing and we placed second.
Our Irish dancing season culminates at the beginning of October with South African Championships. At SA Champs, there is an opportunity to compete for the title of South African Champion as well as to qualify for the World Championships. This year, I didn’t achieve my goal of qualifying as a solo dancer but I am working on this for next year. In the meantime, my team qualified to dance at the 2017 World Championships in Dublin which I am really looking forward too.
In June 2015, while Lord of the Dance was on tour in South Africa, I was able to meet my idol, Michael Flatley. Michael is the most charismatic, humble man who has an incredible passion for Irish Dancing. He was amazing to talk to and his passion came across in everything he said to me. To be able to receive advice from someone who has inspired me since I began dancing was definitely a huge highlight in my life.
So many people have been instrumental in my dancing. My wonderful teachers Shonah Robinson, Elinor Boyes and Genevieve Boyes have never failed to support, encourage, believe and push me to achieve my goals. My family has been so supportive and never fail to show up at even the smallest of competitions or showcases. And lastly, the chiropractor who has helped me through years’ shin-splints, torn ligaments, sprained ankles, and many other injuries, Doctor Wayne Borowsky. Wayne has been instrumental, not only in ensuring that my body is able to perform to my full potential, but also in encouraging me and keeping my mind strong when times get tough
Dancing has taught me so many life lessons, but the one that sticks out for me the most is that if you fall down seven times, you have to stand up eight, every time with more determination and heart than before. So give everything you have – you’ve got nothing to lose!
