Dancing the Night Away

Today, one of our Makaphutu kiddos had a performance for a group he is in- Mayibuye. An Australian group headed by a young guy, Dan Perkins, decided that he wanted to partner with Australia and South Africa to provide a way for the Youth to stay out of the street and away from destructive behavior through hip hop dance.

When I tell you, these kids are great. I felt like I was at a real concert with all these great dancers. They put a little hip-hop, ballet, tango, and zulu dance together to put together a great performance. It lasted for about 4 hours. Good thing I like song and dance. Everyone truly enjoyed themselves.

Now the kids are teaching me Zulu dances. Truly, I am convinced this is where step teams and dance groups get some moves. It came from somewhere. These zulu dances have been around for centuries.

What I like most about it is that everyone wants to identify with his/her Zulu culture by doing these dances. It's not about "oh no, that's for old people". The kids cheer for each other when they can kick up high and do the dances.

That's one thing I find that is interesting and a bit sad about America. It is difficult to identify with an "American Culture". There is no special food or dish, no special dance or style of clothing. In the same sense, it's great because America is a collection of all cultures, but I am a bit envious of their deep culture and sense of pride in it.