Salsa and jazz dance lovers can look forward to an exciting new venue where dance instructors will take them through their paces in learning how to dance and sharpening their skills in the much-loved dance genres.
Event organiser and dance enthusiast Chantal Levendal said after discovering a “gem of a venue” at Algarve Restaurant, she looked forward to bringing the dance genres closer to the community, which birthed the idea of “Salsa meets Jazz in the North”.
Levendal said she found that these kind of dance gatherings were often held in areas outside Kuils River and its surroundings, making it difficult for local enthusiasts to participate. Currently the venue also hosts weekly Salsa evenings on a Wednesday.
At this weekend’s launch event, attendees will be able to join a free Salsa dance class.
“We are excited about bringing this event closer to the community, and with the introduction of these classes we want to further whet the appetite of dancers and dance lovers. We hardly have – actually, we don’t have salsa in the north and the places we do have available mostly cater to the greater jazz community, but we would like to bring those together with these classes.
“The venue is very safe and was one of the reasons I felt confident in bringing dancing back to Kuils River. Before, we had to drive to the CBD to dance, and there it was mainly salsa. But now with this vision we have for the community, we hope to grow the community. My vision is that we get to have a resident dance space every Saturday. Currently we may only run it every second Saturday, but we hope to change that very soon,” said Levendal.
The classes will be open to anyone who has an interest in American-Latin dance genres, such as Salsa, Bachata and Kizomba, and jazz.
Dance instructor Whitney Smit said he was excited to bring dance closer to the community.
“Dance has always been a vessel that we cross boundaries with. It creates a platform where we can tell our story because it transcends racial, cultural and every other boundary.
“We want to introduce the Latin cultures into the northern suburbs as its an immensely beautiful story to tell through dance, because its so varied and so vast,” said Smit.
The launch will take place on Saturday at Algarve Restaurant and Bar, 20 Kerk Street, Kuils River.
For more information, contact Chantal Levendal at 076 862 4719.
Cape Times