We are off to an early afternoon start today, and are once again met by our Johannesburg guide Don. We headed to a section of downtown Jo’burg called the Newtown Cultural Precinct. Of course, daylight allowed us to see much more of the city than last night’s trip from the airport. Meredith, our photographer, said that the city and its highways reminded her of her hometown, Los Angeles.

Once in the Newtown area, we noticed these beautiful lacquered, wooden busts that line the sidewalks. These were made by artists in Newtown from old railway sleeper cars and represent different faces from the African continent.

We walked around downtown for about 45 minutes, snapping our first photos of the area and soaking in some of the sun. Although it is autumn in South Africa, it was sunny and warm. This was a very welcome change from the cold weather we left behind in New York just a few days ago. (Seasons are opposite of those in the northern hemisphere.)

Next, it was over to ‘Moving into Dance Mophatong wa Thabo,’ which means Sanctuary of Happiness when translated. This is our first official film stop and series of interviews in South Africa. Sarah was in the hot seat today and I am sure she was feeling the pressure of being the first one on camera on this trip. I felt fortunate to have my first assignment safely behind the camera.

First, we spoke with Sylvia ‘Magogo’ Glasser, the founder of Moving Into Dance (MIDM). Sylvia built the dance company up from the very beginning - having started MIDM in 1978 when it was an all ‘white’ company performing Afro-fusion (an integration of African dance, music, ritual, and western contemporary dance forms).  After some background information on how the company began as cultural resistance to the apartheid regime (which we will learn more about in a few days) we were treated to some dancing.

Moving. Beautiful. Powerful. Joyful. The first dance was one that was performed with a large stone in each of the dancer’s hands - six dancers in total. They would keep a steady beat by clapping the stones together, then against each other’s stones, then they would strike the ground. Following the dance, we were told that this was to symbolize that we are all part of the same global community. Individual, Family, Earth.

The second dance was energetic and just plain fun. It combined many styles including an incredible demonstration of gumboots dancing. What a treat to have a private performance by these talented dancers, and what a way to start our work in South Africa!

Let’s Dance!

Part I: Moving Into Dance & Afro-fusion	Part II: Let’s Dance!

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