DANZ QUARTERLY ISSUE 21 - October, November December 2010

Editorial

Community dance is the well-spring of identity – a voice that finds its expression in weekly gatherings in settings that encapsulate a sense of belonging.  It is the very rhythms, the patterns, steps, moves, tempo and laughter that binds us together.

 In many ways we take for granted these quiet assertions of the past that gather us and link us to our ancestry and essence. And yet, the way we embrace and affirm our origins lies at the heart of well-being.

I have part Irish ancestry, and I have been lucky to belong to a strong dance community. While not being an accomplished  exponent of Michael Flatley  style of ‘step dancing’ I have been an avid participant of ‘ceili dancing’, the exuberant social dance, and also ‘set dancing’ a no- less social but more slightly restrained dance that Irish men and women gather to dance within their own homes.

What marks my time is not only the endorphin high of dancing, which I am sure carried my ancestors through their times of ‘troubles’ but also the laughter, comradeship and shared dedication to mastering the complexities of steps and dance movement.

New Zealand is blessed with an abundance of cultures. We are defined by the many voices that give character and depth to the notion of ‘Kiwi’ – a unique and generous affirmation of ‘us’.

This issue of DANZ features a wonderful array of social dance – Siva for the elderly, a community project for the visually impaired in Dunedin, International dance days and a wealth of regional dance festivals and events to set the heart dancing.

Cover photo: World of Wearable Art Awards , American Express Open Section 2009. Choreographed by Malia Johnston . Dancers clockwise from bottom Taane Mete , Liana Yew , Rebekha Duncan (NZSD), Alice Macann (NZSD), Anita Hunziker (Footnote

DANZ Quarterly Issue 21 - October, Noveber, December 2010

Contents

Growing International Dance Day Celebrations
by Jenny Cossey, Hahna Briggs and Tania Kopytko

Dance Explosion at Dance Your Southern Sox Off
by Hahna Briggs

Bursting the Bubble – Simon Ellis, The Place Prize semi-finalist
by Ann Hunt

Siva – Pacific Dance the New Zumba?
by Aaron Taouma on behalf of Pacific Dance New Zealand

Precious Memories – “House of Memories”, Perspectives of the Visually Impaired
by Suzanne Cowan

Double Dance Mania at Otago University – National Tertiary Dance Festival & Symposium on “Dancing Across the Disciplines”
by Alexander Klob

Pregnancy & Dance – Felicity Molloy, Gabrielle Thomas, Rebecca Marshall, Justine Pepene-Hohaia
by Natalie Dowd

What Lies Ahead? – Fleur de Thier
by Carolyn Cairns

DANZ Resource - Keeping Dance Archives
by Mary Donald

CD Review – Music for Dance, Eden Mullholland
by Russell Scoones

Book Review – The Dance Parent’s Survival Guide, Julia Monaghan with Kate Wilson
by Carolyn McKeefry

Text-Shaped Choreography – Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui’s Babel
by Bronwyn Tweedle

Spring Fever!
by Francesca Horsley

REVIEWS
Kōwhiti Matariki Festival of Māori Contemporary Dance reviewed by Ann Hunt
Triple Bill Touch Compass reviewed by Francesca Horsley