[bluedressgirl]

Hi all,

I just wanted to use this forum to let everyone know about a new class taking place in Hamilton at the Sky Dragon Centre (27 King William St). A friend and I convinced our teacher to make the trek to Hamilton each week (he currently teaches classes in Toronto) and we are trying to get the word out. African Dance is a great workout, and is spiritually enlightening.

The teacher Sani-Abu started touring at the age of 15 with a Nigerian dance troupe. He has spent the past seven years in New York City performing and teaching. He recently moved to Toronto, and he is super enthusiastic about bringing African Dance to Hamilton and watching it grow.

Classes are every Sunday at 2-3:30pm at the Sky Dragon Centre. The cost is $20 a class (they are drop-in) or you can buy a 5-class card for $100 and get the 6th class free. If you have any questions, you can email me at hollie.pocsai@gmail.com, check out the website (http://www.ijovududance.com) or check out our Facebook group: (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=9757149124)

There is also talks about starting African drumming classes if there is enough interest, because in the Toronto classes we dance to live drummers, and know when to change our steps based on the drum calls. Since we don't currently have drummers in Hamilton, we've been using a CD. But we hope to get enough interest for a drumming class as well.

This is a great way to bring more culture into Hamilton! Hope to see you there!

[RePinion]

Absolutely. I wish your project the very best!

Hamilton suffers greatly for its relative lack of cultural diversity. Vis-a-vis Toronto, we have only murmurings of a true multicultural society in this city. I often feel that even many of the suburbs in the GTA (Mississauga and Brampton in particular) put us to shame in this regard.

One of the problems with this city is that so few of its residents can truly be called "cosmopolitan" in a meaningful sense. I think cultural activities like this can only help to change things for the better.

[bluedressgirl]

Thanks for the kind words! The classes are AMAZING, and I hope that a lot of people come out because the teacher is great, and it's unlike any dance/workout that most people are familiar with. It's also quite spiritual, as he talks a lot about how the movements relate to the earth, and giving respect to the earth, and how we all share each other's energy. He is quite enthusiastic about teaching about all the different regions of Africa and their dances.

And fellas, don't be afraid to come out either. The dances are very masculine. Most of the dances we learn have to do with harvesting movements, hunting movements, etc. It's still graceful, but not in a strictly feminine way.