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Sbo Ndaba and the work of MORENESS.

Posted 1 month ago
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Written by Chief Kagisho Molema

On a random Tuesday night, the SboNdaba Dance company brought the roof of the Swellendam town hall down with its rapturous performance. The performance proved to me that dancing was more than just an art form but also a science of precision. If a move is ill-timed, someone is bound to dislocate a shoulder, break an arm or God forbid, snap their neck. I am surprised there were no medics on site should something like that happen. It is evident that Sbonakaliso Ndaba runs a tight ship because she is sure that her dancers will execute every sequence to the T. They stomped and twisted with unrelenting energy. Bodies were thrown over people’s heads. Dancing is a physically demanding vocation. Even athletes get a half time break; the dancers are on constant go-mode until they finish their piece. My body aches on their behalf.
This production piece called Diverse People Unite was about the journey of reconciliation that we as the people of South Africa have embarked upon since1994 to 2024. Reconciliation is not something that happened at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, but it is an ongoing process. South Africans were divided according to racial and tribal lines by vile forces beyond their control. The work of reconciliation continues even today. Anyone who crosses out of the designated group to understand someone from a different group does the work of reconciliation unaware. The work started by Rolihlahla and co must continue if we are to build a nation and country where our children can thrive. Rolihlahla by the way, is the famous President Mandela. Learn the history!! This piece was a call for unity (not sameness) in our diversity.
While this piece was about unity in diversity, the work Sbo does is about making more of others. If people are not given the tools to make something of themselves, they just become the masses meaning they are bodies inseparable from one another. That is dehumanising to just be “the people”. You must become a person of value to the collective. Through dance, Sbo empowers these young people with value and gives them a vista into the world in which they belong to, different from the world of poverty that most of them come from. Through dance, they can overcome the odds that was stacked against them with the science of apartheid. Ubuntu is to mirror the humanity of others back to themselves. Sbo is saying to these kids, I see you and you are worthy of being invested in.
The trainees in Sbo Ndaba Dance company get a full education. They don’t only learn on-stage performance; they also learn about the off-stage production of a show. They do the set up themselves and the clearing afterwards. She intentionally cultivates a strong work ethic in the dancers. They love and respect her, often calling her Mams, or Ma, and affectionately so.
Sbonakaliso Ndaba is an award-winning dancer and choreographer from KwaZulu Natal. She has trained at Jazzart Dance theatre in Cape Town. Ndaba started a training programme for unemployed youth from Khayelitsha and has been supported by the likes of Dr Mamphele Ramphele, Jennifer Van Papendorp and Balu Nivison.
She says that speed is her superpower. After 20 years in the game, she learnt how to create and refine simultaneously. She can conceptualise a full 20 minutes production in 20 minutes. That is how brilliant she is.
The show was graced by the presence of current Mr Mayor of Swellendam, Councillor Francois DuRand, and a former Mayor of Swellendam, Mr Nathan Newman. The guests were welcomed quite beautifully by Cllr Agnes Bokwana who emphasised the importance of dance and giving your best, coming from a creative family herself.

It would be an injustice to not acknowledge the musicians who accompanied the dancers. Their voices and marimba chords carried the show to zenith. The song Senzeni Na echoed the heartache of the struggle, and African Dream echoed the resilience and willingness for diverse people of South Africa to indeed unite. It was a full house and a wonderful night to go out.

Swellendam, you beauty on a Tuesday.