MID has always been a community-based organisation, and our sense of community extends beyond the parameters of Johannesburg and into the provinces, across the country, through our sustained relationships with our graduate network and constant intake of students from under-resourced provinces. Through our projects, we envisage that dance as an art form, together with related skills such as dance technique, choreography and arts administration, will enhance the quality of the arts in the communities in which we work, and that jobs in the arts will be created and income generated as the arts are seen as a possible career option to unemployed youth.

Audiences never exposed to dance have opportunities to see the impact it can have not only on an entertainment level but also see its potential to transform communities, and society by extension.

Outreach

An integral part of the training programme is creating awareness in communities and schools through our Edudance programme. All students are groomed in Edudance methodology (the use of dance and creative movement to teach academic concepts and social issues) and then go out to teach to schools and community centres to present demonstrations of this work.

This outreach programme serves as a form of on-the job-training whereby the students use their communication, dance and social skills to educate youth and adults alike of issues such as nutrition, health, women’s issues, rape, abuse and road safety among others.

Additionally, the MID dance company performs professional dance works for schools and communities in community and school halls, making dance performances more accessible to the public who do not have the disposable income to attend such performances. It allows young people the opportunity to see dance as a possible career path. These performances also serve to motivate youth, as the dancers share their stories about their backgrounds and how dance has changed their lives and those of their families.

Teaching In Schools

MID’s professional dance company, as well as 2nd- and 3rd-year trainees, go out to schools on Wednesday and Friday mornings and teach dance and Edudance in a supporting role to the schools’ arts and culture teachers.

This project has always advocated that dance instruction be conducted during school hours rather than as an after-school recreational activity. The reason for this is that dance classes are not compulsory and are not perceived as lessons that require full commitment. Classes are taught in schools in Soweto, Alexandra, Tembisa, Hillbrow, Vosloorus and Johannesburg City.

Since its inception, MID has worked with disadvantaged communities, and this remains the ethos of the organisation. All of the MID company dancers and young choreographers are from previously disadvantaged communities. MID targets youth who have a passion for, and talent in, the arts and uses this common interest to develop skills that could contribute to positive change in their communities and where better a place to begin than in schools!