MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION

Founder: Sylvia Glasser

Sylvia “Magogo” Glasser is the founder of Moving into Dance which she started as a non-racial Dance Company and training organisation in 1978 during the height of apartheid in her garage, and was Director until 2013. She pioneered and taught Afrofusion, Edudance, and Dance Anthropology.

In 1992 she started the full-time MIDM Community Dance Teachers Training Course and Outreach into townships. She choreographed extensively and mentored and empowered hundreds of young performers, choreographers, teachers and administrators from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Her awards include a Lifetime Achievement from ACT (2004); FNB Vita as “one of South Africa’s national cultural treasures, a remarkable social activist whose exceptional work, in specifically African dance, has changed lives, perceptions and the face of South African dance” (2000); a Knighthood in the Order of Oranje-Nassau by the King of the Netherlands for “her contribution to democracy during and after apartheid, especially her commitment to the training of young dancers of all races” (2015).

 Buy Sylvia Glasser’s book on her iconic dance work:

Contemporary Dance and Southern African Rock Art: Tranceformations and Transformations

CEO/ Director of Education: Nadia Virasamy

Nadia’s motto, “If serving is beneath you, then leading is beyond you,” is her life’s work. Working in the NPO sector for over 20 years has made her resilient to the challenges that may arise in organisations in flux and has prepared her to adapt to the organisation’s immediate needs while planning for the long term.

Moving into Dance has reimagined her career trajectory from academia to a more business-focused output. Mentored by Sylvia Glasser, supported by a strong, dance-focused board and a committed artistic director, Nadia has seen MID expand its programmes and excel in creativity. She wants nothing more than for MID to achieve financial security that speaks to creative autonomy and greater social impact through dance.

Artistic Director: Sunnyboy Mandla Motau

Hailing from Alexandra, Sunnyboy remains invested in developing his home township through dance, believing that dance truly brings hope, as he is proof of that. As a highly commissioned choreographer for national and international dance works, his most moving work is undoubtedly “We are Still Marching,” commissioned by the Durban Playhouse Company in 2015.

He is highly sought after as an Afrofusion dance facilitator nationally and internationally. Sunnyboy won the Impact Award for Choreography in 2016 and was also named among the Mail and Guardian’s top 100 young people to watch. In 2023, his triple bill production won two Naledi Awards. He currently serves as Artistic Director at MID.

Operations Officer: Teboho Gilbert Letele

As MID’s Operations Officer and highly sought-after Edudance facilitator, Teboho is an inspirational man who truly reflects MID’s motto of nurturing African Leaders through dance. Having toured both nationally and internationally with MID, he has also been awarded a bursary from the CITY Festival as one of the winners in the dance category in 2009, and was part of the group that won an award for the Pick of the Stepping Stones Programme at Dance Umbrella in 2010. His talent for composing music has served MID well over the years, as the Botshabelo-born Teboho continues to inspire and motivate his peers.

MID Board

Hilton Lawler: Chairman & Marketing Portfolio

Christos Daskalakos: Artistic & Education Portfolio

Prof. Coenraad Visser: Legal & Human Resources Portfolio

Premie Naik: Finance & Fundraising Portfolio

Phindi Phiri: Social Media & Online Marketing Portfolio