For the first time, belly dancing will be an official category at the Dance World Cup to be held in Portugal this year, and two Strandfontein teens have qualified.
Tyler Adams (17) and Zoe Harker (15), dancers at Aphrodite Belly Dance Studio, participated in the qualifier in mid-March, earning their spot to represent South Africa between June and July.
Zoe, who is a Mondale High School learner, began belly dancing when she was a wee toddler and has been shimmying ever since.
“This was the first time the competition was opened up to our form of dance,” she says, “so this was the first time we could enter. We found out we were going to do the competition in December, so we had to intensify our preparation by having more classes during the week as well as on a Saturday afternoon every week from the second week of January.
“Apart from the dance preparation, we also still had to sort the appropriate dance costume out. Our teacher, Stephanie Singh, made all the applications and entered the girls who qualified for the competitions. We had to have at least three years of dancing experience and have entered other competitions already.”
Having danced locally from around age 4, Zoe more than met these criteria.
“My Aunty Stephanie had a dancing school and I loved dancing from when I could barely walk. My mom and aunt loved recording me. Normally, Aunty Stephanie took kids from age 5 or 6, but she found I had a natural ability to pick the moves up and remember the steps.
“Since then I have performed on stage at the Baxter Theatre and Artscape. My first live performance was at the World Belly Dance Day in May 2012 and then the Women’s Day celebrations at Artscape in the same year.”
In 2013, she entered the Miss SA Belly Dance competition, making her the youngest competitor to participate in the event.
“It didn’t have any children who entered before, and this was the first time someone as young as I entered. The following year the competition started a junior category. I have not won the title yet, but have placed in some other categories. In 2016, I was part of the Aphrodite group that was invited to perform at the German Belly Dance Festival in Stuttgart, and so became the youngest South African belly dancer to perform on an international stage.
“I also took veil lessons in Turkey with the acclaimed Sema Yildiz, all this made possible by my Aunt Stephanie. Her love of dance and performance has led to me excelling in my art and allowed me to be part of two productions at Artscape.”
Zoe’s acclaim does not end there.
“I have been part of the groups who represented Aphrodite at the annual School Arts Festival at Artscape, and one year I was selected by the panel of judges to perform solo as a representative for the school at the final gala show.”
Her mother, Natasha Harker, says she is incredibly proud of her daughter.
“As a parent, it was very important to be able to make myself available to cart her to and from events and functions,” she says. “We are fortunate to have a close-knit family, of which the Singh family is a part. Stephanie Singh tries her utmost to make the communities aware of the belly dancing girls. She’s had them perform at various community events – at Nantes and Strandfontein Markets, birthday parties, on special occasions, and even at running-club events.
“It is always nice to see the joy on people’s faces when watching them perform and being inspired to even try something new. Zoe was supposed to participate in the Cape Town Carnival for the first time, having met the age requirement, in 2020, but then Covid-19 came and changed all that. Her first participation in the Cape Town Carnival eventually happened in 2022. She’s a Grade 9 learner and aims to live a balanced life by also participating in netball and athletics.”
Singh says the trip will cost R180 000 for the qualifying dancers.
“The excitement is high,” she points out. “All the dancers talk about is the trip. They met some new friends in Johannesburg and can’t wait to be on the South African team with them. They are also excited to learn the culture and the supporting team is ready with the South African flag and beanies.”
The competition will run from end-June to the first week in July in Portugal.
“We have a hectic schedule,” Singh says. “For me with admin, flights, visa, accommodation and so on. Portugal will be busy because it’s holiday time as well. A lot of other festivals are happening in Portugal at the time we arrive.
“I was not aware one could represent the country in dance. I am so excited and feel blessed to be given the opportunity by our dance school and director Aunty Steph to be able to represent our country in Portugal.
“I’m excited to be part of a bigger team that does not only include belly dancers. I’ll get to meet other dancers and interact with them. Even if I don’t win in my category my dad always reminds me, ‘If I don’t win, I don’t lose, I learn’. I’m now 15 and still have many dance years ahead of me. God willing.”
For Tyler, recently featured in People’s Post, this is a major opportunity to further her love for dance.
“This is my first time qualifying to showcase what I love doing on an international platform.
“It is an honour to break the stigmas associated with belly dancing and open the door to diversity on all levels, but most of all to represent my country.”
Says Singh: “We have sourced outside assistance in polishing the dancers. We are investing a lot of time and money in them. Aphrodite wants to give them the best opportunity of their lives and ‘eat, sleep, dance, repeat’ dreams.”
