Sun International’s magical Sun City was a kaleidoscope of vibrant colour, dazzling costumes, spectacular dancers, and exuberant spectators this past weekend as over 1 000 of the country’s most talented dancers descended on the North West resort for the Battle of the Giants All Styles Dance Championship.
The event – organised and sanctioned by the South African Body of Dance and hosted by Sun City for the past 26 years – is one of South Africa’s largest and most prestigious all style dance competitions.
This year’s competition, staged at the Sun City Super Bowl from Friday, 10 to Sunday, 12 April 2015, was an awe-inspiring showcase of emerging and championship dance talent as dancers from around the country competed for the top titles in various categories.
These included amongst others Freestyle; Slowdance; Ballroom; Latin; Hip Hop, Showdance, Street Dance Show; Disco Dance; Jazz; Breakdance, and Electric Boogie. Once again, the Battle of theGiants All Styles Dance Championship included a category for disabled dancers.
Entrants were evaluated by an expert judging panel. Judges at the 2015 Battle of the Giants All Styles Dance Championship included Kirsten Den Jensen from Denmark, Super Malcolm and Billy Burke from London who are all International Judges, Craig Bullock and Linda Lamprecht who are official IDO judges, Pam Smith, Lorcia Cooper, Warren Wood, Carina Fernandes, Erica Bradley, Bev Hammond, Marcus Mabie, Diana Moore, Pacou Mutombo, Rudi Smit, Manulani Cohen, Craig Riviere, Shelley Christians, and Salome Sechele (Chairman).
True to tradition, the 2015 Battle of the Giants All Styles Dance Championship was a feast for spectators, combining nail-biting competition, breathtaking costumes, dramatic make-up and expert choreography. Thousands of dance enthusiasts flocked to Sun City to enjoy the show.
According to organizer, Bev Wood, the Director of the South African Body of Dance, competition at this year’s Battle of the Giants All Styles Dance Championship was very stiff.
“We had over 1030 dancers compete this year in the Battle of the Giants event. This is the largest number of entries we have ever had. The calibre of entrants in this year’s competition was also exceptionally high. We welcomed extremely talented dancers from across the country who all put on a tremendous show for the audiences. Our judges had a tough task evaluating the competitors. While we can only have one winner in each category, we consider every participant in this year’s competition a winner. The passion and commitment to their art was so clearly evident and we congratulate and thank everyone who made this year’s show such a wonderful success,” says Wood.
An internationally-respected dance tournament, the Battle of the Giants All Styles Dance Championship has become entrenched as a credible launch-pad for dancers’ ambitions abroad. Many Battle of the Giants’ competitors have gone on to achieve international recognition, catapulting their dance careers to new heights. Amongst them is Kalon Badenhorst who went on to become the World Champion in Slowdance Champion in 2013. This year he was back to win the Adult Freestyle Competition.
Other local dancers who have gone on to receive international acclaim after participating in the Battle of the Giants All Styles Dance Championship are Micaela Todd, who won the Junior Jazz Solo 2014 at the IDO Jazz World Championship in Poland, and Jed Bullock and Lucretius Masanga who won Electric Boogie Junior Duo at the IDO Street Dance World Championships in Bochum 2014, just to name a few.
For further information on Battle of the Giants contact Bev Wood, President of the SA Body of Dance, on 083 282 7734, bevwood@vodamail.co.za
Dancers dazzle at hotly contested 2015 Battle of the giants all styles dance championship
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