Top tapper steps up tempo
My alter ego takes over on stage: comic Partner’s dream and academy teacher at ease with any dance form
MOST comedians are different people off-stage, and this can’t be any truer than in the case of Dingalings star Koobeshan Naidoo (pictured). It’s hard to believe that the brash, in-your-face comic wild man is, in fact, a mild-mannered family guy in “real- life”.
Naidoo who has enjoyed considerable success as a stage actor and stand-up comedian, is known for hard-hitting, unapologetic on-stage rants.
“On stage, my alter ego takes over. It’s a time for me to de-stress and get rid of all the angst of modern living, my job, and to relax,” Naidoo says, jokingly adding that he has not been bottling up any anger towards his wife, fellow actor Kumseela Naidoo.
“I’m not venting on any true feelings on stage, just a general purging. It’s my way to relax. Others play sport or garden or read, I tell jokes. I’m the voice of the silent, downtrodden male masses. And it’s not my true feelings since Kumseela writes a lot of my stuff.
“The comedy scene in SA has really taken off. However, there are too many chancers – one-hit wonders who see this as an easy way to make a quick buck,” says Naidoo.
In fact, hard work and continuous improvement are cornerstones of the philosophy of the Dingalings comedy collective to which he belongs.
“I have definitely changed as a comedian over the years. I still get nervous and anxious, but I tend to enjoy my sets a lot more. A good comedian is someone who makes an audience laugh over a sustained period,” he says.
Naidoo says that he enjoys working with other comedians and observing different approaches to comedy.
He joins Neville Pillay, Karou Charou, Masood Boomgaard and Henry Ramkissoon on stage in the Indian Comedy Kings festival at Sibaya on August 25 and 26. Tickets are available from Computicket.
PAVISHEN “Pavi” Paideya’s dance partners may float across the stage en-pointe in tutus and ethereal tulle, sport sexy outfits or colourful Indian dance costumes complete with ghungroo (ankle bells). All of which goes to show how versatile Pavi himself is.
Like any male dancer, he is able to be self-effacing while strongly showcasing the talents of the female dancers he’s paired with.
For eight years, Pavi, 24, has been performing in the popular Shall We Dance,a kaleidoscope of different dance forms; so he is no stranger to the quick change in style, costumes and tempo.
His first appearance in the show was in 2008 when in Grade 10 and could be deemed a defining moment.
“We performed a ballet from the movie Billy Elliot, then a Spanish dance to the music of Bryan Adams’s If You Wanna Leave Me.
Asked whether his father, Kesval Paideya had (like Elliot’s father) objected to his doing ballet, he laughed. “My dad was never against it. Both he and my mother, Nirvana, were very supportive, taking me to dance school and attending all my performances. Sometimes my dancing kept us all up until the early hours,” he said.
Dance has always been in his blood. He started with modern and jazz when just five years old. Though well versed in ballet, tap is his first love. “It’s playful – it’s all about rhythm and intricate sounds.”
For him, the ultimate tap dancer is Savion Glover, who provided the sound of the young penguin’s tapping feet in the endearing Happy Feet.
He is also an avid fan of the River Dance line-up. As for the greats of yesteryear like Fred Astaire, he believes that while the style is completely different now, “we can still learn from their showmanship and ability to draw their audience in.”
That said, he believes modern tap dancers are more athletic and skilled.
Whether one dances with a professional or an amateur, to Pavi it makes little difference.
“It’s more about the vibe and enthusiasm, and working with each dancer’s strong points. And you have to connect and synchronise in ballet,” he said.
Of course, all this takes hours of endless stretching, lifting and pirouetting, as well as strength.
Pavi has been part of the Playhouse Company Dance Residency – a contemporary dance company which puts on shows with invited choreographers from Africa – and still teaches at the Tap Dance Academy.
He also launched the Rudra Dance Theatre, which specialises in Bollywood style dance.
Polished and professional he may be, but he says he still experiences butterflies. “When you are part of a big show on a grand scale like Shall We Dance, and with professionals, it can be nerveracking.
“However, it is such a privilege to be invited to perform with dancers of this calibre,” he said.
Shall We Dance will be staged at Durban’s Playhouse Theatre from September 8 to 17.