Schools are getting ready for ‘Funk 2024’

Dancers from Midlands’ schools are getting ready to strut their stuff at The Theatre at St Anne’s Diocesan College for Funk 2024.

Participating schools include Pietermaritzburg Girls’ High School, Epworth, Howick High School, Russell School, St Anne’s, St John’s, St Nicholas, Michaelhouse, Riverwood and The Wycombe Collegiate.

Funk, which celebrates its 25th edition this year, will be staged at 7 pm on May 10, 11, 13, 14 and 15.

A firm favourite on the annual school production calendar, it evolved as an idea to create a dance programme for schools with very specific aims:

• to unite schools in working towards a common goal;

• to give drama pupils and their teachers the opportunity to create and rehearse pieces of dance theatre for public performance;

• to enable young people to see that movement, dance and dance theatre are accessible to them and are not only in the hands of professional adult companies; and

• to generate meaning and artistic integrity through dance choreography while challenging young people to work outside of their comfort zones.

The task for each school is to create a six-minute piece of dance choreography integrating any type of musical or textual accompaniment.

The programme accommodates a range of choreographic and performance possibilities, and provides the perfect opportunity for schools to experiment with new forms.

It is also important to emphasise that this platform is not a competition, and should not be seen in the same light as a sports festival or inter-house competition.

The highlight of the production is always the mass group Finale, which incorporates all the schools together on the stage.

Funk 2024 is produced by The Theatre – St Anne’s Diocesan College, directed by Lynn Chemaly, with technical direction by Megan Holder and Finale creation by BoNana Dance.

Booking for Funk is via www.quicket. co.za