Jikeleza Dance Project

The Jikeleza (Xhosa: “turn around” or “pirouette”) Dance Project, established in April 2002, currently teaches dance (African, contemporary, Spanish and classical ballet) and music (marimbas and drumming) to children and young people from the informal settlement of Imizamo Yethu and the Hangberg Harbour community in Hout Bay, in Nyanga township and at the Learn-to-Live Program for street children in Green Point.

In addition to providing high quality, dedicated dance and music training, offering its young beneficiaries creative, fulfilling and developmentally based recreational opportunities and exposure to participation in professional performances, the project has a number of value adding components.

• The transfer of performing arts skills for greater employability (the development and preparation of young dancers and musicians for employment in professional companies or as educators);
• Its reintegration initiative with homeless children from the streets as well as the monitoring and support of rehabilitated street children; and
• Educational and awareness raising initiatives around community issues such as HIV/Aids, substance abuse, sexual exploitation and abuse, and environmental concerns, among others.
  The organisation, which has experienced rapid growth and considerable success since its inception, currently teaches over 200 children and youth at three venues and provides employment for over 16 people, including four trainee teachers appointed from within the communities it serves.

With the help of overseas clients, Terra Nova was able to sponsor school shoes as well as stationary for the children. Previously, the children did not own shoes or had to walk with old and torn shoes the long way to school.
The Jikeleza dancers and musicians have already performed for some of our incentive groups and thus created income for their project, making them more self-sufficient.