Feature: Dance group nurtures young talents in Zimbabwe

by Tafara Mugwara

HARARE, May 11 (Xinhua) -- In a narrow dusty street in Chitungwiza, a dormitory town near Zimbabwe's capital Harare, three young men vividly performed a Michael Jackson-inspired dance.

The spirited and coordinated moves of the youngsters testified their determination to excel in the craft of dancing.

The zestful dancers are members of Extreme Dreamers, a dance group based in Chitungwiza.

Leader of the group, 26-year-old Emmanuel Nyahumbi, said his aim is to nurture a generation of aspiring young dancers.

Whilst dance is a good source of fun and physical exercise, Nyahumbi believes that it can also help keep youngsters active and away from destructive behavior.

Lack of opportunities for young high school leavers in the face of the pandemic means that many youths are finding themselves loitering around with nothing to do, and risk engaging in social vices like substance abuse, crime and early marriages.

In Chitungwiza, the dance group has given a platform to creative youths aspiring to express themselves artistically.

"The group is helping young people to stay busy, it saves them from many temptations, for example, many girls are now engaging in prostitution, it's keeping them from such social ills.

"It's helping them to reach their goals through dance because if you have a gift, there is a purpose why you possess it, so it should bring something on the table out of the gift," said Nyahumbi.

Aside from his dance group members, Nyahumbi is also nurturing young dancers in Chitungwiza by empowering them to realize and pursue their talents independently.

Inspired by the late pop star Michael Jackson, Nyahumbi started his dancing career at his parents' Chitungwiza home more than a decade ago. In 2019, his passion for dancing led him to recruit other young dancers to form a dancing group.

Last November, the group participated in the Dreamstar talent search competition and took home the second prize of 1,500 U.S. dollars.

Dreamstar is an annual talent show organized by the Chinese community in Zimbabwe with the support of the Chinese Embassy.

Participating in the huge national event helped the group to shake off the negative reputation associated with young dancers, Nyahumbi said.

"People in Chitungwiza looked down upon us because of our gift, they said we are wasting our time, but Dreamstar elevated us to such an extent that people started seeing the future in us, all through Dreamstar," said Nyahumbi.

After mesmerizing audiences at the televised show with their dancing skills, the group is aiming to conquer new horizons.

"So we appreciate the big platform, we are not stopping there, we are anticipating to attend different kinds of shows overseas, like in America, to showcase ourselves, to compete there," he said.

Dreamstar showcases young contestants between the ages of 12 and 40 and receives thousands of talented hopefuls each year looking to claim the top prize.

Over the years, Dreamstar has grown to become the flagship project of China-Zimbabwe cultural exchange, and its popularity has grown phenomenally among young Zimbabweans.

Nyahumbi believes that dance can be used to promote cultural relations between the two sides.

"My wish is that if we manage to tour China, I am expecting that we will learn Chinese dances so that we can fuse them with ours. Something like Taichi, and other different genres that are in China, so that we can mix them with our dances so that Chinese people can appreciate our dances," he said.

For Extreme Dreamers, participating in the national competition elevated the group to an international stage. It has also led the group members towards a more positive path.

Proud Chakuya, a member of the group, said the dance group has tremendously transformed his life.

"Before I joined Extreme Dreamers I engaged in bad behavior like smoking and drinking.

"But when I joined Extreme Dreamers I stopped, I started focusing on my future, and it went well, it made us go far, we participated at big dancing platforms that we never thought of," he said.

In the future, Nyahumbi hopes to open a dance school that will cater to the disadvantaged youths in Chitungwiza and beyond.