The 6th South African International Ballet Competition (SAIBC), founded by Dirk Badenhorst and supported by the National Lotteries Commission (NLC), took place in February this year. The event created a springboard for several talented young South African dancers, non-medalists, to train at upcoming summer schools in Switzerland, Germany and Portugal in June and July 2018.
Additionally, all winners of gold, silver and bronze medals have been invited to participate in the Shanghai International Ballet Competition (SIBC) in September 2018. Thanks to the generous support of the SIBC organisers, all entry fees, flights and accommodation will also be sponsored. Angelique Harris of the Art of Motion in Johannesburg who choreographed winning dances for competitors Michaela Fairon and Josie Ridgeway, was singled out by judge Professor Gregory Seyffert, head of the Berlin State Academy, and invited to Berlin to choreograph at the school later this year. This year sees South Africans Kristof Skhosana, Miguel Franco Green, Nehanda Peguilan, Paige McElligot jetting into foreign lands to either take part in other top competitions or participate in workshops and programs. Navin Jacobs is already in Portugal attending summer school at the prestigious International Private Conservatory, at the invitation of its director, SAIBC 2018 judge Annarella Sanchez.
The competitions impact on previous South African competitors over the past 10 years has translated into jobs and training in several top companies and ballet schools. Andile Ndlovu from Soweto went on to join The Washington Ballet in 2009; Boysie Dikobe is now with Les Ballets Trokadero de Monte Carlo; Leroy Mokgatle is with Dutch National Ballet School; Faakhier Bestman is in London and Joshua Williams is currently training at the Zurich Ballet Academy in Switzerland.
The SAIBC has always been committed to all-inclusive ballet development and sustainability through international and local collaborations and initiatives that continue to create invaluable opportunities for local dancers to gain further experience at home and abroad. The prestigious biennial competition, Africa’s most established, was held at Artscape and saw the largest number of entrants since the competition’s inception in 2008 with dancers from South Africa, Portugal, Cuba, Latvia, the USA, China, Cote d’Ivoire, South Korea, Italy and Japan. Over the past decade more than thirty countries have been represented at the SAIBC.
An exceptional panel of judges has been selected and includes Gregor Seyffert from the Berlin State Ballet School in Germany, Annarella Sanchez the Director of the International Private Conservatory Annarella Sanchez in Leira, Portugal, Juh Yun Jo from the National University of the Arts in South Korea, Zijiao Qu from Liaoning Ballet in China, ballerina, former SAIBC gold medalist Elza Leimane from Latvia and Theo Ndindwa from iKapa Dance Theatre, the company that he launched at the inaugural SAIBC in 2008. Gracing the panel for the second time were South Africans Eduard Greyling from Cape Town and Charla Genn from New York who is on faculty at the Juilliard School in Manhattan.
Additional support came from the Mary Oppenheimer and Daughters Foundation and Cachalia Capital. These invaluable contributions help further SAIBC community projects and performances that continue during the two years between each competition, helping ensure that the art of ballet is accessible to all South Africans and furthers unique teacher training initiatives and the sharing of new techniques taught at world famous ballet and dance schools across the globe. Currently, 40 teachers are being trained in Orange Farm, Soweto, Geluksdal, 
Reigerspark, Boksburg, Ennerdale and surrounds and with more than 1000 students taking class under their expert eye. This is where the Arts meets entrepreneurship and micro business as many of the teachers progress to start their own dance schools, ensuring the growth, development and transformation of ballet and dance in South Africa. In a pioneering move, the SAIBC has since 2014, taken a group of winners and special guests to perform “Ballet in the Bush’ at the Legend Golf & Safari Lodge in Limpopo to dance in a performance in aid of rhino conservation.
The SAIBC funding received was instrumental in the staging of the new production of Bengingazi, an innovative cross cultural piece created by Adele Blank in association with several choreographers that merged various dances styles such as classical ballet, flamenco, pantsula and contemporary. South African dancers shared the stage with their compatriots from Russia, Cuba, Belarus, Egypt, Armenia, Mexico and Spain. Aside from enjoying its world premiere at the SAIBC, it has been presented in Gauteng, the Free State, North West, Limpopo and Mpumalanga Provinces alongside several workshops hosted by teachers and dancers from South Africa and abroad. The music for Bengingazi was composed by Nic Paton, the grandson of Alan Paton. Preparations are currently underway to extend the tour in SA and there are plans for an international staging as well. The SAIBC has also received support from South African Tourism in 2017 for a special SAIBC season, as well as the Ministry of Arts and Culture in Cuba and the Cuban Embassy in South Africa.
At every elimination round plus the semi finals, finals and Gala, the SAIBC hosted many young dancers from previously disadvantaged communities, and schools and universities where ballet and dance is in the curriculum. At the closing Gala attended by several prominent VIP’s and Embassy representatives, South African dance legend Mr Johaar Mosaval was honoured for his contribution to ballet in South Africa and abroad.
The next SAIBC is to be held in 2020 at Artscape in Cape Town.
