Among the thousands of people who have taken advantage of social media to share their skills during lockdown are three local dancers who have started a virtual dance class.
Anuq Wilson, 32, from Lentegeur, now living in Johannesburg, Leticia Fisher-Marshall, 35, from Lentegeur, and Rudi Ward, 28 from Retreat, got moving together to start Soulitary South Africa that takes place once a week.
Their aim was to help dancers, parents and teachers keep in shape physically and mentally during lockdown, said Ms Wilson.
“We also quickly identified that dancers won’t be earning any money during this time as gigs are cancelled and studios are closed. Many won’t have money to pay teachers, dance studios or dancers. So this platform is an outlet,” she said.
While this is the first time they’re making moves online, she said, many teachers and dance studios had re-routed their classes online weeks ago in order to keep their students going.
“We came up with the concept three days before lockdown started. We started by drafting a schedule for the first week and called those teachers and asked if they would be willing to partner with us for free.
“None of this would be possible without them. We have fitness sessions on the programme daily, motivationals, mental wellness sessions, business talks and advice, question and answer sessions, to name a few,” said Ms Wilson.
The classes are all live. But if for any reason they cannot be presented live, they will be pre-recorded and uploaded at the time the class is scheduled. Students and participants are welcome to comment and ask them questions during the live classes and get immediate feedback.
Follow Soulitary South Africa on Facebook and Instagram for more information or to join their live dance classes.