A small chat that changed his life as a leading global choreographer and dancer
By Edward Tsumele, Citylife/ARTS Editor
This was a chance visit and small chat that changed his life completely.
“I visited my mother who created costumes for Ms Well’s studio in Port Elizabeth. She suggested that I try to enrol for dance lessons, an offer I took with much interest. My life has since changed in a significant way,” says choreographer and classical dancer Dane Hurst in an interview with CITYLIFE/ARTS as he prepared to take the dancers through their rehearsals for three new shows that will take place at Roodepoort Theatre soon.
The training that he received has since seen him scale the dance space in South Africa and globally. The Port Elizabeth born choreographer however almost had his chance of a lifetime dashed when he could not raise enough taxi fare to attend the dance classes that changed his life.
“Six of my friends dropped out. I almost also dropped out due to the fact that I ran short of taxi fare to attend the dance classes that were offered to us for free. However I moved in with my father, who was separated from my mother who lived in the city to be close to the dance studio,” he narrates his journey.
That was not the only challenge coming from a socially and economically challenging environment, a so-called Coloured township where many of the youth were up to things that were not helpful in pursuing their life’s dreams and a purposeful and productive life in society.
“One incident that happened on my street made me reevaluate my life. I and and the other kinds were arrested and loaded into a police van, ready to be taken into cells, where a possibility of being abused, such as being raped was at the back of my mind. This is because we banned tires in the street simply because we were bored and did not know what to do with our young lives. I was saved from the agony of sleeping in police sales when a neighbour who worked for the bank noticed that I was in the nyala (police van) with the other kids. She pleaded with the police to release me, explaining that I was actually a good kid who was unlucky to be caught up in this sticky situation. I am grateful for that intervention as I was released, after which I started thinking about the kind of life I wanted to live. I Was 12 years old at the time,’ he told CITYliFE/ARTS.
And change his life he did, by enrolling for the dance lessons that turned out not only his meal ticket, but opening opportunities for him to play a meaningful role in South Africa and around the world as a dancer, dance leader and choreographer of note.
Currently he occupies the influential position of acting artistic director of Joburg Ballet, an important dance isntitution known for training dancers of the future and creating productions that touch the hearts, minds and pockets for many who love the beautiful art of classical ballet.
Hurst’s mind is occupied by one thing, making sure that a triple bill of dance productions is well shaped and polished when the dancers go on the Roodepoort theatre’s dance stages.
Joburg Ballet’s first season of 2025 is DreamScapes at Roodepoort Theatre -opening onFriday 28 March, it runs to Sunday 6 April. This transformative triple bill showcases the company’s extraordinary versatility and commitment to celebrating heritage, artistry and innovation and weaves together the timeless beauty of Les Sylphides, a deeply rooted spiritual narrative in Kitty Phetla’s new work, The Underworld & Elsewhere and the electrifying vibrancy and poignant power of human resilience in Dane Hurst’s new work, Resonance.
Dane Hurst’s impressive dance exploits
Born in South Africa, Dane Hurst received a Nelson Mandela/Linbury Trust and Oppenheimer Memorial Trust scholarship, joining the Rambert School in London in 2003. He
has travelled extensively, performing to critical acclaim with, among other UK companies, Rambert, Phoenix Dance Theatre, National Dance Company of Wales and Company Wayne
McGregor. He has served as Artistic Director to Phoenix Dance Theatre in UK and Jazzart Dance Theatre in SA. He currently lives between London and SA, teaching at the Royal
Ballet School and serving as Artistic Consultant to Cape Town City Ballet. As a choreographer Dane Hurst has received UK commissions from Rambert, Phoenix, Opera North, The Place, Barbican, Dulwich Picture Gallery, Whitechapel Art Gallery, and in SA from South African National Dance Trust and Jazzart Dance Theatre.
He holds an MA Choreography with Central School of Ballet from University of Kent. In 2016 he founded the Moving Assembly Project to use dance to inspire young people, creating a cross-cultural bridge between SA and UK. Dane Hurst was appointed Artistic Director to Phoenix Dance Theatre in 2020, curating the 40 Years of Phoenix mixed bill and gala programmes. He joined Jazzart Dance Theatre as Artistic Director in April 2022 and was guest Artistic Director for The Royal Ballet’s Chance To Dance Connect in 2023. His production, Requiem: Journeys of the Soul in collaboration with Phoenix Dance Theatre, Opera North, Cape Town Opera, Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra and Jazzart Dance Theatre premiered in Leeds in May and in Cape Town in October 2023.
DREAMSCAPES: Joburg Ballet returns to the Roodepoort Theatre
After an absence of nine years Joburg Ballet returns to the Roodepoort Theatre, one of the finest smaller theatres in Gauteng, from 28 March to 6 April with DreamScapes, a transformative triple bill showcasing the company’s extraordinary versatility and commitment to celebrating heritage, artistry, and innovation.
This compelling programme weaves together the timeless beauty of Les Sylphides, a deeply rooted spiritual narrative in Kitty Phetla’s new work, The Underworld & Elsewhere and the electrifying vibrancy and poignant power of human resilience in Dane Hurst’s new work, Resonance. Together, these works form a rich tapestry of tradition, identity, and creative exploration, offering audiences an unforgettable dance experience that transcends the realms of reality.
A programme with cultural and artistic resonance, DreamScapes represents the interplay between tradition, ancestry and a forward-looking vision celebrating beauty and diversity. Each work in the programme offers a unique perspective on our shared humanity.
The celebrated ballet Les Sylphides is a cornerstone of classical ballet, transporting audiences to a dreamlike world of ethereal beauty. With choreography steeped in Romanticism and set to the emotive music of Frédéric Chopin, Les Sylphides, produced and staged by Joburg Ballet’s ballet mistress Kim Vieira, provides a timeless meditation on grace and harmony. Its inclusion in DreamScapes roots the programme in the rich tradition of ballet, providing a foundation for the contemporary works that follow.
Kitty Phetla’s The Underworld & Elsewhere delves into the metaphysical ties between past, present and future. Inspired by the enduring presence of ancestral spirits and energies that live with and through us, this work invites audiences to journey into the unseen realms of existence. Phetla’s choreography resonates deeply with South Africa’s cultural and spiritual heritage, offering a poignant meditation on the interconnectedness of life across generations.
Resonance by Joburg Ballet’s recently appointed interim artistic director Dane Hurst is a powerful new ballet that explores themes of resonant landscapes, diverse cultural connections and transformation, manifesting a vibrant vision of the future rooted in the lessons of the past. Driven by the sonic landscape of acclaimed South African composer Kyle Shepherd’s evocative album, South African History !X, Resonance takes inspiration from the energy, exuberance and community spirit cultivated within underground jazz clubs of historic melting-pot communities like South End, District Six and Sophiatown. This work celebrates the enduring power of music and dance to unite, heal and inspire freedom of expression.
DreamScapes is an artistic journey through the timeless, the spiritual and the visionary. With Phetla’s The Underworld & Elsewhere and Hurst’s Resonance offering profound reflections on ancestry and cultural resonance, and Les Sylphides grounding the programme in the enduring beauty of classical ballet, DreamScapes celebrates the past, honours the present, and imagines a brighter, more harmonious future.
“For me taking these productions to Roodepoort theatre is important because years back this is where my triumph as a dancer was confirmed when I won awards there that propelled my career into the future and gave me the affirmation I needed as a dancer,” he says.
Members of the public will have the opportunity to watch the dancers of Joburg Ballet rehearsing DreamScapes under the guidance of Kim Vieira, Kitty Phetla and Dane Hurst at the Joburg Ballet studios at the Joburg Theatre at an Open Day on Saturday 15 March from 10h00 to 13h00. Tickets are R150 and include refreshments. Booking is via 011-877 6898 and futhi@joburgballet.com
DreamScapes information
Fri 28 Mar at 19h00 (Half price opening night): R100, R125, R150, R175
Sat 29 Mar, Sun 30 Mar, Sat 5 Apr, Sun 6 Apr at 14h00: R200, R250, R300, R350
Fri 4 Apr at 19h00: R200, R250, R300, R350
Wed 2 Apr, Thu 3 Apr at 11h00: All R110
Discounts: Children 4-7 50%; Friends of the Ballet 35%; Pensioners 15%; Groups 10+ 10%. Not applicable to already discounted tickets Air France discounts: 20% for Gold and Platinum Members; 10% for Blue and Silver Members
Student discount: R110 on presentation of valid student card at box office
Where: Roodepoort Theatre