SCAA staff hone skills in traditional dancing |22 June 2013

The certificate presentation ceremony was graced by the presence of Tourism and Culture Minister Alain St Ange.

“It gives me great pleasure to be here tonight to present the certificates to the group of SCAA employees and their friends, for they are a leading example of an organisation that is helping to uphold our cultural heritage. Those dances are part of our culture, and to keep it alive, all generations should be encouraged to learn and practice them.”

Coordinated by Marisa Matombé, the classes were held twice a week at the SCAA premises at Pointe Larue.

When they started in August last year, most of the attendees did not know much about the various traditional dances or how to count the steps. They started slowly by learning simple dances like valse, polka, jazz, kotis, kosez and padkat, and thereon started learning group dances like Avant 2, Avant 3, and Dos-à-dos.

Instructor Matombé has expressed her satisfaction with the group of dancers. “They were all very dedicated, and very regular. Their willingness made it easy for both parties to accomplish the mission,” she said.

Miss Matombé also added that her wish is that “more individuals or companies in Seychelles will take this initiative and encourage their staff to learn the traditional dances”.

“It’s great to be able to attend an event and to actually be able to dance to the Kanmtole tunes. I am myself very proud of this achievement and I thank Ms Matombé for the good job done,” said Pitter Elizabeth who followed the classes.

Ms Matombé and her mum Marietta are willing to organise such classes as long as there is a demand. Last year another team of individuals also received their certificates after successfully learning the steps for one year.

“The Ministry of Tourism and Culture encourages such initiatives and will always be encouraging Mrs Matombé and her daughter for their efforts invested into promoting our cultural heritage.
 
“As a people we should not be shy of our heritage. Knowing where we come from makes us what we are today. It is therefore important that we continue to safeguard what is our heritage as it is important for us to feel proud of what is our heritage,” concluded Minister St Ange.