Shawn Kim and Manju Chiu, two Hustle dance instructors of the Hustle at RS community, hosted a free Intro Hustle workshop for the grade 8 students of Burnaby Central Secondary School. This collaborative workshop, made possible by the dance teacher Mrs. Pattenaude, introduced partner dancing to the youth.
Hustle is a social dance that originated in the early 1970’s by young Latinx & Puerto Rican teens in the South Bronx of New York City, many of which used the dance as a way out of gangs and violence. It is danced to a wide variety of music including disco, funk, soul, house, R&B, etc.. The Hustle dance was created to promote inclusion by breaking down barriers of race, gender, age, and social class.
These grade 8 students had never experienced partner dancing before so it was fun to see how they understand the concept of leading and following with one another. Everyone learned the fundamentals of Hustle dance which included: timing, tension, basic footwork, and foundational moves of Hustle dance.
The students and teachers had so much fun, we’re looking forward to possibly planning another workshop in the near future.Thank you to the Neighbourhood Small Grant and the Vancouver Foundation for helping make this project possible.