I Praise the Dance
is a new coffee table book produced by the Performing Arts Network of South
Africa (PANSA).
It brings dance into our homes and back into our hearts. A
superb, photographic celebration of contemporary dance in South Africa, it
applauds the country’s dance artists for their contribution to the fabric of
our nation.
The book was compiled by Michael Britton, PANSA’s National
Administrator and an author and editor, and Kurt Egelhof, PANSA’s National
Co-ordinator, and an actor and producer. Because they are not dancers they
brought a refreshing approach to the project, unbiased towards any particular dance
community
Born and educated in Zimbabwe, Michael Britton now lives and
plays in Cape Town where he has a full-time role as the National Administrator
for the Performing Arts Network of South Africa (PANSA). After a 30-year career
in information technology, he made a career change, from IT and business
consultant to freelance author and editor, in 2005. As an author, his writing
has primarily been of a business or educational nature, although it has also
included creative writing in the form of plays and short stories and articles
for magazines and newspapers. As an editor, work has consisted of overwriting,
editing and proofreading text books for Heinemann, Macmillan, Pearson and Via
Afrika Publishers. These books are on a variety of subjects, mostly technical,
and aimed at SA schools, FET colleges and SA universities.
Kurt Egelhof has been active in the arts and culture sector
for 34 years. He started his professional career in the industry as an actor in
1981, and rose to his career highlight as the Head of Creative Department for
Endemol SA 20 years later. Today, he resides in Muizenberg, Cape Town, with a
wealth of experience as a freelance consultant / producer / director for film,
television and stage production. He is currently the National Coordinator of
the Performing Arts Network of South Africa. (PANSA) where he is engaged with
Arts and Culture initiatives provincially and nationally on a very hands-on
basis.
I Praise the Dance
had its roots in a PANSA Board decision that a celebration of South African
contemporary dance was needed. Funding was obtained and in December 2012, PANSA
members were approached and asked to submit content for the book. The response
was overwhelming and, with a large amount of content in hand, Britton and
Egelhof started working on the sequence of the photographs and text that would
go into the book.
“We wanted to include quotes about dance: quotes from poets,
philosophers and dancers,” Britton says. “When we found the poem by St
Augustine, I Praise the Dance, we
knew that we had found the scaffold around which our book would be built. We
picked stanzas of about two to three lines to frame each chapter. We chose key
words and phrases in the poem which became the guidelines for photograph
selection,” Egelhof explains.
The result is a book which will appeal to lovers of dance as
well as anyone who appreciates South Africa’s cultural and creative heritage. I Praise the Dance will be on sale on
the PANSA website at http://www.pansa.co.za/
For further information contact Charlene Key - 021
556 8200 / Charlene@hippocommunciations.com
NB: Review to be
posted shortly
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