Heng Wang, who is known at the Durban University of Technology by her English and Zulu names, Doris or Mbalenhle (beautiful flower), could never have imagined dance would bring her to South Africa.
Yet, her passion for ballet and Chinese folk dancing has enabled her to take on a critical role in bridging understanding between Durban’s youth and their contemporaries in China.
Wang is part of the Confucius Institute at DUT (DUT CI) and in the 18 months she has been in South Africa, has discovered that while language barriers are real, dance is universal. Her students are a mixed group- some from neighbouring countries- but all fascinated by China and its cultural heritage.
Wang originates from Jilin province in the north-east of China bordering North Korea and Russia. She first came to South Africa in 2014 as a member of a dance group from Fujian Agriculture Forestry University (Fafu). They performed Chinese folk dance for audiences at the Universities of Cape Town, Stellenbosch and DUT. “After those performances, I saw that South Africa was much better than I had ever imagined. At that time, I had never thought of working here because I was planning to get a job and do my Master’s in Mathematics in China”, she said.
But her situation changed when she did not make it into the Maths Master’s programme. An instructor from the foreign affairs office at Fafu asked her if she would be keen to return to South Africa, this time to teach Mandarin and Chinese folk dancing. From early childhood, her parents had ensured that she attended a host of extra classes including piano, dance, Olympiad Mathematics and Olympiad Physics. Her favourite were always the dance classes which she started when she was just three years old. Wang wanted to be a professional dancer but her parents wouldn’t allow it because they wanted her to be an academic. It was common in China for parents to choose a career stream for their child, she said.
“After many disputes, last year, my parents finally recognised that dance was not only a dream but my passion. However, their wish is still that I finish a doctoral degree,” she said.
Wang danced ballet from childhood but, when she injured her leg, her doctor said she should refrain from strenuous movements so the passionate ballerina switched to folk, classic and modern dance which interfered less with her injury.
Rehearsing is never a problem for Wang who says it gives her more time to polish her moves. She does not mind rehearsing for a whole day when she has time. “The longest piece I did was 10 minutes and 20 seconds. It was exhausting and we rehearsed every day for three months,” she said.
– Copy credit: This edited story was published by the Sunday Tribune.
Picture credit: Sunday Tribune
