BURN THE FLOOR with MAGICAL DANCING FEET at The Joburg Theatre

As a young South African theatre and arts writer, I’ve NEVER had such a breathtaking theatrical experience. 

Its one of those experiences that; one would go, “One day I would love to check this out in New York”, or anywhere else in the world”. So when I heard that, The Joburg Theatre was bringing BURN THE FLOOR to the Mandela stage, I could not stop checking my calendar and anxiously wait for the opening night.

And last night was finally the time I’ve been going on and on about, on my twitter account, facebook, BBM and any other social network known to man.

BURN THE FLOOR is the show most dance lovers would associate with the likes of So You Think You Can Dance, Dancing with the Stars, Step it Up and Dance and other dance work phenomenon most of us watch on YouTube. The show is under the direction and choreography of Jason Gilkison, most of you might know as one of the guest choreographers for So You Think You can Dance, America and for the most recent Step Up 3D, the movie.

 It’s a reinvention of ballroom with a twist of magical dancing feet. The energy is enough to leave you sitting at the edge of your seat as the dancers make you feel like you’re watching a dance movie with all the dance moves on fast-forward. The dances vary from Cha Cha, Samba, Rumba, the Viennese Waltz, Tango to a gripping passionate scene of the Paso Doble. 

 If you thought you’ve seen fast moving dancing feet from the Pansula dance, you’re eyes will stop blinking as you watch the speed entailed from this show. The choreography features a magnificent combination of pure ballroom technique, velocity, liveliness and most importantly, the entertainment factor. 

 Most dancers often forget to “perform” and end up putting focus more on the routines, choreography and director’s notes, forgetting the essence of adding their own flavor, spirit and passion which in turn, enables the viewer to bring about the same atmosphere towards a performance.

I’ve seen many dance shows and have also seen dancers fall down and tremble upon reaching a trance phase while performing. With BURN THE FLOOR, you’d swear the dancers are ALL possessed and attacked by some spiritual sensation which enables them to literally burn the floor more and more as the music plays. 

As an audience, you can factually see their feet rambling, the heads banging, the bodies shifting from one step to the other and the delight thereof from their faces, as though dancing is the only language they know to speak. 

I would actually encourage all theatre and dance lovers, especially dancers and choreographers to make a date for this show, as I believe it will change the way they look at dancing and they’ll be sure to learn the recipe of quality dancing as an art.

BURN THE FLOOR will run till August 14^th, shows are Tues – Frid at 8pm, Saturday at 3pm and 8pm and Sundays at 2pm and 5:30pm. Tickets are priced from R195 and are on sale on http://www.joburgtheatre.com/ or by purchasing a “print at home” ticket online or alternatively calling the theatre on 0861 670 670 and for group bookings, one can call 011 877 6853.


Let me know of your views and opinions by dropping your comment and let’s chat as to how South African theatre can one day produce such magic.