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Accomplished tap dancers Ken Kwok, Hida Yoshiko and Ki Wong will conduct eight tap dance lectures and workshops (conducted in Cantonese) from October to December. Course participants will be guided through their first encounter with the tap dance genre and shown the essential techniques. Footwork routines can also be mixed and matched, allowing participants to come up with their own unique tap dances by the end of the course.
Tap dance, as the name suggests, is about making percussive sounds with the feet. As one of the more relaxed dance forms it requires little formal movement and allows for individual improvisation. Combined with other musical styles such as jazz or pop, tap dancing is both a fun and gratifying pastime.
R&T (Rhythm & Tempo) founder Ken Kwok is a freelance dancer, choreographer and dance instructor. He is a graduate of the Hong Kong Academy for Performance Arts (HKAPA), where he majored in Musical Theatre Dance. Kwok has also attained Australia's Commonwealth Society of Teachers of Dancing (CSTD) Gold Star Tap Certificate with Honours and a CSTD Teacher's Certificate. He teaches tap dancing at different institutions including the HKAPA (EXCEL) and the City Contemporary Dance Company (CCDC) Dance Centre.
Hida Yoshiko began tap dancing at the age of 6 and has trained with various well known tap dancers including Savion Glover, Derick Grant and Ayodele Casel. She has performed at major tap events, including the Taipei Tap Festival 2008, Los Angeles Tap Festival 2009 and Hong Kong Tap Festival 2011. She is now working with the great Japanese tap dancer, Suji, as one of the crew members of "Travelling Souls" and "Women In Tap".
Ki Wong, a HKAPA graduate, is currently working as a dancer, choreographer, multimedia designer and dance teacher. He is also a co-founder of "Tap Ensemble" and "NEO Dance HK", and was an awardee at the Hong Kong Dance Awards in 2011. One of his best known choreographies is "Pulsate, Galatea and Pygmalion, Pause", composed for the Hong Kong Arts Festival 2011.
The workshops will be held on Tuesdays at 7.30pm in the Tsuen Wan Town Hall (Cultural Activities Hall or Exhibition Gallery). Details are as follows:
October 2, 9 and 16
Instructor: Ken Kwok
Topics: Basic techniques in tap dance, Basic rhythm technique in tap dance, Synchronising your body
November 13, 20 and 27
Instructor: Hida Yoshiko
Topics: Finding the body rhythm, Basic techniques in tap dance, Basic rhythm technique in tap dance
December 4 and 18
Instructor: Ki Wong
Topics: Synchronising your body, Finding the body rhythm
"R & T (Rhythm & Tempo) - Tap Dance Lecture & Workshop Series: Star Grade Tutor's Version" is presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department. Tickets priced at $50 for each session are now available at all URBTIX outlets, on the Internet and by telephone credit card booking. Half-price tickets are available for senior citizens aged 60 or above, people with disabilities and their minders, full-time students and Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) recipients (limited tickets for full-time students and CSSA recipients available on a first-come, first-served basis). Please refer to the website and programme leaflets for details of the group booking discount scheme.
For programme enquiries, call 2268 7323; for ticketing enquiries, call 2734 9009. For credit card telephone bookings, call 2111 5999. Internet bookings are available at www.urbtix.hk. For more information, visit www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/Programme/en/dance/00000419.html.
Ends/Monday, September 3, 2012
Issued at HKT 10:01
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