Local dance group NVUS celebrates after coming third at the National Battle Grounds dance competition in Sydney recently. Back from left: Ally Myers, Jason Davies, Kelly Avice, Kat Sneddon. Middle: Tamara Mousaco, Mary Ballener, Mel Appadoo, Stacey Cole, Steve Samuel, Kurt Ballener. Front: Sally Alexander and Nilo Ballener. Absent: Troy Mousaco.By Rebecca Fraser
LOCAL dance group NVUS was the envy of many recently when they came third at the National Battle Grounds dance competition in Sydney.
The hiphop group also won the best costume prize and dance teacher, Rachael Kettle, said she was delighted with their success.
Ms Kettle, a dance teacher for 13 years, owns the First Step Academy of Dance in Hallam and helped form NVUS more than two years ago.
She said hiphop had quickly become a popular form of dance.
“Lots of kids enjoy hiphop and this provides a vehicle for the top kids to perform and hone their skills,” Ms Kettle said.
“Quite a lot of students want to become professional dancers and make dancing their career.
“Every competition we sort of jump on,” she said.
NVUS reached the finals in Sydney after coming first at the Groove 2005 dance competition in Essendon earlier this year.
Ms Kettle said it had been a close competition with a team from New Zealand entering.
She also said the group of 13 dancers eight girls and five boys had been working on their routine for the last two and a half months.
The theme of their performance was slavery and they danced to a medley of different hiphop tracks.
“We have been working on the fiveminute performance for two and a half months,” Ms Kettle said. “We have class on Wednesday for three and a half hours and then two hours of straight rehearsing,” she said.
NVUS raised more than $5000 for the Sydney trip and Ms Kettle said the group had already set their sights on competing again next year.
The group is also set to be part of the halftime entertainment at a Melbourne Tigers basketball game on 10 December.
