Stepping up

Aysel Dunman, dance teacher and producer of the Rock Challenge, Dubai

Dance is a hidden language of the soul. You dance to express and not to impress! But when you dance like nobody's watching, you just let the music move your body and let your feet dream. Every movement you make is a word!

Dance is a part of my identity.

I have had a relationship with music and rhythm for the past 20 years – 15 in Australia and the remainder in Dubai. Dance is a passion where one can express joy, sadness, envy and many other emotions. For me, it is a short cut to happiness!

It is difficult to describe the intensity with which I love dance. To discover this, all you need to do is feel the music and move with it.

Every one of us is born with a talent, but what sets him or her apart from another is the devotion and time they put in to nurture that talent. Dedication, time and effort spent perfecting that skill is what makes some gifted and others extraordinary.

I'm following in the footsteps of my executive producer.

He had a vision for budding dancers 25 years ago. I have a similar vision for the Rock Challenge in the UAE and East Asia.

My journey with the Rock Challenge began three years ago. It has given me the opportunity to experience other forms of dance. It has also taught me how to interpret a dance and drama within a few minutes [the total duration of a dance]. I want to share the experience I have in this field with my students and the rest of the world.

Our students put a lot of effort into their work. You give them an idea and they come up with extraordinary themes and ways to pull off an eight- minute long piece. I have been trying to get together different dance schools to participate so that students can benefit from a healthy exchange of ideas.

I want people to appreciate our work and admire it for its depth.

If you have a good [dance] partner, you can be creative in your form. Dance is all about chemistry, beauty and grace.

The real challenge behind the Rock Challenge was raising funds.

It was not easy getting people to share the enthusiasm that I had about launching a project like the Rock Challenge. I hope that companies and organisations will come forward to support community events like ours.

I need local companies to get behind our students and give them a platform to share this experience. The sponsors can use this platform to send out inspiring messages to students.

I know times are tough now but we cannot just stop sponsoring youth events. We must do our best to ensure that motivational youth events continue to receive the necessary support.

The competition is becoming more interesting and as a result, more difficult to judge year after year.

This year's Rock Challenge took place at the end of May at the Mall of the Emirates. The theme was 'Being in the Dubai Bubble'. It gave students an opportunity to interpret their version of this theme through costume, routine and stage design. The productions were a huge challenge but all the schools were superb. The participants have raised the bar to a very high standard. English College Dubai won the Senior Challenge and Scholars International Academy Sharjah won the Junior Challenge.

We are very proud of the fact that we have schools coming from Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Al Ain to participate.

Children love the ambience and the encouragement that they receive in the classes and performances. They love to interact with each other. They enjoy creating the show from scratch. I think that it gives them a sense of belonging.

As a child, my relationship with the stage was limited.

I really did not have any theatrical upbringing. I was part of the gymnastics team and the folkloric group which I later taught. It was only much later that I became a part of the Rock Challenge at school.

Now that I have the production house, I am trying to recruit 300 students to get the ball rolling. It is quite difficult, but I am sure my search for dancers will be fulfilled.

Over the years, I have noticed increasing acceptance of my efforts.

The students love it and the parents and teachers are so proud of what these youngsters are trying to achieve. I am now ready to take it to the next level. With the community's support, I hope to get the show televised. This would not only give the event larger coverage but will also encourage the participants to continue their efforts and hopefully, draw more students to the stage.

For me, each day is a roller-coaster routine.

I live each day to the tune of my dream. When I am not focused on dance then it's my baby girl, Phoenix Azaan, who sets the pace of my day and night! She is my world; my perspective and priorities have changed since becoming a mother. I try my best to balance my time between my family and my work.

I do a lot of yoga and meditation to balance my mind.

Occasionally I throw in some salsa classes to add an element of fun to my week. I enjoy oil painting on canvas.

I think I was born an artist. I'm drawn to all forms of art.