Dance and I

“Best Friend” is the most suitable words that represent my relationship between dance and me. We don’t meet everyday but when we do, we make something great. I don’t dance until I was fourteen and I was in my first year in senior high school. My body was so stiff like a timber! It’s never too late to learn somethig new, lads! I don’t do modern dance, break dance, tango or any cool dance, you name it! But I do traditional dance, old dance followed by percussion, violin, and accordion some sort of Malay dance.

Ironically, some people still have their argument in mind that man doesn’t do dance, woman does. It sad that people still have narrow minded about dance while in fact, this country has thousands of traditional dances which is danced by both males and females. It’s true that some of foreigner comes to Indonesia, learning our culture and some of it, learning our dance. Loving dance doesn’t turn you into a girl. If foreigners willing to learn it, why don’t we? Most of Indonesian traditional dance bring some philosophical meaning about way of life. For example; Serampang 12 dance from Riau, it brings a message of how to interact with a girl without passing a norm applied in its origin place and it’s strongly influenced by Islam values. Well guys, I won’t talk about how good Indonesian dance is, but I will talk about how incorporating my self in dancing activities has developed me to become who I am today.


This time, allow me to list the benefits of dancing that successfully develop my character:

1.     Discipline

The instant benefit of participating in dance is it will train your self to be discipline. As a beginner, you will learn how to appreciate time as you will not dance alone but along with your partners. You will not waste somebody else’s time to wait just for you from minutes then turn in to hours. It’s good to show your commitment on punctuality as you willing to come early and do stretching before you start dancing, so when the teacher comes you can start the rehearsal. Back in my time, the rehearsal room will be closed by the time you come late.

2.     Be responsible

Hiring a make up artist, costume designer can be very costly if you join a competition. Then, who will apply make up on your face and do your costume? It’s you, yourself! Yess, you heard it right! Some of dance organization can’t hire a make up artist or costume assistant, so you need to do it all alone. It’s good to learn how to apply make up on your face in your spare time. You can learn how to create a character make up to support your dance. Believe me, there are abundant of make up tutorials in youtube to teach you to apply a good make up from simple into artistic make up. For boys, don’t feel ashame to deal with make up. You can do something cool with it.

(Try a Zombie make up, why not?!)

3.     Preparation

A masterpiece comes with thousand of trials and preparation. To make a remarkable play of Black Swan, Natalie Portman spent months, perhaps, years to learn the play. It may start from stretching her legs until standing on a tip toe and elaborating emotions into the choreography. Dance will teach you to trust on preparation which will lead you to successful a performance. The journey you do from scratch, litres drops of sweat, anger, tired will be paid of by the applause of the crowds.

4.     Confidence

I was a very shy individual and constrained to deal with a performance, but dance forced me to conquer this feeling. As a performer, you need to love your audience. You won’t break your timely effort of doing rehearsal go into pieces just because you are too nervous to show your choreography to the audience. Believe me; the audience will never know whether you dance it right or wrong. Take your chin up, feel the music, move your body, look into their eyes and smize with your eyes.

5.     Self Development Journey

As a learner, you will not be in the same position for years. You will transform from a beginner into a pro. I start my journey as a dancer in a wedding ceremony into international events. You will smile when you look back and realize how far you have walked until you become who you are today.

6.     Travelling

In many times as a dancer, you will participate in some dance competition, may be it’s a school dance competition in your city, provincial/ state dance competition and international dance competition. All these will bring you to some parts of the world and broaden your knowledge about many kinds of dance in the world. If you are a travelling addict like me, you can travel for free! 

(Me and my dancing fellas was participating in KOTFA 2008, Seoul Korea)

7.     Long Last Friendship

Some psychologist say that of a friendship lasts more than 5 years, then it will lasts forever. Your dancing partner, those whom you shared your laugh, tears and crazyness together each day with you will be your long lasts friendship. I never regret to have such friends with me. May be time will separate you apart in a long distance, but when you meet each other, I can guarantee you guys will do something great!

(Always do crazy things with them, whenever we meet)

8.     Stubborn

I feel so lucky by becoming a stubborn male dancer. I become too stubborn to listen on people bad words about man don’t do dance. In fact, it rises my haters but who cares! Just go on your way, haters will always hate. It’s their job. Just keep in mind, One day, they will still wondering why they are left behind while you have achieved many good things in your life as dance has built good characters in your life.

Dance is only one example of good activity that you can do in your teenage life to channel your massive energy in a good way. I can’t guarantee that dance will lead you into a successful career or life in the future, it’s all coming back to you. You are the driver of your car, it’s on your hand whether you will lead it jump down to the Canyon or take it to a beach to see the sunset. Do what you good at and don’t bother on what people say to you, people will always talking. Be grateful and don’t forget to enjoy your journey. 

Thanks Dance

(Participating in Indonesia Menari 2014, I am the dance leader)