Dance was something that changed my life when I was a teenager. It saved me from a troubled childhood, and gave me a new start filled with happiness and hope.
My parents couldn’t afford to pay for my dance classes so I applied for and received a scholarship. If it wasn’t for that scholarship I wouldn’t be the person I am today. I have met wonderful people, learnt from invaluable life lessons, helped thousands of students and communities for the last 20 years.
My dream is to be able to pass on the same opportunity to people also in need of such a life changing opportunity. Thus, we are creating a not-for-profit ‘Dance Foundation’ which will be giving Dance Scholarships to children and teens from under privileged communities around the world.
The BraZouky Brazilian Dance Festival is the first project within the master plan. This event will help us raise funds to make dreams possible, and by participating in this event, you will be helping us reach more people and make more dreams come true.
With this, we hope to be able to bring change, and have a future with more dancing in everyone’s life!
BraZouky is a not-for-profit event, entirely planned and run by volunteers. That’s right; no-one takes a director’s fee or is paid for their time to run BraZouky. Any profit we make is re-invested into the event, or is donated to our charity partner in Brazil. If you would like to donate to the BraZouky Dream, you may do so through our Dance Place portal.
Our Charity Partner
BraZouky is supporting Meninadança, a Brazilian not-for-profit organisation that works with at-risk girls in communities along the BR-116, Brazil’s ‘exploitation highway’. Bringing hope and changing lives through the power of dance.
They run four ‘pink houses’ to provide a refuge and learning space for at-risk girls between the ages of 11-17, and performance opportunities to build their self-esteem. Meninadança is also tackling the local conditions that allow child prostitution; working with families and the community to challenge acceptance of abuse. Finally, they provide legal services to seek justice for the girls.