Young hip hop dancers fundraise for Dubai comp2 min read

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Three hip hop dance crews from a studio run by an Onehunga local, are heading to Dubai in July to compete on the world stage, and they’re raising funds to get there.

The three groups from the DDF Dance Studio will represent New Zealand in the WSB (World Supremacy Battlegrounds) Dubai, after success at WSB Aotearoa in Hamilton in March. The Hamilton event was won by DDF junior crew Diamond Divas, their varsity crew, SOULFUL, placed second and their adult crew, DMF, qualified for Dubai as a wild card.

The Studio was founded by Alannah Curtis in 2008, when she was just 18. It has since moved to Otahuhu, and many local dancers travel down south for classes. As well as being the owner and director, Alannah is also the choreographer, putting together the winning routines for the groups, and her daughter Honey, is a dancer too.

Twelve-year-old Onehunga dancers, Lia Whiteman and Riley Siebert, are both heading to Dubai and can’t wait for the trip. Riley is in all three of the crews competing, while Lia is in the Diamond Divas and SOULFUL; both having the skills to be part of the older crews. Lia has been dancing for about two years, while Riley started dancing at just six years old, with the last three years at DDF.

“I love dancing, it’s really entertaining. It’s also fun to hang out with my friends,” says Lia. For Riley, she enjoys the freedom she feels on the dance floor, and is excited that the teams’ hard work is taking them to Dubai.

The DDF Dance Studio is running a fundraiser to help cover costs for the dancers, including flights, accommodation and event registration.

“The teams are extremely excited about qualifying as the reality of what they have just achieved sinks in after so many hours of training. We would love to make this dream come true and get them to Dubai for the championship,” says Alannah.

You can find their fundraising page at givealittle.co.nz/cause/road-to-dubai