Teddy Anderson came to Yorkton to dance, but he had goals going far beyond that. He wants to use hoop dance to bring people together. He has embarked on a tour of Saskatchewan schools with the Organization of Saskatchewan Arts Councils to bring classes together through dance, and visited MC Knoll and St. Michael’s School to spread his message of unity and oneness.
“For me, the medicine wheel, the hoop dance, the circle is about oneness, realizing we are all connecting inside of it.”
Anderson said that the hoop dance changed his life, because he realized things about himself and others as he learned about the dance and performed it. Every time he dances, he says he keeps learning, and he hopes that doing performing helps kids.
“If they can understand the concept of the dance, which is unity and oneness, imagine how different our world would look like, when these kids grow up with this as commonplace.”
He hopes that some kids in the audience try it out for themselves, because he believes they can learn the same things he does.
Performing in schools is important to Anderson, because of what it allows him to do for a wide variety of kids.
“You’re connecting with a culture and you’re breaking down barriers.”
Having performances like the hoop dance is also a way to introduce kids to a culture they might not be familiar with, and Anderson believes that we should be experiencing and learning more about First Nations culture, and he’s glad to have the ability to help teach it.
“First Nations culture is not something we should fear, it is something we should try to understand. Providing places like this where people can teach and share increases our understanding and increases our hope for getting along.”
He was also impressed with the kids in the city.
“I have been here a lot over the years. The students are respectful, the students are engaging, and I see it already that the kids really do respect each other. I hope we can continue fostering that.”
