Sabra Johnson and Kameron Bink of So You Think You Can Dance USA visited Australia for the first time in April. Visiting Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and the Gold Coast, they were brought to our shores by Young Performers Australia to teach a series of Master classes, as well as make appearances in each city for Myer retail outlets. They taught classes in Jazz, Hip Hop, Contemporary and Lyrical, giving dancers a wide choice of genres and the option to sign up for multiple classes.

I attended the Sydney Master classes which were held at Brent Street Studios. I was a little disappointed that one of the studios we danced in did not have tarkett flooring.  I felt that with international guests they should have been allocated some of the bigger, more equipped and cleaner studios. I was really expecting a little more of the facilities.

That aside, I loved each class! Sabra and Kameron have very different teaching styles and techniques, but both find ways of inspiring their students to bring out their best. They are completely in tune with the music and have a real understanding of musicality; something that is unfortunately becoming rare these days. Sabra is very clear - no talking and no sitting in class! These are good rules that many teachers have now relaxed. Sabra is very precise about what she expects of the students. Kameron has the same level of discipline in his classes but in a more playful manner. Both are very knowledgeable teachers for their age and very competent. They were obviously good students of excellent teachers when training. I think that some people forget that they have a long story before we met them on the US series of ‘So You Think You Can Dance’. In all the classes the smart students attending didn’t just do class, but actually took in all of the ideas and corrections.

"I had a blast! Kameron and Sabra are awesome and the dance classes were intense and challenging. I got a little taste of So You Think You Can Dance US", said dancer Gillian Gan.

I favoured the lyrical/contemporary classes, mostly because I love dancing these styles. In these classes both Sabra and Kameron danced together and it was nice to see how naturally they can

improvise the choreography to make it become a partner dance. They also have the ability to really let go and just dance with no inhibitions, this can’t be taught! It is obvious why both of them excelled in SYTYCD.

It was a shame that the classes were not advertised/marketed more widely. The numbers were good, but could have been much larger considering it was school holidays. Many dancers missed out on an amazing opportunity.  

I had the pleasure of being with Sabra and Kameron also at the taping of the Australian SYTYCD Final 4 episode where they met the dancers. They were bombarded by people for photos and autographs afterwards. I enjoyed showing them the Sydney dance scene, taking them out for an enjoyable evening. They really are great people, not just great dancers. They are just as gifted at teaching as they are at dancing. I would be honoured to take class with either of them again.

By Dolce Fisher ARAD TC