Along with talent, time, and sweat, the performance of Victory Praise Dance during the 65th Los Angeles County Holiday Celebration took the efforts of the proverbial village. Directed by Robin Deane, the dancers, ranging from elementary school age to their 20s, delivered their showstopping performance at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, propelled by the support of their families and by rehearsals at PiYoDa Flow, a West Adams cultural and wellness center.
Deane, who serves as the children’s praise dance director at West Angeles Church of God in Christ since 2006, founded Victory Praise Dance (VDP), a community-based youth group focused on bringing “joy to the congregation.”
“It’s not just for dancers to get up there and do a choreographed dance,” notes Deane. “It’s about using your bodies to praise the Lord, and having other people participate with you. If we’re clapping our hands … if we’re stomping and praising… hopefully they’ll stomp and praise and be a part of it.”
Twenty-eight acts were chosen from among hundreds of applicants across L.A. County. Deane recalls learning that VPD was selected during last October’s Taste of Soul Family Festival.
“I walked around Taste of Soul with a big smile, and nobody knew why I was smiling but I was just so happy, so excited,” she says. “I’ve been there to [the Music Center] to see Alvin Ailey and other groups, so it was amazing to be there on the same stage.”
Serentee J is nine years old and has been with VPD for two years. She recalls the feeling of being onstage on Christmas Eve as, “confident and nervous, but I also felt happy and excited … so everyone could see how I can dance and they could see my personality.”
Eight-year-old Karizma J has also been with VPD for two years and performed at the L.A. County Holiday Celebration, which was broadcast on PBS.
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https://www.facebook.com/victory.p.dancers/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gKUU3TX0ds
https://www.musiccenter.org/tickets-free-events/tmc-arts/l-a-county-holiday-celebration/
“I felt really excited to do it, but also a little bit .. nervous,” she says. “When I did it, I felt confident, because everybody was there. If [only] one person saw it, that would be nothing, but if a lot of people saw it, that would be amazing.”
Deane says that many of the group’s parents and other supporters were in attendance, with a warm reception from the Music Center audience.
“The energy was great,” she says. “A lot of people from the community that we served showed up, parents, showed up, our supporters were there. I was proud of how we looked, everything was beautiful. Miracle [Jackson, a VPD member] said when we came out … as we walked by when we came out, people were clapping.
Deane says that although most of her VPD dancers are school and high school age, some of the older students stay on, and even return to perform.
“One of the main dancers is 20,” says Deane. “She came home from college the week before the show and learned everything [and] danced. I’ve had her since she was five, and now she’s a dance major in college.”
Vanessa Neva, owner of PiYoDa Flow, is a dancer and educator who has lived across Africa for many years. She created the space, which focuses on a wide variety of dance traditions, including the African diaspora, street dance, Afro Cuban dance, ballet, salsa, and break dancing. Neva says that Deane’s work with VPD has grown over the last three years.
“It’s great to see the young ladies growing into beautiful dance performers and the commitment and education they have, it’s been wonderful,” says Neva, a dancer and educator who has worked with LAUSD, UCLA’s Geffen Academy, and other institutions.
Deane found PiYoDa when after the pandemic, VPD had no permanent space for rehearsals.
“We would meet in parks and open areas, and … the kids didn’t feel safe,” she says. “One time, the girls heard gunshots. I found PiYoDa and it works out really well for us.”
Neva says that PiYoDa is more than a dance studio – it serves as a multigenerational cultural center and a source of support for the local community, with parents and other relatives of her younger clients taking part in yoga, meditation, and other wellness-related classes.
“For the sound bath [healing sessions], sometimes you would have three generations –the kid with the mom and the grandma,” says Neva. “The connections we’ve made with the families in the neighborhood, multigenerationally, has been really beautiful.
“I live two blocks away. We’re also there to support each other when there are situations. The relationship we’ve all established at PiYoDa with different families, it really feels like a larger village.”
Deane and Neva look forward to meeting greater goals. Neva hopes to expand PiYoDa into a larger space and Deane is always looking for new performance opportunities for VPD.
“When you have life, health, and strength, and you’re able to move your limbs, it’s an honor and a privilege to be able to do that and we give thanks unto God for that,” says Deane. “It’s also our thanksgiving unto God. We don’t try to persuade people to believe what we believe. We hope that the joy is contagious.”
Victory Praise Dancers will perform at the South Bay Pavilion Mall, 20700 Avalon Blvd. Carson, on Saturday, Feb. 22 as part of a Black History Month Celebration. For more information, contact (310) 366-6636 or visit facebook.com/victory.p.dancers or visit
https://www.piyodaflow.com
