Maningrida's young female dancers win Darwin competition

Five of Maningrida’s young female dancers made the 500 kilometre journey to Darwin to represent their community by competing in and winning at the Evolution Dance Competition recently.
Shiya Stewart, Tivisha Bading, Sethalia Olsen, Francine Stewart and Qynesha Olsen formed the Maningrida Girls Dance Group in 2019 and they certainly represented their community with pride and enthusiasm at the event which sets out to encourage growth and development of young performers. 
This trip was supported by West Arnhem Regional Council’s Youth, Sport and Recreation team.
The car trip to Darwin on Friday, August 2 mainly included listening to the same five songs on repeat, sleeping and endless stories about how the rock formations came to be. The group stopped in Gunbalanya to have a lunch break and they enjoyed checking out the Gunbalanya Youth Centre and taking a tour of the community. 
The day of the competition itself got under way on Saturday with the girls heading to a local park to practice their routine and fueled up on fruit and popcorn before getting their hair and make-up done. With excitement and also nerves the Maningrida Girls Dance Group headed to Charles Darwin University to demonstrate their talent on the big stage. 
Entering in the Under 12’s Hip Hop Group, the girls went on stage with confidence and their own unique style. They showed incredible performance and choreography skills and amazingly took first place in their section.
The girls as well as the Youth, Sport and Recreation team and entire Maningrida community were all so proud of their enormous achievement.
Along with their first place ribbons and flag, the girls took home a cash prize which was later used at the cinema to get a treat to eat while watching The Lion King.
Upon arriving back in Maningrida, all of 
the young women’s parents and family were so proud of their amazing achievement and how well they had represented their community. 
It was a very special experience for the young women who attended and the Youth, Sport and Recreation team cannot wait to see what other dance opportunities might head their way in the future. 
The YSR team would like to say a big thank you to the local sponsors which supported the Maningrida Girls Dance Group to get to Darwin and compete; Maningrida Progress Association, Bawinanga Aboriginal Corporation and Stronger Communities for Children. Without their support this opportunity would have never of been possible.