Dancing 6 ft apart: Dancers share their stories on surviving Covid-19 | BY NUR SAFFEA ERNADY
Source: Taylor’s Speaker’s Corner
It is no doubt that life at home during the Movement Control Order had its own perks. Some people may
have found themselves in the attic, organizing and jettisoning whatever stuff they think was no longer
useful. But the advent of MCO was also a preamble of a ripple effect on the Malaysian economy.
Dylan Chyo, who is the Founder of AEVDC Dance Crew and Uncommon Dance studio said his income
was greatly affected when the pandemic first hit.
Dylan Chyo sharing his perspectives via Zoom.
“I own 3 dance studios and it definitely has affected us as we had no revenue during the 3 months of
MCO. Another challenge is the rentals. We still have to pay for it and the utilities bills, also the salary for our teachers,” he said.
On July 25, Taylor’s Lakeside Dance Club (TLDC) collaborated with Taylor’s Speakers Corner to delve
deeper on how the pandemic has affected the dance industry in the virtual open mic event titled “Dancing 6 ft apart”. The 2 hour forum was streamed live on Taylor’s Speaker’s Corner Facebook Page where 198 viewers have joined to watch the insightful forum.
The forum invited Dylan Chyo, the Founder of AEVDC dance crew and Uncommon dance studio, Alex
from Kingsman Dance Crew and Sandree Ha who is prominently known to be part of Nezindahood
Dance Crew accompanying Agnes Monica or famously known as Agnez Mo before carving his own path.
The other two speakers also shared the same sentiments when asked by the moderator, Danniel Iskandar
whether the pandemic has greatly affected their income.
Danniel Iskandar, the moderator.
Sandree Ha said he is lucky as he still has a job to survive during the pandemic.
“It definitely has affected me but thank god, Alhamdulillah. I still have a job which is my private dance
tutor class where I teach my students face to face. But of course, we abide by the rules. Like social
distancing, wear a mask and take readings of our body temperature.”
“The class is usually held in my studio so we don’t go outside that is crowded,” he added.
Meanwhile for Alex, he had the freest schedule during the first 2 months of MCO.
“It was the worst as all of my classes were cancelled and I literally had the freest schedule. But I was
lucky because despite being a dance instructor, I was also an influencer.”
“Most of my jobs are online like my live streams, my sponsorships and those things were still rolling in at that time but of course, my income in terms of dance-wise, it really affected me that I could feel it.”
But despite the struggles, Alex kept a positive mind and claimed to “shift most of the things online”
“I shifted most of the things online and when I started to do things this way, I slowly began to get an
income.”
The speakers echoed the same reactions when asked to share if they had any confirmed performances that were cancelled due to Covid-19. But regardless of what came, they remained positive.
Sandree Ha concurred that most of his events and jobs were cancelled and postponed but he tried to
accept this situation wisely and believes he is not the only one who is affected.
Meanwhile for Alex, he stated that this year was an important year for his team.
“It was an important year as we were invited to go abroad to join K-Pop events but of course, everything was cancelled.
“We were frustrated because we have prepared for a long time. But we believe that when one door closes, usually a lot of other doors will open. We just stayed positive and despite being in the lockdown, we got it thorough together as a team.”
Dylan also mentioned he had three important events but had to switch everything online which were a K-Pop competition held in Sunway Velocity mall in June, National Championship that included 7 states and dance theater.
“Except for my dance theater showcase. I am still trying to figure out ways on what to do.”
The President of TLDC, Sharon believed the forum was insightful and understood the perspective and
experience from the professional dancers.
“They also gave us motivational words or tips and their solutions on facing this hardship and the stories
were so inspiring not only to us dancers but surely for the general audience as well.”
“All in all, we can really look them up as an inspiration.” she added via WhatsApp.
Taylor’s Lakeside Dance Club is under the purview of Student Engagement; Leadership Development, Student Development, Centre for Future Learning under the advisory of Ms. Navitra G. Selvakumar. For more information, kindly e-mail Navitra.Selvakumar@taylors.edu.my.
The Speaker’s Corner is under the purview of Student Engagement & Leadership Development (S.E.A.L.), Student Development, Centre for Future Learning. For bookings, enquiries or collaborations, please contact Mr. Dorian Wilde at Dorian.Rajoo@taylors.edu.my.
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