Welcome to the sisterhood
WHAT WE DO
We run super fun, down to earth dance classes for women that blend Afro, Dancehall, Booty and Hip-Hop dance styles into super fun original dance routines.
We offer 10 week beginners & intermediate courses, casual classes, workshops, a Summer School, tailor-made classes for private groups, dance party nights, performances for events and a lush dance & yoga retreat.
HOW WE DO IT
Our original choreography teaches rad moves and attitudes.
You'll find rhythm, flow, power and freedom in your body, mind and soul.
Every class we run has been designed to bring out your best.
Our teachers deliver every class with energy, humour and generosity.
We love that everybody moves differently. We play rad tunes that honour and celebrate women. We pay respect to the music and movements’ cultural history.
We are a supportive community in action. We lift each other up.
WHAT WE BELIEVE
We reckon that everyone can learn rhythm and that everyone can dance. Honestly, everyone. Yep, even you.
We believe that every woman has a unique, sexy, sassy side that when accessed in the right space free from judgement and unrealistic standards can be transformative.
We also believe that as women learn how to take up physical space and become more comfortable in our own skin, the world will change for the better.
At Dee Street we believe women thrive in groups.
WHY WE DO IT
Each week we see that dancing in a group improves people’s mental health and sense of being well in the world.
We believe that when women connect, anything and everything is possible.
At Dee Street we believe that women are now getting ready to usher in a new way of being in the world.
Your sisterhood is waiting.
TEACHERS
SARAH DEE
As a child I learned creative dance, drama and gymnastics. It wasn't until my early 20’s that I fell in love with dance.
I travelled to Ghana and studied traditional drumming, dance and singing with the Kusun ensemble. The expression of joy and pure celebration of life that came through the dance was so infectious and I stayed in West Africa for a year, learning from teachers across 8 countries.
Back in Australia I began performing and teaching, collaborating with dancers and musicians from various genres. I completed a performing arts degree and worked in theatre, film and television. I had a particular interest in performance art, dance and comedy exploring ideas around women, sexuality and evolutions of dance.
I presented my work in Vancouver, New York and San Francisco and independently studied hip hop, African, Krump, twerk, bounce, dancehall and Dunham technique, in the United States and here in Australia, and traditional dance in Cuba.
Over the years my West African dance classes combined with hip-hop moves to become Afro funk and then a few sexy moves came into the mix to create booty dance classes.
In 2015 I created Dee Street. My intention behind every class I teach is to encourage individual expression, female power and connection. To music, to movement and to a community.
VANESSA MAYANJA
My mother describes me as a child who could not help but dance anytime she heard music. As my family moved frequently throughout my childhood, I attended ballet and tap classes. By the time I turned 10 years old, we moved from Australia to Texas.
Once in high school, I auditioned for and successfully joined the dance team. I spent every autumn jazz running and high-kicking across football fields. I loved getting glam in my cowgirl outfit and performing in front of crowds.
Come winter and spring, I enjoyed competing in lyrical, jazz, and modern dance. In summer we ran dance camps for younger girls and trained for the upcoming season. I really liked the discipline, teamwork, and leaving it “all on the floor.”
Dance was a major love in my life but eventually ended up being pushed aside when I began university and work.
A decade later I relocated back to Melbourne and reconnected with a part of myself I'd forgotten. I began attending street dance and choreography classes to popular songs in the inner north.
The feeling I got from striking a power pose and bouncing to the beat was a cathartic process that helped me to relieve anxiety and increase my self-confidence.
Before too long I began teaching again. The best part of that for me was seeing people come as they are to express themselves, it really creates magic!
I love that Dee Street is a sisterhood and creates support for women to come as we are and have fun. I‘m so excited to continue to facilitate space for self-love, fun choreography, a sense of community with you. Let’s make some magic!
KATE WORMALD
As a kid, I spent hours making up routines to Madonna and Michael Jackson. I remember begging my mum for dance classes and I started jazz ballet when I was about 12.
As much as I loved to dance, I felt so out of place. Most of the girls had been dancing since they were 4 and my body just wasn’t the right shape. My dancing was restricted to my loungeroom and kitchen dancefloors at parties.
When I moved to Melbourne from Perth in 2002 I rediscovered my passion for dance at Dee Street’s very own Sarah Dee’s African dance class. I felt so at home with the style, I loved the rhythm, the movement and that the shape of my body was insignificant.
I had begun to understand the healing power of dance and began my studies in dance movement therapy. My studies into the healing art of dance led me to undertake a cultural study tour to Ghana in 2006, learning traditional dances and rhythms.
In Melbourne, I began teaching drum and dance workshops at African Drumming and performing with the African percussion band Ouga. I continued to learn from some of Melbourne’s best African dance teachers including Mitzi McCrae and Lamine Sonko.
I'm excited to share my knowledge of the rhythm and movement that connects us through teaching at Dee Street. I love that this is a dance community that embraces women of all shapes and sizes and encourages self-expression in a supportive and super fun way.