Have Computer Will Dance

With the advent of Youtube and shareware, Kenny Teh can put his dances on the internet. So far, he has choreographed about 80 line dances. His home computer is switched on 24 hours a day so that he can respond to requests and queries as fast as possible. His latest dances can thus be downloaded, viewed and taught all over the world. Many groups have used his performances, workshops, competitions, parties and demonstrations. This is the astonishing feat of Teh, a self-taught line dancing instructor and choreographer, born and bred in Taiping, Perak.

The accolades pour in from as far as the United States, Britain, France, South Africa, Indonesia and Singapore. Teh is moving away from choreographing dances which incorporate western music. He is now coming up with dances to suit Chinese, Malay, Filipino or Indonesian music requested by his students. One of his favourites is the Cha Cha Cha with its well-defined rhythm and easy-to-follow beat. Teh's repertoire of original dances ranges from fast Latin numbers like Cico Cico and simple beginner dances like Secret Admirer to complex, multi-phased, intermediate dances like Bahama Mama.

Teh, a trim and fit retiree, had worked as a school teacher for a few years before he was seconded to the computer section of the Education Department in Taiping. Initially, he was interested in ballroom dancing and was only introduced to line dancing many years later. He bought dance tapes from Singapore and found them easy to follow. "So, I started teaching members of the Chinese Recreation Club as I was then the chairman of its dance section. As I began to conduct more line dance sessions, I found that many of the dances were not that challenging so I started choreographing dances to my own liking," he said. ( The Star)