Teacher G talks about unlocking latent talent in kids

MANILA, Philippines - Georcelle Dapat-Sy (photo) is first and foremost a dancer. Her commitment to her craft has earned her a niche in a saturated industry. However, Georcelle’s talent in grace in motion is not confined to the stage or the studio alone; it spills over into her personal life, in her mothering and ultimately in her mentoring of the next generation at large.

Once again, Georcelle gets involved in Promil’s Pre-School i-Shine Talent Camp, which taps the inert talents of the young and to help them wield the potency that they hold inside. “The Promil Pre-school program is about recognizing talent. When the potential is seen in a young person, it is categorized,” Georcelle says.

Though many families are blessed to send their children to the most expensive dance schools, Georcelle didn’t have that kind of privilege to start with. However, she was blessed with parents who quickly recognized her abilities and brought her to the dance program at the Metropolitan Theater. She took up different styles like tap, jazz, ballet, folk, contemporary and Hawaiian.

In the midst of diligent quests, divine intervention took place. Once, on a trip to UP Diliman, Georcelle and her mom made a mistake and ended up in Felicita Radaic’s class. “When we met her, akala niya (she thought) I was an aspiring ballerina. She then wrote a letter to Metropolitan Dance Theater’s director to put me in the dance scholarship.” Georcelle learned that where funds were lacking, a strong sense of determination would more than make up for it. And fate did the rest.

Georcelle feels that dancing as a passion promotes closeness and love. As dancing is also a part of her, she used it to nurture her children and not exclude them from an area that dominates her life.

Eventually, she exposed her children to the best. “I show them performances. Then, I tell them that the performers trained hard before they reached the level of their performance. My point is that you have to train if you want to be the best. It’s achievable as long as you know the ABC’s and basics.” For Georcelle, the foundation of mentoring kids is love.

Georcelle has had a hand in building G-Force as the leading dance company in the show business today.