Student of the University of Natal Durban Mbongiseni Patrick Buthelezi and Siwela Sonke Dance Theatre member Sandile Mbili were joint winners of the Rio Tinto Scholarship to the London Contemporary Dance School in London. Mbongiseni writes that he’s doing well.

“I have settled into my daily routine very well,” says Mbongiseni. “The hours we work are long and the work exhausting, but fun. I get to school at 08h00 every morning and warm up from 08h15 to 08h45. We have ballet class from 08h45 to 10h15, contemporary from 10h30 to 12h00, a lunch break from 12h00 to 13h00 and in the afternoons we do academic work till 18h00. After that I am in rehearsals.”

An injury to his knee has kept Mbongiseni out of action but that’s on the way to recovery and he’s involved in two pieces for a workshop the school will present before the Christmas closure. Next year he intends to do a few short courses in philosophy at the University of London's Birbeck College.