Ballroom Dance Ensemble Sensitive representing Kazakhstan reached the finals at the World Championships of Performing Arts held in California, US, QazMonitor reports citing the ensemble's Instagram page.
Sensitive, which is turning 16 years this year, consists of dancers with hearing impairments, who graduated from a boarding school in Petropavlovsk in North Kazakhstan Region. They have won numerous international competitions, where they competed on equal terms with dancers who have no disabilities.
The ensemble shared photos and videos of the championship on its social media page. In addition to the main choreography competition, the collective made a presentation on Kazakhstan.
The artistic director Olga Rostovshchikova and four-time Guinness World Record breaker Sergey Tsyrulnikov took part in the production. The North Kazakhstani dancers chose the song Gulistan Kazakhstan performed by ADAM at the New Wave song contest in 2013. However, the song could not be used in its entirety, as all performances follow a strict 60-second time limit.
WCOPA is also often cited as the Talent Olympics. This year, it gathered contestants from 72 countries. The annual competition took place from July 22 to 30 in Anaheim, a city in Orange County, California, which is part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area.