Page 31 - Fiji Traveller Issue 3
P. 31
VOU dances to sustainability
As one of Fiji’s pre-eminent dance companies, the vibrant choreography.
energy VOU brings to every performance feels like an exten- "We had to look at all of the resources that we had available
sion of their founder's personality. to us to keep everyone in our community alive and healthy, and
Sachiko Soro is a living embodiment of the energy, spirit, and our first priority was food security because 2020 felt like it was
mana the company is renowned for. an apocalypse," she says.
VOU (meaning ‘new’ in iTaukei) is dedicated to delivering dy- Alongside planting, raising chickens and fishing, the team
namic, visually-stunning and sometimes moving performances looked at how they could translate their creative skills into proj-
ranging from traditional story-telling to contemporary dance and ects that did not involve performing in front of live audiences.
music. "So we went into the arena of generating online content, and
"My personal goal as one of the founding members is to it opened up this whole new world of opportunity. We went into
provide sustainable and fulfilling career paths for the artists and making movies; five different films we made were commis-
their future," Soro says. That dream led to the establishment of sioned by the LA museum.”
the VOU Hub for arts, culture, and activities just near Denarau. This led to other prospects, including virtual reality projects.
VOU also offers regular bespoke shows at selected Fiji re- “Challenges are actually just opportunities in disguise, be-
sorts, trains dancers through formal programs, is the company cause I don’t think that we ever would have thought of creating
of choice for Fiji’s biggest events, produced two new and in- a film or digital content for streaming platforms if we hadn't
novative shows for the Fiji Fringe Festival earlier this year, and been forced into it by Covid.”
travels the world promoting Fiji’s diverse cultures. Today, VOU is performing in front of live audiences again,
Of course, this all came to a stop during the pandemic. While and employing 72 people full time.
the bubbly and positive founder doesn’t like to talk too much "I feel like challenges are just a part of our lives as entrepre-
about challenges, Soro says it did crystallise what was non- neurs and professionals, so we can change the perspective,
negotiable when it came to the company. the challenges, and turn them into opportunities in disguise; it’s
As an entrepreneur who has a very close relationship with all part of business."
her team, the answer was clear. "For me, if I was going to harp
on about sustainable creative careers, this was the time to put Where you can see VOU perform:
my money where my mouth was, so my non-negotiable was • Fiji Untold: Thursdays and Friday nights at the VOU Hub
that we were not going to let go of any of our staff," she said. • Cannibals Chase: Fridays
All 33 full-time VOU staff members remained employed • Island Adventurers: Thursdays and Sundays
through Covid. "This made me proud because many of these • Sacred Flame: Wednesdays and Saturdays at the
young artists face a lot of criticism from outside forces, ques- Shangri-La Fijian Resort and Spa
tioning their decision to become professional dancers, like,
‘Why are you doing this? This is not a real job, and when are VOUfiji
you going to get a proper job?’” voufiji.com
During the pandemic, Soro and her team looked beyond
31
31