Today I bring you a power couple: Mr. & Mrs. Tebandeke. These guys embody the lyric's of that Sound of Music song, Climb Every Mountain,... till you find your dream. They have been doing this and they keep doing this and it's so yummy to watch.
So, back in the day when I still thought that I could be a ballerina and live the rest of my life en pointe, I met Sam. He was that male dancer who would come in once in a while to teach or do the more rigorous male roles in productions. He wasn't afraid to wear those tights and practice till his sweat could clean the wooden dance floors. He was doing ballet at a time in Uganda when this dance form was still new and for a male to do it was even more strange and peculiar. As in...why would you subject yourself to body tights and turning in circles for 11 minutes when you could be dancing the bakisimba. Like who does that?
Then our paths drew apart, I realised that I actually preferred my feet flat on the ground and not straining in some pink shoe where I'm only permitted to use my toes. Modern dance and contemporary movements would suite me just fine. After which I met Sam's wife, Esteri, the phenomenal actress who knew more about me that I knew of her. She was also a dancer but here I was meeting her as an actress. She was the first Actress I met who took time notate, journal and mark-up a script. She could really get into her characters. I looked forward to going to work because it was so intriguing watching her discuss her characters and bring them to life. Then I hear she's Sam's wife and I'm like daaammmmnnn! I mean, by then there were not yet like diabolical or anything but I knew only magic could be formed from their union and so far that has been true.
These guys are trailblazers in the way they have tackled the performance industry. They clearly have set goals and are willing to move country and even spend time away from each other in order to achieve a common goal. Esteri spoke to me about how supportive Sam was when she playing the role of Robert Katende's wife in Queen of Katwe and how it was reassuring to to have him there. I've witnessed the vice versa happen, as Esteri supports Sam in his directing projects and so on and I'm blown away. I'm like Jesssuuuss! Me too, Me too! It's not everyday that you find a partner whom you can lift up and who can lift you up too. Usually one partner stalls their enteire dream to support the other so I think the Tebandeke's are blessed and are #Goals.