Twenty-five performances telling stories of Barbadian culture, heritage, connections, the goodness of God, gratitude, unity, homelessness, female empowerment, struggle and triumph in dance were on stage Friday night at Frank Collymore Hall.
It was Unbound, the National Independence Festival of Creative Arts (NIFCA) Dance Final. From 7 p.m. to 11:58 p.m., including a 20-minute break, soloists and groups executed their choreographies in a bid to impress the judges and earn a gold, silver or bronze award and one of the special awards.
All three entries of Dancin’ Africa, the oldest participating group, were in the final. Two of them saluted Barbadian heritage and paid tribute to Barbadians on the cusp of the country’s 59th anniversary of Independence.
Still Bout Hay, Here!, performed by the adult dancers, was a pulsating homage to Barbados’ fishermen, cane cutters and the Barbados Landship and was a reminder of the contribution they make.
The dancers were accompanied by a tuk band, as was the children’s troupe, which executed the movements of the Landship with aplomb after accepting the baton from their elders.
While the Landship has been depicted by multiple groups throughout the many years of NIFCA, this performance was a reassurance that the dance company understood the importance of preserving one aspect of the country’s culture and heritage in a rapidly changing world.
Use of mediums
Dancin’ Africa’s other entry, Equidistant, performed by Michaela Harrison, blended film and on-stage movements almost seamlessly, showing how the future of dance could be with the use of various mediums to tell stories effectively.
Gem-in-I Project’s Alchemy was the other entry to use film and dance. Theirs, however, was a film of their dance, and one of the 14 mixed discipline entries in the new category.
Haynesville Youth Club’s Maritime Legacy: The Crossing And Cultural Continuity also highlighted the Barbados Landship, not solely, but as part of the storytelling of the connection between Africa and how aspects of their culture are entwined with ours today.
Choreographer Sophia Lee celebrates the positive element of drumming, dancing (Afro-Caribbean movements and the Landship), and religion (the Spiritual Baptists) in the piece.
Most of the other dance entries were contemporary, modern and liturgical with one, Demiko Newton’s Rebellion Soul, telling the story of the cruel period of slavery and breaking free.
Newton was one of the six soloists competing, along with Shareen Marshall, whose Unstoppable was about quietening the noise of the naysayers, throwing off the shackles of negativity and believing in oneself on the way to thriving and triumph.
Kemal Marshall’s execution of Pride In Bloom was captivating as he twisted, moved and stretched his body to depict a flower going through various stages of blooming, all enhanced by costuming and lighting.
Kendra Leacock’s Gratitude was “not a dance” but “a posture of worship”. It was emotive and watching it seemed intrusive because it felt as though it was a private moment between her, her feelings and God.
Barbados Dance Collective’s
Danico Martindale and Shalom Forrester, in The Martyr and Cycles Of Sin, respectively, depicted struggle, fight and the quest to move on.
Pearls Dance Academy’s Exodus
and Halal Dance Ministry’s Jesus, the latter the final entry at the show, were two of the most memorable pieces related to the Bible because of their storytelling and costuming. They were just as impactful as they were at the semi-finals.
The first was a riveting piece that told the story of Moses’ sister Miriam as a fighter who led people to freedom and the second was filled with praise, ministry, prayer, spiritual resilience and victory as it told His story.
JX Artistry’s Tears From The Street, highlighting the plight of the homeless, was a startling message of the power of community, care, fairness, dignity and respect.
The other finalists, who all performed well, were Joy Productions ( Unboxed), Bajans In Movement ( Fracture), Areté Dance Ensemble ( Développé), Kingdom Living Dance Ministry ( Echoes Of Redemption), Powerhouse Academy Of The Arts ( Birds Of The Isle), M. Novea ( Las Reinas Of Power), Dimension Elite ( Target), Aperantos’ ( Patterns Of Emotions), and Barbados Dance Collective ( Mi-Cro-Sco-Pic), Lumination Shift ( Exposed Mysteries) as well as Bim Cheer Federation, whose Birds Of A Feather: A Tribute To Rio was very entertaining, with dancers executing high kicks, splits and thrilling cheer moves. ( GBM)
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