Andrea Prince, Magdalen Gibson, and Naomi Graham celebrated two years of studying dance at the Barbados Community College with a delightful showcase of creativity and skill.
Elements was the name of this year’s dance portfolio held at the Frank Collymore Hall and featured not only the choreographies of this year’s graduates but those of tutors and past students some of whom are NIFCA awardees.
Troubled Mind, choreographed by Graham was one of the more memorable pieces of the event. Dancers costumed in white except “Morgan” who wore blue, told the story of “a young boy who suffers from paranoid schizophrenia and is constantly tormented and urged to harm himself by the voices in his head.” He committed “suicide” and then joined the voices to torment another person.
The costumes, make-up, music and movements were all riveting and the story was borne out as it went along.
Also remarkable was her Shadow Of Doubt, Gibson’s Broken and Prince’s Journey which all depicted stories of struggle, self-doubt, hope and expectation.
Broken was a story of love, loss, joy and heartache and the use of red and yellow lights were effective, while in Journey, Prince’s choreography was her personal story through the programme. There were “emotional, physical and mental highs and lows” but with the support of her family and friends she made it.
Tangent, choreographed by Jerilee Evanson-Kellman and Steve Rooks and the rhythmic Rhythm, Movement And Drum, with drummers David Headley, Richard Salief Smith and Jonathan Ward, featured all three students. The latter saw the women depicting Barbados Landship movements, wuk-ups, and splits to the beat of the drums.
Those drummers were fantastic.
Other pieces were Beyond The Blue, Pages, Reverie, and Transitions by Livy and Betty Alleyne’s Ballroom Dance Centre featuring Jeremy Boyce, Maliqua Cherubin, Kadesh Goddard, and Mariah Phillips who were delightful to watch.
The audience was also treated to Inspire by Pearls Dance Academy, The Orchard Movement’s 9, Gentle Steps Arts Academy’s I Am, which were all presented at NIFCA in 2017 and 2016 respectively, and The Last Part which brought the show to a close.
Apart from it being a showcase of dance it was also an examination for the three students.
Master of ceremonies was Angelo Lascelles. (GBM)
