Clarence Fitzroy Bryant College Dance Ensemble
Photo By Erasmus Williams
Basseterre, St. Kitts – Nevis
May 03, 2012 (CUOPM)
The professionalism of three dance groups from St. Kitts was evident when they performed Sunday night at the Sir Cecil Jacobs Auditorium of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB).
The local dancers were on stage prior to the performance of the visiting students from the National Taiwan University of Arts of the Republic of China (Taiwan).
Performing were the Clarence Fitzroy Bryant College (CFBC) Dance Ensemble, the Creative Souls Dance Company and the Okolo Tegramantine Dance Theater.
The CFBC Dance Ensemble highlighted the “way our African ancestors used dance to celebrate all special life events including birth, weddings, great harvests, success at war, etc.”
With an energetic piece entitled “˜African Backyard Celebration’ the audience witnessed how even tedious everyday chores can be turned into a joyous event through the power of music and dance.
The recently formed Creative Souls Dance Company founded by Shanda LaBega, Shara-Lee Mourillion and Tomeeka Richards in an effort to shatter all boundaries as it relates to movement consists of an eclectic group of dancers who strongly believe in the art of Sole poetry and the transcending power of dance.
The Okolo Tegramantine Arts Theatre which is this month is celebrating its 39th Anniversary specializes in African, Afro Caribbean and Folklore Dancing and danced the way our African ancestors used dance to celebrate all special life events birth, weddings, great harvests and war.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Culture, Ms. Sharon Rattan noted that all the local dance groups are led by women, who occupy their spare time “pouring out all of their passion nurturing the creative energies of our young women.”
She noted that Sunday was being observd as International Dance Day which celebrates the never ending choreography of life and shared some words by a roman philosopher sometime in the mid 1st century AD who said: “As the soil, however rich it may be, cannot be productive without cultivation, so the mind without culture can never produce good fruit.”
“This thought brings to your attention the great value of knowing and internalizing one’s culture. Put simply, culture is a way of life and without it we will be a lost people. for a moment, reflect on how culture reflects you. We have eagerly prepared to come to this event this evening in anticipation of a great performance. But throughout the performance, I guarantee that you will learn many things. You will learn because culture captures the life massages of a people and it has the power to communicate them in many forms. It is one of the greatest teaching tools. Further, it has its own universal language. It does not hinder you from,” said Ms. Rattan.
“Let us remember that the preservation of culture and its dynamism fuel our creative spirit and imagination. It is a viable avenue for the development of our people and our country. May I ask that the last phrase in the quote “so that the mind without culture can never produce good fruit” serve as our raison d’etre as we forge ahead with our cultural development,” she told the packed auditorium.