The National Dance Theater Company of Jamaica will host two shows in Florida in Broward and Miami Dade beginning October 1, 2022.
Both shows are being presented by the Louise Bennett-Coverley Heritage Council and under the patronage of the Consul General of Jamaica, Oliver Mair.
The acclaim enjoyed by the National Dance Theater Company of Jamaica should come as no surprise to those who have come to admire the punching power of this small Caribbean nation. Jamaicans have repeatedly attracted global attention for disproportionately large performances on some of the world’s stages, and NDTC’s achievements in dance complement those achieved in music, sports, cinema and literature.
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Formed in 1962, the year Jamaica claimed its independence, the company’s volunteer members used their cultural heritage and indigenous traditions to create and perform works of a high standard that helped the Jamaican public better appreciate the art of dance. In doing so, they stunned the world.
Sixty years later, this group of unpaid dancers, musicians and technicians who are students, teachers, doctors, lawyers, civil servants, farmers and bankers, among others, have toured over 120 countries performing to an appreciation of widely in the United States, Canada. , United Kingdom, Finland, Germany, Australia, Russia (former USSR), Venezuela, Panama, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Martinique, Guyana, Grenada, Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago, St. Kitts, Antigua, St. Thomas, St. Croix (US Virgin Islands), Bahamas and Bermuda.
Like America’s jazz and blues and several other important cultural forms in the Western Hemisphere, NDTC’s repertoire successfully fuses African and European traditions to create something entirely new, vibrant and absolutely valuable. Jamaica proved to be fertile ground from which traditional dances could be harvested. NDTC has embraced these roots with remarkable success, clearly evidenced by three pieces that have become standard in the company’s repertoire: Kumina, Mayal and Gerrehbenta.
A Dancing Times writer described the effect in reviewing a 2001 UK tour: “…the cultures of Africa and Europe have come together in a unique way on this island. African dancers chose to celebrate the movements of the pelvis because the center of the body – from which further life springs – is sacred. In contrast, European dancers chose under the influence of Christianity to censor pelvic movement and celebrate instead bodily stillness and the possibilities of flowing peripheral movements and extended leg movements. Jamaican dancers who have worked to master both traditions can wiggle like snakes and strut like flamingos. Their dances can vibrate with power and float with decorum… Dance companies capable of delivering such informative and vital messages are rare.”
The company includes an accomplished group of singers whose repertoire also draws on traditional field-gathered music to form the basis of many of the scores used by the choreographers. Similarly, there is a heavy reliance on traditional instruments to enhance musical scores.
