Talented Jamaicans to Perform at Little Theatre April 25-27
By: , April 21, 2023
Photo: contributed
Students of St. Catherine High School perform their entry, ‘Revival’, in the Traditional Folk Form category of the 2023 Performing Arts National Finals, held at the Little Theatre, 4 Tom Redcam Drive, Kingston, from April 3 to 4.The Full Story
Drama pieces performed by talented Jamaicans will be presented from April 25 to 27 at the Little Theatre, 4 Tom Redcam Drive in Kingston, beginning at 10:00 a.m.
It is part of the Festival of the Performing Arts National Finals, organised by the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC), an agency of the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, which will see performers from the Parish Finals competing for national titles and awards.
Performances have been completed in the areas of Traditional Folk Forms and Speech in the National Finals, which will run until April 27. The music finals, which began on April 21, will continue on Wednesday, May 3, at 9:00 a.m.
Another event, titled ‘Drumfest’, featuring gold medalists in drumming drawn from the parish finals, will be held on Saturday, April 22 at the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre, 36 Hope Road, Kingston, beginning at 4:30 p.m.
All the events are free and open to the public.
Director of Arts Development and Training, JCDC, Andrew Brodber, told JIS News that he is pleased with the performances by the traditional folk-form participants.
“We are very pleased that there is a wide representation of all the different kinds of traditional folk forms that we know, and we are very happy that we are seeing the continuation of so many of the traditions,” he said, noting that the performances included Jamaica’s traditional dances, such as Maypole, Quadrille and Dinki Mini.
He said that the JCDC had organised a series of ‘brush-up’ workshops islandwide, and persons had the opportunity to improve their skills in the respective disciplines.
“The specialists went throughout Jamaica and actually met with all these groups and worked with them to improve the quality, so that what was seen at the parish finals would have been at a high level to help the performers attain medals,” he added.
Mr. Brodber said that the Performing Arts finals is to ensure that there is a “great number of performers and artistic content ready to fill out the programmes of the upcoming Emancipation and Independence celebrations”.
The JCDC stages the Festival of the Performing Arts annually to unearth, develop, showcase, preserve and promote the creative talents and expressions of the Jamaican people.