- IAN ALLEN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
NDTC perfomance at the Little Theatre last year.
JAMAICA'S NATIONAL Dance Theatre Company, which has made over 130, oversees tours since its inception in 1962 is this week in New York one of its two yearly visits to the Brooklyn Centre for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College where the world-renowned ensemble is Artist-in-Residence. This is the first of a number of scheduled overseas tours for 2006 to Orlando, Miami and Panama.
The first segment of dancers led by Associate Director Barry Moncriefe will give the usual four performances for school children-many of them from the Jamaican Diaspora. These will be emceed by the NDTC's Musical Director Marjorie Whylie, herself an experienced compere of children's shows on Jamaican radio and television.
The two major performances on Saturday and Sunday (29th and 30th April) will feature the full company of dancers, singers, and musicians with Rufus McDonald on the lights and Tony Holness as sound director.
NEW EQUIPMENT
They will be working on new upgraded equipment in the refurbished 2500-seat theatre. The main dance-works being presented are "Spirits at a Gathering" and "Kumina" choreographed by artistic director Rex Nettleford, and "Ode" created by Clive Thompson and dressed by Cedela Marley to the love songs composed and sung by her father the great Bob Marley.
Chris Walker's "Urban Fissure" done also to music by Marley ('No More Trouble' featuring Erykah Badu and 'Rastaman Chant' featuring Busta Rhymes will have its New York debut on this tour. The NDTC's new generation dancers Keita Marie Chamberlain, Candice Morris, Shelley Ann Maxwell, Mark Phinn, Jermaine Row and Oneil Pryce will appear in the New York debut of this dance-work. The masterwork "Incantation" choreographed by the Haitian Jean-Guy Saintus is also receiving its New York debut.
The children's performances will feature Shelly-Ann Maxwell's "Garvey Lives" as well as excerpts from Marlon Simms' " Homeland" and Rex Nettleford's "Odyssey." Two universally acclaimed solos danced by NDTC's leading male dancers Marlon Simms and Mark Phinn will also have their New York debut in the main performances. These are "Sweet in the Morning" choreographed by the late Leni Williams and reconstructed by Marlon Simms is being performed by permission of Pat Brooks and the Dance Notation Bureau of Southern Methodist University; while Mark Phinn will repeat his earlier success in Clive Thompson's "Of Sympathy and Love."
The NDTC Singers will round off the programme with two suites of songs (a set of "Money Songs" and "Songs from the Marley Songbook" arranged by Marjorie Whylie. The company returns to Jamaica on May 1.
