Success 'In motion'

Michael Reckord, Gleaner Writer

More than 100 young dancers performed on the stage of the Courtleigh Auditorium, New Kingston, on Saturday and Sunday nights in the 13th annual concert of the In Motion dance school.

On both nights, the performers were watched by hundreds of adoring relatives, friends and well-wishers who completely filled the auditorium.

The ages of the dancers ranged from four to the late teens, and not surprisingly their terpsichorean competence also varied widely. In fact, "movement", rather than "dance" would more accurately describe the activity of the preteens on the stage. Their running, hopping, skipping, jumping, stretching and posing was more thrown together than choreographed.

But so earnestly did they dash on to the stage to perform, so innocent their faces behind the make-up, so hard did they try to co-ordinate the movements of tiny limbs and bodies, attempting to keep time to the music, so charmingly did they look in their colourful costumes, that the loving audience could not forbear to cheer.

In fact, cuteness, not competence, got the most applause on Sunday night.

It is after that objective is achieved, the statement continues, that the directors go on to "teach technique and discipline".

Actually, discipline is of fundamental importance to the two. In an interview with the Gleaner, Mahfood said of her dancers, "For them to be successful, they have to put in the hours and have the discipline. They need to take the art seriously."

Thank-you message

She said the hard work ("blood, sweat and tears," she calls it in her thank-you message in the programme) has been paying off. She said, "We entered the World Championships of the Performing Arts (held annually in California) two years ago. We came third overall and got a gold award for Best Ethnic Dance worldwide - and this was against countries like China and Russia."

Because of a misunderstanding of the competition's rules, they had only a week to choreograph the dance, which contained elements of kumina, bruckins, dinki mini and Afro-Caribbean, Mahfood said.

Those styles were evident in the 25 short dances which made up the concert programme. The dances, many, only a minute long, and none more than the length of the average pop song.

The final dance, featuring Jazz 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7, Teen Jazz and Pro Moves dancers (members of the professional arm of the school), was the longest and most elaborate. Dozens of dancers took part, including one boy who, in a stylised Spider-man costume, swung on to the stage on a rope anchored out of sight.