Theoline L. McCoy Primary School has earned the first-ever platinum award for their traditional folk dance performance, during the final competition of the 2024 annual National Children’s Festival of the Arts.
The event’s host, the Department of Education Services, told the Compass they decided to introduce the platinum award this year, which is “reserved for those truly exceptional performances”.
Dressed in yellow, white and purple banana orchid-inspired costumes, the eight Year 4, 5 and 6 students, named ‘The Legends’, presented a traditional maypole dance at the competition this month.
After a curtsy or bow, the students danced to the beat of ‘Sand Dance’ by Swanky Kitchen Band, forming a circle around the maypole, and weaving colourful ribbons into a plait, with an over and under motion until the plait went down the pole. They then reversed their movement to unplait the ribbon.
“The students were very excited. We’ve been doing quadrille dancing for a while now, but they were very excited to perform the maypole dance,” Tashana Davis-Morgan, the school’s assistant teacher and dance coordinator told the Compass.
In the middle of their performance, Davis-Morgan said the music stopped playing.
“We didn’t know what happened. I felt like crying because they worked so hard, but when the music stopped, those students continued dancing without missing a beat. They finished the song without the music.”
She added, “We said during rehearsals that anything could happen, so I said to just keep dancing, and that’s what they did.”
The students were then given a second chance to perform the piece with the music for the adjudicators.
Davis-Morgan said, it was important to teach the students their Cayman culture.
“They don’t know much about their culture and they’re into all other types of music. When it comes to their traditional music, they’re not really aware. Doing the maypole [dance], I think it was something they would appreciate. This is a way of showcasing to other people what our country is like.”
Assistant teacher and dance coordinator Candace Welcome-Myers, who also designed the costumes, said their efforts paid off. “I’m just so proud of what we were able to accomplish. Everything about this was for our culture and national pride. The kids had put so much effort into this and they gave it their all.”
The school also received a silver award for their second entry, for which they performed a quadrille.
School principal Kimberly Watler told the Compass she is “extremely proud.”
“The proudest thing about it is that it’s our culture. In a time where our culture seems to be diminished or we’re losing sight of who we are, it’s good to recognise where we came from and pass it on to our students so they can see what it’s about. It’s also good to share with others in Cayman because we are a melting pot of people and showcase who we are as a Caymanian people.”
Historic award
The news of their historic award was shared with the students a few days later and they were “elated”, Watler said, adding she’s excited to reward them for their hard work. As for what that will entail, she noted, “Our kids lack experiences so I’m thinking of an experience that I can provide for them.”
Kimberly Kirkconnell, senior customer service manager at the Department of Education Services, told the Compass, “If adjudicators determine that an entry has far exceeded the expectations of the category and competition, whereby justification for a score beyond 100 points can be given, the adjudicators may issue a platinum award to the entry.”
She added, “In 2023, there was a musical piece that the adjudicators felt was exceptional, but they couldn’t give them beyond a gold, and they felt the performance deserved higher.”
As for this year’s performance by Theoline McCoy Primary, the adjudicators commented that it was “excellent”.
The NCFA, now in its 41st year, showcases talents in the performing arts of public and private school students across the Cayman Islands. Overall, there were 195 entries from several public and private schools, homeschoolers and music school organisations across Grand Cayman in five disciplines – dance, speech, drama, vocals and instrumentals (bands, solos and ensembles).
The school will be showcasing their award-winning piece on Friday, the last day of the NCFA final concerts being held 1-3 May at John Gray High School Performing Arts Hall, starting 6:30pm each night. Winning primary and secondary school entries in all the disciplines will also be showcased.
The Cayman Brac final concert will be held on Thursday, 2 May, starting at 6:30pm. Admission is $5 for adults $2 for children.
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