More than 100 students across the Cayman Islands showcased their award-winning performances from the National Children’s Festival of the Arts during final concerts held earlier this month.
Hosted by the Department of Education Services, parents, teachers, students, DES and Ministry of Education officials gathered to watch some 45 performances that took place from 1-3 May on Grand Cayman and 24 performances on Cayman Brac on 3 May.
During adjudications held in April, the finalists were chosen from almost 200 entries from several public and private schools, home schools and music schools across five disciplines – dance, speech, drama, vocals and instrumentals (bands, solos and ensembles).
Among the performers were students from Theoline L. McCoy Primary School, who earned the first-ever platinum award for their traditional folk-dance routine.
The 2024 NCFA season also featured the 2024 Butterfield Young Musician of the Year competition held at John Gray High School Performance Hall on 29 April. Pianist Johann Uy, 16, from St Ignatius Catholic School, was selected from among nine student instrumentalists who performed classical pieces on the piano, violin, cello and saxophone.
Expanding NCFA
DES Director Mark Ray told the Compass the department was pleased with how the NCFA has progressed.
“We’ve seen the festival grow from strength to strength, and this year in particular, we’ve had a significant number of participants which allowed us to have a really good selection of students for our final concerts,” he said.
Calling the final concerts “exceptional”, he noted that the performances included traditional Caymanian pieces as well as classical compositions.
“[W]e are continuing to develop the NCFA programme each and every year. One of the things we are very keen on is further incorporation of Caymanian culture and heritage… next year we’re really excited to look at introducing a bespoke category in this area of Cayman culture and heritage,” Ray said.
Kimberly Kirkconnell, DES senior customer service manager and one of the event coordinators said, “The event for 2024 exemplifies creativity and youth brilliance.
“The number of exceptional performances across each category from so many institutions, highlights the importance or nurturing creativity through these events and giving our students a platform for expression. This year’s Platinum Award really underscores this need and seeing the children thrive in their artistic performances was truly inspiring.”
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