Primary school students from Ambergris Caye filled the Rafael Angel Nuñez Auditorium on the evening of Wednesday May 29th for the annual Primary School Festival of Arts 2013. The event is held under the auspices of the National Institute of Culture and History (NICH) and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports. There were 24 presentations by five of the six primary schools on the island. This year, the event was held under the theme “Celebrate our Artist – Promote our Identity.”
Speaking at the short ceremony, Jorge Aldana, the Vice Chairman of The San Pedro Town Council Cultural Committee, said that Festival of Arts is the right platform to foster young minds in developing their talent in the areas of music, dance and drama. “NICH and the Ministry of Education are committed to the promotion of contemporary performing arts and it is for this reason that we want to showcase the talents of the youth of this community at this Festival of Arts. The National Festival of Arts is important because it embraces the talents of our Belizean artists by giving them an opportunity to express their artistic creativity through music, dance and drama using specific criteria, guidelines and encouragement offered by the National Festival of Arts Coordinator Leroy Green. The San Pedro Town Council, through the San Pedro Cultural Committee is committed to the development of culture on the island. All the expressive art that will be shared through the musical, dance and drama presentations this evening is a component of the cultural aspect of the island and country. We at the San Pedro Cultural Committee, whose functions also falls under NICH, also embrace activities such as these that seek to develop and promote a part of the rich culture of Belize. Through events such as the Festival of Arts, we can inspire young minds to keep our culture alive.”
Following the short ceremony, it was all about dance, drama and music. There were presentations combining various languages of Belize as well sign language. From folkloric to creative, modern presentations, to dramatic poems and choral speech all performances held the audience’s attention. From the 24 presentations, 13 captured gold medals, 10 captured silver and one presentation went ungraded. The following are the presentations that captured gold:
Lower Division
Holy Cross Anglican School (HCAS)– There’s a hole in the bucket (Drama)
San Pedro Roman Catholic School (SPRCS) – Let’s Twist Again (Dance)
SPRCS – Carnival in Belize (Dance)
Middle Division
Ambergris Caye Elementary School (ACES) – The Worship (Dance)
SPRCS – El Mariachi Loco (Dance)
New Horizon Seventh Day Adventist (NHSDA) – Belize we Unite (Drama)
Upper Division
HCAS – Ode to a deaf child (Drama)
Isla Bonita Elementary School (IBES) – Wind Beneath my wings (Music)
HCAS – Here I am to worship (Dance)
IBES – Starship (Dance)
ACES – When I was your man (Music)
SPRCS – La vida es un carnaval (Dance)
HCAS – Daddy fell into the pond (Drama)
The presentations were judged by a panel of three adjudicators using national specific criteria and guidelines that are used throughout the country for similar events. All 13 gold presentations will be taken to the Festival of Arts National Finals scheduled for the first and second weeks in June at the Bliss Center for the Performing Arts in Belize City. The Ministry of Education and the NICH takes the opportunity to thank all sponsors who contributed to the success of San Pedro’s Primary School Festival of Arts 2013. Kudos to all the participants and congratulations to all the winners!
