Ensemble on stage

THE LONG-DISCUSSED national performance arts company has gained new life at the National Cultural Foundation (NCF).
Cultural officer for theatre arts, Michelle Cox, said a 20-member ensemble was launched yesterday at the Barbados Museum & Historical Society.
“We wanted to find an avenue for performing artists to have some form of training, because some people only come out at NIFCA,” she explained at the NCF’s West Terrace, St James office.
Talent scouting was also done during the national festival. In addition, auditions were held in late January, drawing 50 people from dance, singing, acting and performance poetry.
The theatre practitioner told WEEKEND BUZZ: “Every major developed country has a national company and it is not like there aren’t other thriving theatres [in the country]. But when you have a national theatre, it gives you a very nice base to deal with when it comes to preserving your culture.
“[Smaller production companies are] not obligated to preserve culture; they do it by choice . . . [and] I think that when we develop a national theatre, we commit to the national preservation of not just archiving it, but passing it on . . . .”
She expressed the hope that as the movement grew, the ensemble would also include other aspects of the arts, such as set and stage design, writing, film and photography, and also produce “one or two productions throughout the year”.