Long before African slaves were allowed to speak to each other, their stories were shared via song and dance with dance rituals being learnt, performed, understood and shared among tribes and communities throughout the New World and of course, here in Trinidad. Over time the stories shared by the chantwell orators gained more prominence and the dancers became more supplementary and even complimentary and were eventually just featured to enhance the musical presentations.
In 2024, Hamid Rahman and the Xtreme Dance Academy (XDA) are bringing dance back to the forefront with a captivating presentation entitled, "Timeless". Scheduled to revolutionize and reinvigorate the industry on Saturday, January 6 at Queen's Hall in St Ann's, "Timeless" will showcase the awesome power of dance as the main expression and the main component in a presentation that will feature some of the top established and trending home-grown acts of today also.
"Dance is a powerful, expressive art form that has the potential to inspire change and make a difference in society," Rahman explained. "We are celebrating our Jubilee anniversary and decided to show the world a different side of Carnival, a different way to express its joy and all the passion, creativity, color, love and light that our festival inspires, and a different way to celebrate it all as well..."
As the Xtreme Dance Academy embarks on the next chapter of their journey, "Timeless - The Festival of Dance" not only presents a unique and novel expression of our Carnival culture, but also commemorates their unwavering commitment to excellence:
”This is not just a showcase of our achievements," Rahman added, "it is a testament to the transformative power of dance and the arts in the lives of everyone we have mentored and the communities we’ve touched over the years."
With a quarter of a century already under their belt and hundreds, if not thousands of lives influenced and affected positively through dance, the Xtreme Dance Academy promises an extraordinary experience of movement and music, which will set the stage for future excellence and groundbreaking dance productions.
The "Timeless" event will be two-fold in nature with part one comprised of an Indoor Auditorium Event open to all ages, commencing at 6:00pm and featuring a nostalgic journey from XDA's humbe beginnings, through their growth and evolution - revisiting the iconic moments experienced originally during the Nescafe Party Time Era and transporting patrons through the years of dance evolution in fine style, while also inspiring dance enthusiasts and entertaining the assembly gathered in the main hall.
The second half of the "Timeless" presentation shifts the spotlight outdoors to the Garden Theatre just outside the hallowed walls for an immersive Carnival Fete Experience that blurs the known lines of definition, while showcasing XDA's performing troupe/company dubbed "The Academy" backed by a fully-functioning Soca orchestra and featuring several top entertainers in the mix as well.
"Over the years we have performed alongside many, if not all, of the top acts," Rahman revealed, "and our dancing has been featured to enhance their songs, but this is the first time that they will instead be performing alongside us and their songs, will be featured to enhance our dancing...
So that's the main difference and it's our gift to rejuvenate and revitalize the industry with new ideas, young energy and that historical recollection and remembrance that goes a long way toward creating new and exciting opportunities, memories and moments that endure and become Timeless..."
Powered by corporate partners such as Guardian Media Limited, KFC, Coca Cola, Hennessy Cognac and Veev Now among others, top acts confirmed to perform at "Timeless" include: Mical Teja, Bitts, Swappi, Nessa Preppy, Voice, Yung Bredda and the Queen of Bakanal, Destra Garcia.
Tickets for each and both segments of the Timeless event are available now at The Queen's Hall Box Office, on their website queenshalltt.com and from islandetickets.com.
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