19 February 2014
Ministry of Culture to Launch Bahrain’s National Folk Dance Troupe
Folk dance, generally, a type of dance that is a vernacular, usually recreational, expression of a past or present culture. Thus, the Ministry of Culture has decided to launch Bahrain’s National Folk Dance Troupe, after detailed plan has been put in place and the technical and professional expertise have been agreed upon. The Ministry will take in charge all the material and concrete steps to finalize this project.
Indeed, dance, like all forms of cultural expression, reflects the society in which it exists. Just as the history of the Kingdom of Bahrain encompasses a broad array of complex influences, so do its dance forms stem from a rich pool of diverse forms. While the “Al Ardha” is likely the popular image of dance, the reality is that dance in Bahrain has embraced and incorporated individual, cultural, and stylistic elements in an ever-changing kaleidoscope that draws from and contributes to artistic, social, religious, cultural, and even political realms. Dance can have many purposes including expression, communication, education, therapy, recreation, or entertainment and may function in personal, political, social, religious, and spiritual environments.
Based on popular demand from course and conference evaluations, the Ministry of Culture has designed a daily workshop for Bahraini teachers on Folk Dance for the at least 15 months classroom. This course will prepare dance teachers with knowledge to present and speak about Bahrain folk dance: their cultural varieties, illustrative movements and meaning. The workshop will be presentations and conversations with highly trained dancers, theatre professionals, musicians and percussionists and sound equalizer experts . Workshop participants “step up” and teach the group dance, with expert instructors available to further learning that will allow for mastery of performance. By the end of the group session, small group members will come together for a full performance! Participants will receive numerous resources for integrating culture and teaching dance movements at this workshop.
The Ministry of Culture invites all interested candidates ( above 16 years-old age) wishing to join Bahrain’s National Folk Dance Troupe (Folk dance, Hip Hop, Ballet, Modern Dance..) to fill a registration form for approval performance tests. In order to download this form, please visit the Ministry’s website on the following address: www.moc.gov.bh Or e-mail us at : dancetroupe@moc.gov.bh. Deadline for submitting applications is set on 8 Mars 2014. The future dance troupe is expected to participate in different events and festivals abroad and reflect the prestigious Bahraini dance traditions, exactly as other international groups perform in Bahrain.
These distinguished activities are made possible thanks to the serious and passionate efforts of H.E Shaikha Mai Bint Mohammad Al- Khalifa, Minister of Culture, who believes that change starts from the individual. H.E seeks to develop relations between human aesthetics and reality, and, in particular, focus on art as a distinctive form of social consciousness. The ministry has dedicated this year to Bahraini visual arts, under the title "Our Year of Arts." In her position as minister of culture and someone entrusted to develop the arts in the Kingdom of Bahrain, H.E Shaikha Mai Bint Mohammad A;-Khalifa believes in the ability of beauty to change the world for the better. H.E has launched programs to encourage the youth to discover real talent in the local community, and to take advantage of this talent to shape the features of the future.
