Ballet Iconique at Island House
There was magic in the air at Island House last weekend.
Iconique returned to The Bahamas for its third year with a change of venue, relocating from Old Fort Bay Club, and it found a welcome home at Island House.
The show was divided into three segments, each preceded by a course of a gourmet meal.
The Covent Garden Dance Company has made it a mission to bring some of the world’s best dancers to The Bahamas – and has delivered on that promise.
More than that, it has also made sure this is not just about bringing foreign talent, but giving a platform to Bahamians as well.
That was showcased best by one remarkable piece during the evening, when a stage full of Bahamian talent brought gasps from the audience.
Bahamian dancers Courtney Celeste Fox and Vernal Adderley were joined by local dance students for a piece titled In Time (Part II). The choreography was fabulous, with performers creating a rippling wave of movement across the stage under the starry night sky. Costume design was also by a Bahamian, Phylicia Ellis, while the astonishing soprano voice of Bahamian Stanesha Deligence filled the air. It was breathtaking – and all the more when Courtney Celeste Fox informed the audience that the students had only had three rehearsals to perfect the dance.
Elsewhere, there was a mix of old and new – classic dances such as The Firebird, with music by Stravinksy, or the sensual passion of No Man’s Land, set to music by Liszt.
Perhaps most eye-catching was a pair of pieces by dancers Hannah Ekholm and Faye Stoeser, with influences from the underground club scene. The pair performed some astonishingly intricate dancing, where their bodies interlocked with each other in ways that a fellow diner said looked like someone assembling a Rubik’s Cube. It was part dance, part puzzle, and showed the range of performances on stage.
Throughout the show, the dancers wrote poetry with their bodies. It was a remarkable show – a step up again from last year’s performances.
Iconique has quickly become an extraordinary part of our cultural landscape, complete with building connections to local students and the new CAPAS performing arts school. Long may it continue.
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