Belize National Dance Company (also known as the Belize Dance Company) is a Belizean cultural preservation organization which strives to represent

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

and its many ethnic groups in classical, contemporary and traditional folk dancing.

History

In October 1990, the Belize National Dance Company was founded by a group of dancers which included

Rosita Baltazar Rosita Baltazar (16 August 1960 – 6 July 2015) was a Belizean choreographer, dancer, dance instructor and founding assistant director of the Belize National Dance Company. In 2004, she was awarded the Lord Rhaburn Music Award as a dance ambassa ...

, Eleanor Bodden-Gillett, Joel Cayetano, Lydia Harris (now Thurton), Bernard Matute, Matthew Martinez, Liza Pagayo, Rodney Peck, Sharette Perotte, Norman Rodriguez, Althea Sealy and Ramon Vargas. Initially, their trainer was Cuban professor Edwardo Rivero, who came to Belize to help teach ballet and contemporary styles. The company incorporated local folk dancing into their performance pieces, which represent the major ethnic groups of the country including

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

, Creole,

Garifuna The Garifuna people ( or ; pl. Garínagu in Garifuna) are a people of mixed free African and indigenous American ancestry that originated in the Caribbean island of Saint Vincent and speak Garifuna, an Arawakan language, and Vincentian ...

, Hispanic Belizean,

Mayan Mayan most commonly refers to: * Maya peoples, various indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica and northern Central America * Maya civilization, pre-Columbian culture of Mesoamerica and northern Central America * Mayan languages, language family spoken ...

and

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folk dances. Since 2010, the Company's Managing Director has been Denese Enriquez, artistic director is Althea Sealy, and for many years the assistant artistic director and director of junior branches was Rosita Baltazar. In 1998, the San Pedro Dance Company followed two years later by The Caye Caulker Dance Company were formed as junior dance organizations. The initial group of 16 dancers expanded to around 80 dancers and has traveled throughout the world including performances in the

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

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Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

and the United States. They present two annual performances in Belize one around the time of the Company's anniversary and one around the time of spring break, typically allowing six months of preparation between performances. As well as performing, the Company is a school of dance, and dancers also choreograph routines for other cultural events throughout the country.

References

Sources

* * * * * * * *{{cite news, author=, title=Belize Dance Company: 15 Years of Dance, url=http://www.7newsbelize.com/sstory.php?nid=6815&frmsrch=1, access-date=26 January 2016, publisher= 7 News Belize, date=October 21, 2005, location=Belize City, Belize, ref={{harvid, ''7 News Belize'', 2005 1990 establishments in Belize Contemporary dance companies Folk dance companies Culture of Belize Organisations based in Belize