The Association of Dance of the African Diaspora - The ADAD Lifetime Achievement Award

Honouring the vanguard: The ADAD Lifetime Achievement Award

On Saturday 1st October 2011, ADAD awarded Jackie Guy with a Lifetime Achievement accolade for his contribution to the development of the practice of Dance of the African Diaspora in the UK. Judith Palmer, Chair of ADAD, highlights Jackie’s illustrious career and the need for the sector to publically acknowledge the contributions made by individuals towards the development of the African Peoples’ Dance industry.

Jackie Guy key industry achievements:

• Principle dancer with
the National Dance
Theatre Company of
Jamaica (NDTC) for
15 years

• Former Artistic
Director of Kokuma
Dance Company

• Course Director of the UK’s first Diploma in African and Caribbean Dance

• Visiting lecturer at a number of higher education institutions across the UK including

De Montfort, Birmingham and Liverpool universities
• Choreographer of the hit Jamaican musical The Harder they Come
• Named in 2010 as ‘one of the greatest Black dancers of all time’ by The Voice
newspaper

The Lifetime Achievement Award was realized by ADAD with an aim to highlight and acknowledge the contribution made by practitioners over the past 50 years whose works have yet to be officially recognized and celebrated.

The day was hosted by IRIE! dance theatre at the Moonshot Centre, New Cross, as part of their Making Tracks professional development programme. It started off with a master class attended by 13 dance practitioners followed by an ‘In Conversation’ with Jackie facilitated by Beverley Glean, IRIE!’s artistic director. Jackie pointed out that it was in Moonshot that he delivered the very first IRIE! dance theatre rehearsal 25 years ago.

The award ceremony honouring Jackie Guy was unique in many ways, firstly and most significantly it was our first! It was presented in collaboration with IRIE! dance theatre and on behalf of the sector; several practitioners made cash donations which totaled £350.

The master class was supported by musicians from both Kokuma and IRIE! dance theatre companies. In the audience were pioneers from companies such as Adzido Pan-African Dance Ensemble, Badejo Arts, Danse De L’Afrique, Ekome, IRIE!, Kokuma, Koromanti Arts, Sankofa, and Watu Wazuri. As well as current entrepreneurs and dancers from companies such as, The Bamboch Experience, Dream Arts, Dundun Kini, Kajans (Birmingham), The Lion King, and The Harder they Come. And last but not least students from IRIE! dance theatre’s Foundation degree, and Universities of Surrey and Warwickshire.

Also in our audience were Funmi Adewole Kruczkowska, APD researcher and journalist, Namron esteemed Dance practitioner and lecturer from Northern School of Contemporary Dance, the managing director of The Voice and Gleaner Group Mr George Ruddock, and the deputy high commissioner of Jamaica Mrs Joan Thomas-Edwards.

The outcome emulated the respect and reverence we as a sector hold for Jackie Guy and demonstrates that his work has impacted on our lives and careers. Although some of the contributors were unable to attend the event, we would like to thank all of you who invested in this tribute and made it possible; ‘Uncle Jackie’ as he is affectionately known was ‘pleased as punch!’

ADAD would like to continue this initiative and acknowledge other prolific artists, producers, managers, directors without whose work some of us would not have the opportunities afforded to us today. I would like to invite nominations from the sector which should take the form of names, contact details and a paragraph of how their work has helped to develop the practice of Dance of the African Diaspora in the UK.

Nominations for The ADAD Lifetime Achievement Award should be sent to [email protected]

Image: Jackie Guy and Mrs Joan Thomas-Edwards, Deputy High Commissioner of Jamaica. Photo: Anthony Reid