WITH over 90 entries, a medal tally of over 70 and nine awards, Ardenne High School copped the most celebrated award in the Festival of Performing Arts organised by the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC), the prestigious Marcus Garvey Award for Excellence for 2010.

The Kingston-based school took home the top honour ahead of four other qualifiers at the awards ceremony held last Thursday, at the Knutsford Court Hotel.

Awards were also presented to top performers in the categories of dance, music, drama, traditional folk forms and speech.

The Marcus Garvey Award instituted by the JCDC in 1994 is presented to a top awardee determined by participation in at least three of the five areas of the national Festival of the Arts Competition and a tally of points based on medals and other awards.

According to performing arts coach of Ardenne High School, Suzanne Beadle, “the success of the school during the competition is the result of a tremendous effort on the part of the school’s administration and students in maintaining the performing arts as part of the school’s curriculum.”

In the speech category Ardenne was adjudged Best Intermediate Group and Samantha Hardy of the Norwich Primary for the Best Senior Presentation.

In traditional folk forms, the Liberty Learning Centre, Buff Bay High School and the Machioneal Cultural Group from the parish of Portland took home the top awards.

The Pembroke Hall Primary walked away with the top group award for music, while Jerome Welch from the McGrath High School in St Catherine and Jamielle Gilman from the Mount St Joseph’s School in Mandeville won the awards for top male and female vocalists respectively.

The Port Antonio Theatre Group won the award for Best Senior Group in drama, while The Queen’s Preparatory School took the awards for drama and speech in the junior division.

The highly competitive national dance competition saw the Belmont Park Primary taking the Best School Group award, Moore Tech Dance Workshop taking the Best Community Group Award, and the Tivoli High Dance Troupe being awarded Best Studio Group.

The other contenders of the award included: St Jago High School, the Port Antonio Theatre Group, Manning’s School and Cornwall College. The Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange, in her message read by Dr Maria Smith who represented her, shared the importance Jamaica’s first National Hero, Marcus Garvey placed on the performing arts for nation building.

“Marcus Garvey was one of the first persons to honour the performing arts in Jamaica with presentations in dance, music and the dramatic arts at Edelweiss Park… I am pleased that the JCDC continues to honour the memory of Marcus Garvey by engaging thousands of participants across the island in the festival of the arts competition,” Minister Grange’s message stated.

During the ceremony guided by compare/JCDC director of field services, Marjorie Leydon-Vernon, there were entertaining items in music, dance and dramatic presentations. Among them were the Most Outstanding Class Two Presentation for 2010, Liberty Learning Centre with Ballroom Quadrille; Bellamy’s Studio featuring the three sons of violinist/pianist, composer, arranger and director Jon Williams; Port Antonio Theatre Group’s excerpt from the amusing Negromancy Anancy and Tivoli High Dance Troupe’s execution of their delightful dance featuring Nickeeta Johnson and Kedean Carthy.