IN speaking with artistic director of the Wolmer’s Dance Troupe Barbara McDaniel, it becomes abundantly clear that she is passionate about dance.

It is definitely that passion which has guided and sustained McDaniel and the troupe, which last month staged its 21st anniversary season of dance.

Her eyes dance and beam with pride, like a proud parent, as she speaks of the growth and development of the troupe over these years. “It’s great to go out there and see dancers who were with me as tots, and are now adults and they come up to me and say, ‘Remember me, miss?’ Or just to see them out there, going about their business in various spheres of public life. And for those who have continued to dance and choreograph, it is a special feeling knowing you had a hand in crafting what they now do.”

What McDaniel does is offer the members of her troupe, who range in ages from 3-18 years, a holistic training which not only includes dance, but elements of grooming, deportment and life lessons which help them to function in the society.

Never one to settle for mediocrity, McDaniel has earned herself the reputation of being a taskmaster. She willingly admits to being tough, but notes that this is never personal, but rather in the name of the craft. “You are dealing with children and you have to be tough and push them so they can realise that it’s not just a hobby, but an art form to be taken serious.”

This she sees as one of the major challegenges which impede the growth of dance in Jamaica. “People don’t take it serious. It is just seen as something to do in the evenings; for many dance is just a hobby,” McDaniel explains.

She adds, “One of the tasks is getting parents to understand the benefits of the arts to the young children. It makes them more focussed and understand the need to be disciplined. That is why I never allow parents to watch a rehearsal, because this is when the taskmaster in me comes out in order to get the dancers to do what is required to make everybody proud after a performance. Like I tell the dancers and parents, it can’t be a free-for-all. Like any subject you do in school there is a set programme. We never learn our ABCs backways, therefore, we must dance properly.”

So how does McDaniel get her troupe, which this year numbered 95 dancers, to mount a season like she has done for the past 21 years?

It starts with choreography, and for McDaniel, a dance can come to her in a variety of ways. She can be inspired by a piece of music — working the dance around that sound. Pieces can also be inspired by the general theme of the season of dance, or simply just opening up to the thoughts and ideas of the young dancers.

For McDaniel, who started out with Gloria Grandison and the St Anne’s Dance Troupe, the challenge of topping the previous year’s season is always a major challenge as choreographer and artistic director. She hurdles that obstacle by drawing from a pool of guest choreographers. “If I don’t feel my creative juices flowing it is time to call in help. No need to produce a poor show just to say you did all the pieces, and so far I have been extremely pleased with the work put in by these young ones,” she notes.

For the Wolmer’s Dance Troupe, classes start in January, months before the production. However, real rehearsals do not get going until June. This intensifies in September when the students return for the start of the school year. But it’s not just what happens with the dancers that concerns McDaniel. She is involved in costume design and props, and all the administrative tasks that come with mounting the production. Here thanks her management team and the parents and volunteers who come on board.

This past season McDaniel was extremely pleased with the production, entitled Harmony. It was inspired by the way in which the dancers were coming to each other’s assistance, both inside and outside the dance studio. This is the kind of teamwork she hopes will continue as she looks to another 21 years and beyond. “I don’t think I will be running the show then, but the troupe is in great hands so I should be able to sit back, relax and watch my students continue a tradition,” she beams.