MINERD Holds 2014 School Carnival National Gala

MINERD Holds 2014 School Carnival National Gala
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, 04/07/2014

With the participation of over a thousand students from public and private schools across the country who study under the Extended School Day model, the Ministry of Education (MINERD), through the Directorate General of Culture, held for the first time the 2014 School Carnival National Gala.

The school cultural event brought together 18 dance troupes that represented a Regional equal number of School Directorates. It was held in order to see the impact and progress of the commemoration of the Dominican carnival, said the Director General of Culture, Rafael García Romero, in his welcoming remarks on behalf of the Minister of Education, Mr. Carlos Amarante Baret.

“Today is the moment when we bring together the dance troupes from all the regional offices in the country which bring their best shows with which they participated in the parades in each of the provinces,” he said.

While highlighting the importance of the 2014 School Carnival National Gala, held at the Hilton Hotel, García Romero said that “our intention is for young students to see in school an opportunity to grow with joy, happiness, and freedom”.

He said that the new paradigm of the Extended School Day allows the school to have important recreational activities. As an example, he said that on this occasion the students used the evening hours to prepare their dance troupes, costumes, and masks, and to pick the music that accompanies the activity.

Students in the capital and in the most remote corners of the country rose early in the morning to attend the cultural meet, and showed their artistic skills in an event that was colorful, full of lights, excitement, and youthful enthusiasm.

Among the representatives of the various regional offices of Education who participated were: the St. Lucia parish lyceum, which showed the Salvemos Nuestro Planeta (Save Our Planet) dance troupe; the Luisa Ozema Pellerano school with the Cotidianidad Ecológica (Ecological Daily Life) dance troupe; the Ana Lilian Miranda polytechnic exhibited the Raíces del Merengue (Merengue Roots) dance troupe, and the Mercedes Laura Aguiar school presented Santa Rosa.

Also, the Eugenio María de Hostos school exhibited the Mezcla de Tradiciones Populares (Popular Traditions Mix) dance troupe; the Pedro Francisco Bonó (La Peña) school participated with the Los Cacaotaleros carnival dance troupe; the Ana Joaquina Hidalgo school participated with Los Planetarios (The Planetariums); the Gastón Fernando Deligne school and the Pedro Mir lyceum participated with La Sultana; the Casandra Damirón school participated with Los Piratas del Caribe (Pirates of the Caribbean); the Vitalina Mordán Cruz school showed Las Abejas Laborando (The Working Bees); the Salomé Ureña school participated with the Quisqueya la Bella de mis Amores (Quisqueya the Beautiful that I Love) dance troupe, and the Primer Teniente Piloto José Rosario Polanco school presented Arcoiris de Amor (Rainbow of Love).

Other participating schools were: the Sergio A. Veras Polytechnic with Mi Sol Naciente del Este (My Eastern Rising Sun) dance troupe; the Fe y Alegría school with Los Platanuses y Papeluses; the Juan Santo Félix, with Planta que Soñamos y Un Grito de la Tierra (Plant that we Dream of and A Cry of the Earth); the Gregorio Luperón school presented the Co-ed Gregorio Luperón dance troupe; the San Martín de Porres school exhibited Roba la Gallina; the Leonidas Solano elementary school showed Diversidad e Interculturalidad (Diversity and Inter Culturalism); the Sisters Rosario Torres Polytechnic and Fe y Alegría participated with Todo es Carnaval (Everything is Carnival); the Fernando Arturo de Merino lyceum participated with Raíces Nuestras (Our Roots); the Raúl Mota school with Las Brujas y los Zombies (Witches and Zombies), and the Félix María del Monte school with Con un Ambiente Sano y Saludable (With a Safe and Healthy Environment).

The following persons also attended the activity: the Director General of Culture, Ana Teresa Merán; a delegation from the Ministry of Culture; musician and folklorist Eddy Sánchez; plastic artist Yiyo Robles; urban singer NP; as well as Regional and District Directors, teachers and culture advisors.

The Duendes del Bosque (Forest Elves) dance troupe, winner of the Carnival National Parade, had a starring role in the opening of the program, while the closing ceremony was led by the Nereyda Rodríguez Popular Dance Theater.