New creations from old traditions – Dancing the night away

By Arief Ismail

Psst…. We’re back! That’s right, we’re back this season with a boatload of dancing adventures. From learning a whole new genre of dance to performing on an international stage, this season has been one crazy journey.

For this episode, we’re following Citra Pawana as they take on The Festival of Colours of the World (FESCO) 2023 Dance Competition at Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP), Perak.

This time around, we weren’t swaying to the beat of the tune, but we were in fact making their very own tune through the choreography.

From Traditional to Contemporary

Kreasi Baharu, the theme for the division competed in challenges the creation of fresh and modern movements whilst incorporating fundamental elements of traditional choreography.

Given the theme and the criteria, the dance “Tari Nur Sembilan” was born. This dance is a new creative dance that elevates the art of dance from the state, Negeri Sembilan.

This creation stems from the art of the Minangkabau heritage. It incorporates the essence of ‘silat’ as well, giving the choreography a familiar yet refreshing breath of fresh air.

Not to forget, the props, which becomes the highlight of the performance, highlighting the “Nur” (cahaya or light) in “Tari Nur Sembilan“.

Lighting up the Stage

With roughly 2 weeks of practices and a rushed 10-minute blocking session on stage, we found ourselves eagerly anticipating their turn to perform. Recalling all the moves and corrections given, we were frantic but kept it professional by taking the stage by storm.

The lights on stage were bright, but our lights were blinding. As soon as the music played, everyone went mute, then it was pandemonium.

We danced our hearts out. We wowed the audience with the lights flashing from the “dulang”. Doing every step with enthusiasm and passion, the cheers of the audience made every practice worth it.

We gave it our all, getting every step with perfect precision.

Closing the Light Show

Hold on there a sec…. this is not going to be the last of us.

We might not have been able to bag any awards, but this definitely has been the most wonderful start to our season.

Be sure to keep up with all our upcoming adventures, as we continue to light up the night and dance the night away!