Before the show on Saturday, models hustled and bustled their way around the room for either makeup or costumes. The various members of the dance troupes rehearsed their dances. The energy was through the roof.           

They were all preparing for the Caribfest 2011 day show in Goldstein Auditorium. The Caribbean Student Association encouraged students of all backgrounds to come celebrate the Caribbean culture through food, clothing and music.

Raices Dance Troupe took the stage first and set the bar for high energy and high standards. They performed to Spanish-themed music. Their moves were incredibly fierce and sharp. The audience intently watched the act from start to finish. 

One of the audience members,Shalena Bayne, drove from New Jersey to see her daughter, Brittney Bayne Simmons, perform. She said she felt overjoyed to see her daughter in the show.

As the lights dimmed for the first act, attention focused on the runway. The first category forMr. and Ms. Caribfest was ‘Personality.’ Each candidate came to the stage holding a flag of the country he or she represented, for example, the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic natives cheered loudly to show love for their country. Other countries represented were Trinidad and Tobago and the United States.

Next, the models showed off looks from Some Girls Boutique, Kreemo and others while the contestants modeled swimwear, business wear and formal wear.

The carnival scene was one of the most high-energy scenes in the entire show. The models came out jogging instead of walking and wore intricatelydesigned head pieces made of feathers and beads along with decorated swimsuits. The crowd sang and danced, and all eyes were glued to the stage. 

Carleen Dadeboe, freshman finance major and a model for the show, said they practiced two to three times a week for hours and every day for a week before the show.

During the talent portion, the contestants performed a variety of acts, including dancing, poetry, singing and playing piano. The dance act by Luther Masanto, a senior engineering major, riled the crowd from his robotic moves.

At the very end of the show, Mr. and Ms. Caribfest participated in a Q-and-A period. The questions were as varied as the contestants’ biggest accomplishment to what their next move would be as the U.S. president. The judges finally announced the winners. Tasha Andre, a freshman in the David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics, and Darryl White, a senior English and textual studies and social work major, were crowned, given awards and then walked down the runway to ‘African Queen’ by Gyptian.

Andre said this experience taught her discipline and collaboration due to all the time she spent preparing for the competition. She said sheloves how cultures are shared with one another, whether it’s African, Caribbean, Indian or Hispanic culture.               

‘It’s like my little family here,’ Andre said about CSA.  

Chanel Beard, a sophomore in Falk and a Ms. Caribfest runner-upsaid although there were challenges, the positives outweighed the negatives.

‘It allows you to get to know yourself. It allows you to challenge yourself, find out your strengths and weakness and to improve. You have no choice but to work to improve.’

Performances from SU Orange Bhangra, Kalabash Dance Troupe, Redemption and Raices were spread throughout the show and the audience had positive reactions with each performance.

At the end of the fashion show, people hurriedly left their seats to see Alison Hinds perform. She started her song behind the curtains, and the crowd went crazy when she came out. At one point, she grabbed Adisa Cassell, a sophomore in the L.C. Smith College of Engineering and Computer Science,onstage to dance with her. The audience went wild and cheered loudly.

Tia Lomax, a senior psychology major and an attendee at the show, said she really wants to experience a culture outside of her own and to learn more about her own culture.

Said Lomax: ‘Knowing where you come from influences where you want to go.’

ssmarji@syr.edu

Published on November 6, 2011 at 12:00 pm