As a part of annual events that occur at CCNY, the week of May 1st 2016 is the devoted to the Caribbean region. Throughout the week an assortment of events take place on the campus which encompass some part of Caribbean culture. We were lucky enough to be a part of this experience for multiple parts of the week. On May 2nd, our group was able to attend the dance instruction event led by Simone Warner. This was all in part for the “Socasize Fitness” event, where Soca music was played in the back and the instructor led a dance class for anyone that was interested. The dance workout session lasted for a little over an hour. During the session, the instructor led a Caribbean dance workout to the beat and rhythm of Soca music.

Once the workout ended, we were able to interview Simone Warner and ask about her experience as a dance instructor and her general experience as a Caribbean dancer. We were also able to get her views about current Caribbean dance influence in mainstream American culture along with impact or availability of it in New York.

See the interview here and the images from the fitness class.

In addition to Socacize, we were also able to take part (observe) multiple Caribbean dance performances that occurred in front of the NAC building. The Caribbean Student Association holds this event where dancers from the Association perform for the campus with an assortment of Caribbean music playing. From their colorful costumes, to the flags they carried from each of their countries, the dancers clearly displayed a sense of pride in their Caribbean roots. Evident in the videos below, the dancers are clearly having fun with each other as they celebrate their culture and their pride in their countries. Videos from the event can be seen below: