By Teino Evans, Staff Reporter 
Some members of the dance group KIA (Knowledge and Inspiration through the Arts) 'chilling out' at St. George's College in downtown Kingston after rehearsals.
KIA (KNOWLEDGE and Inspiration through the Arts) is probably among the newest and more innovative groups to be formed as part of a family of creative artistes.
It is a powerful young group of 20 performers, who use their talent in dance, music, drama and drumming to fully entertain and captivate any audience.
The members, some of them students of the University of the West Indies (Mona) and high schools such as St. George's College, St. Catherine High School, Wolmer's High for Girls, St Hugh's High, Bridgeport High and Clan Carthy High School, are all poised to excel in the creative arts.
HONED TALENT
Founded by dance director Derrick McCarthy in 2002, KIA started as a dance and drumming troupe on the grounds of the Social Development Commission's (SDC) Spanish Town office, but has now been relocated and rehearses at St George's College on North Street in downtown Kingston.
They have honed their talent under the directorship of co-founder Bijean Gayle, a past student of St George's College, as they seek to make their mark on the entertainment industry.
According to Gayle, "What KIA does is to recruit young talents and develop them. Most of our members have performed in pantomimes before and have also been involved in Father Ho Lung's productions."
For KIA member Leon Rodney, aka 'Guilty', being in the group has broadened his scope of understanding and appreciation for the creative arts and has also earned him a great deal of exposure.
"It has definitely helped me to build more of my self-confidence and technique in performance," Rodney said, as it was always his dream to progress further into the world of the Creative Arts.
Rodney said he had found his love for the arts while in high school, as he was a member of the St. George's College band and school choir.
The main aim, Gayle said, was for KIA to bring something different to the creative arts. "We want to bring something different to the table, not just the usual, and we want to be able to cross boundaries and put out something unique in the creative arts," Gayle said. Hence, Gayle says they have been training their members to go beyond song and dance.
"We are not just stopping at our members being performers, but we also train them to become directors themselves," he said.
Currently, they have three people in special training, who they hope will be shaped and molded into management material later on.
"Kadine Solomon, a student at the Excelsior Community College who does drama and music education, is being trained to become one of our directors, Camille Smith, who is currently our production assistant, is being trained to become the group's public relations officer and Duran Williams, one of our dancers, is receiving special training so that he can later fill the post of dance director and assistant choir director," Gayle explained.
VARIETY OF PERFORMANCES
Driven by their passion and determination to excel and entertain, KIA has performed for a variety of audiences at churches and other social and national events. They also formed a part of the Jamaican delegation to Cape Coast, in Ghana for the prestigious Pan-African Festival (PANAFEST) in 2001.
Most of the members have also performed with the National Youth Choir and were present at the Prime Minister's Grand Gala, held to
honour Jamaica's 40th Independence at the National Stadium. The group also completed its musical production Ilyshia Money Bags at the National Housing Trust's annual Christmas Celebration at Emancipation Park in New Kingston, St. Andrew.
"The season ran from December 2003 to January 2004 and it was a Christmas musical production on the reincarnation of Ebenezer Scrooge," Gayle said.
KIA is currently recruiting additional members and they rehearse at St. George's College every Sunday from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Gayle says they want to continue to expose their talent across the island and end up becoming a major force to be reckoned with on the international market.
"We want to take KIA islandwide and even overseas, but first we want to build a name so that we can stand alongside the big names in the world of creative arts," he said.
The group is a part of the JAM-LAUR Entertainment Co., managed by Lester 'Chippy' Gayle, and is a part of a family of entertainers including the all male quartets 'HUSH' and 'FLAVAS'. And they intend to live up to their formal introduction: "The drums call your attention as the dancers give into the rhythm; the actors portray our lives in their lines as the singers captivate their souls with their melodic voices. Welcome to KIA all rounded, all- talented, high energy, positive vibes and 'wicked' top-class entertainment."
