MARLON Simms, former dance captain of the National Dance Theatre Company (NDTC), has been appointed associate artistic director of that troupe.

His new role will see him helping to guide the 52-year-old NDTC with artistic director Barry Moncrieffe.

Simms is elated at the new assignment and the opportunities it will afford him.

“I’ve got big shoes to fill. It means building on a legacy, strategising, expanding, sharing, creating, encouraging teamwork… it’s so many things, it’s exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time, but it’s still a wonderful honour,” he said.

The first order of business for Simms is the company’s annual season which runs from July to August.

“We just want to keep up the excellence… sustaining what the NDTC has built and is known for. You tend to always want to top yourself, but the truth is, how can you top excellence?.”

Looking ahead, Simms wants to strengthen the NDTC’s educational arm through seminars and workshops; develop a cadre of young choreographers, maintain the troupe’s visibility in Jamaica and the Diaspora, and employ social media to get the message of Jamaica’s dance heritage to a new generation.

Simms, who joined the NDTC in 1999, heads the dance education department at the Edna Manley College for the Visual and Performing Arts where he is also assistant director of the School of Dance.