Spiritual merit through the lens of Odissi dance performed by Vishwanath Mangaraj, Nitisha Nanda and Aashi Kumar August 2019.

May 3 & 4, 2019 at IIC focusing on the art of developing ideas through movement inspired by the text, gives audiences the space to enter the imaginary world where rasa resides. The legendary personification of Tanjore Bharatanatyam, Lakshmi Vishwanathan and the undisputed master of Kathak, Pt. Birju Maharaj performed on successive evenings. Gurus Singhajit Singh, Lakshmi Viswanathan, Saroja Vaidyanathan, Saswati Sen shared their approaches to monodhama and the link between poetry, literature, philosophy and the dancer’s own internalization of life experience Gurus Kamalini Dutt and Sharon Lowen demonstrated their pedagogy of teaching monodhama to today’s students.

Continuity and Change in Classical Dance In collaboration with India International Centre and Alliance Francaise - 25-31 July 2018 Performances, Seminars, Exhibition, Film, Classical to Contemporary Dance Workshop

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Performances at IIC, CD Deshmukh Auditorium 

July 25 - Mohiniattam-traditional and contemporary based by French artist, Brigitte Chataignier

July 26 - Choreographic premieres of 20 th century poetry in 6 languages: Carolina Prada-Chhau, Divya Dikshit-Kathak, Dr. Shridhar Vasudevan, Katyayani Gupta, Tanya Saxena-Bharatanatyam, Purvadhanashree-Vilasini Natyam. From Poetry Choreography Intensive guided by Gurus Kamalini Dutt and Sharon Lowen.

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July 27 Odissi - traditional and contemporary by Vishwanath Mangaraj, Nitisha Nanda, Madhur Gupta, Arunima Ghosh

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Seminars - Continuity and Change in Classical Dance -Annexe Lecture Room - II: 25, 26 & 27 July

July 25 – Transmission of Tradition- Gurus to Disciples/Artists to Audiences:

Session 1: What constitutes Authenticity in the Classical Performing Arts?

Saswati Sen, Raja Reddy, Kamalini Dutt, Gopal Dubey. Moderator: Manjari Sinha.

Challenges & needs in maintaining the suruchi (aesthetics) in contemporary Teaching and Performance.

Session 2: Young professional classical dancers discuss Transitions in Tradition Maharaji, Raja-ji & Gopal-ji’s disciples, Purva Dhanashree, Vishwanath Mangaraj. Moderator: Manjari Sinha.

Re-envisioning, introspecting and understanding ever-evolving  Indian dance.

How dance nourishes artists & audiences to heal, celebrate & create an inclusive society.

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July 26- Sharing Classical Dance for 21 st Century Youth. 
Session 1: Media intersection with guru-shishya teaching
Conscious choices for young dancers within the contemporary representation of
classical performing arts via film, television and social media, Interaction with gurus and students, curated by Guru Kamalini Dutt, Founder director of DD Archives with Gopalakrishnan- Sahapedia
 
Session 2: Effective Lecture-Demonstrations for schools & colleges
Mrs. Rupi Mahendroo- SPIC MACAY, Paulami Guha- IRCEN, Shubendra Rao, Sharon Lowen.
Moderator: Arshiya Sethi.
Best practices by artists in presenting classical performing arts in the U.S.A. and India.
 
July 27 – Indian Classical Dance Transnationally
Session 1: Indian Classical arts as part of the world cultural community.
Arshiya Sethi, Sunil Kothari, Rama Vaidyanathan, ICCR director. Moderator: Amarendra Khatua.
 
Session 2: Contribution Internationally by non-Indian artists/teachers/scholars– What draws
students and artists from other cultures to study and practice Indian classical performing arts
traditions? How do they share this here and abroad? Moderator: Chavi Asrani.
* India to France - Brigitte Chataignier (Mohiniattam).
* India to Columbia - Carolina Pradha (Mayurbhanj Chhau).
* India to India – Justin McCarthy (Bharata Natyam).
 
Photographic Exhibition- A Dancer Looks Back through the lens- IIC Annexe Art Gallery: 25 to 31 July - Legendary dancers and performances from the 1970s and ‘80s captured in Delhi, Kolkata,
Imphal, Seraikella, Baripada create a historical retrospective on the cultural activity of the time. Before
arriving in India as a Fulbright Scholar, Sharon included studying photography at the University of Michigan as part of her M.A. Intended to use in teaching; this documentation has never been shared before as her career as a performing artist took precedence over returning to academia.
 
Mohiniattam to Contemporary Workshop - Alliance Francaise Auditorium July 28 - 9:30 to 1 p.m.
Paris-based French artist, Brigitte Chataignier introduced basic principles of space, time, energy, and motion in Mohiniattam and guide participants in expanding and exploring these in contemporary dance. Dance of the Enchantress –Award-winning film by Adoor Gopalakrishnan/Brigitte Chataignier -Q & A. -Alliance Francaise July 29 – 6p.m. Dec 8 Nirantar 2017 Manasa student performance at Lok Kala Manch Feb 28-USIEF South & Central Asia Fulbright Conference disciples Odissi perf at the Taj Dwarka

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