Lively, interactive sessions
PUSHKALA GOPAL
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Thennangur came alive as Natyarangam participants engaged themselves in dance, yoga and demonstrations.
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EDUCATIVE: Participants at the workshop.
Natyarangam, dance wing of Narada Gana Sabha, Chennai, hosts an annual camp for dance students at Dakshina Halasyam, in Thennangur, 110 km from Chennai. Home of an awesome Panduranga temple, this kshetra was envisioned by Swami Haridhos Giri of Gnananda Peetam.
For three days, the village comes alive from dawn to night, with dance and activities that range from sessions of yoga, technique classes, demonstration performances, creative explorations in music, dance and poetry. During the temple rituals of Dolotsavam, Garuda Seva and Kalyana Mahotsavam, dancers offer worship through Nritya Seva, sharing joyous experiences.
This year's camp took place from February 1 to 4. With Prof. C.V.Chandrasekhar as the convenor, 30 dancers and a faculty of resource people came together for a brief but rich spell of intensive stimulus, exploration and learning.
What do you understand by the word, `thookku' was one of the simplest posers put by Sudha Seshayyan, the articulate aficionado of poetry. Emphasising the importance of understanding the context as well as the meaning, she demonstrated how the tool of cross referencing could exemplify shades of meaning and add variety and depth to interpretation.
Yoga sessions were held at dawn by Prof. E.R.Gopalakrishnan, who has authored two books on healthy practice for dancers and children. He highlighted on how one could improve the strength of the thighs and the flexibility of the back.
The Angika session led by Leela Samson was "inspiring, seeing how much of an understanding of the body she had," opined one of the young participants.
The importance of warm-up and breathing to enhance movement, was a dimension many were made aware of, before this encounter.
Prof. Chandrasekhar in his sessions deplored the present tendency to cover space without thought to the distortion of the dance form, and demonstrated how one could extend movements by adding new adavus.
Many ragas for the same mood or time of the day, handled with certain gamakas could be made to express soka (sorrow) rather than ananda, said the Jayanthi-Kumaresh veena-violin duo. They led the participants through spirited expositions of alapana and tanam, providing the ambience for dance improvisation.
Orchestral work
How rhythmic strength influences mood was also demonstrated through variation of tempo in tanam. Their orchestral work, `Tajmahal' was set as a choreographic task for the dancers covering a range of practical discussions on the complementary aspects of dance and music.
The dynamics of people sharing space, an understanding of how bodies work together, and so on are some of the essentials while making a piece for a number of people and this is something you learn only by practice, emphasised London-based writer, Natyacharya.
By planting a 13-beat structure as a group memory and working with various stimuli, the dancers created their own group compositions in lively interactive sessions.
The demonstration of dance by A. Janardhanan in Kathakali brought out the characters of Ravana, Duryodhana and a woman bathing in the river, in detail. His presentation was consummate and illustrated the impact of classy satvika abhinaya.
Bragha Bessell taught abhinaya by exploring the various types of heroines the sessions invoked. processes
The evening rituals as part of temple worship saw the dancers render several abhinaya pieces — some to the exquisite playing of Jayanthi and Kumaresh at the Dolotsavam event and again to the spirited nagaswaram accompaniment at the Garuda Seva. Prof. Chandrasekhar's own impromptu performances here would be a cherished memory.
The aharya element was richly underlined in the various alankaras of the deities.
A first time participant said that the experience was ``incredible, out of the world'' and a couple of dancers who are regulars thought that this year was particularly special, and that they would love to come back.
Secretary R. Krishnaswami,who had made arrangements for stay and food, indeed merits a word of praise.
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