Dance, a divine experience

NATYA SANGRAHA, a dance camp was held for Bharathanatyam dancers with a good performing experience and for young dance teachers by Natyarangam at Thennangur recently. Thennangur is about 110 km from Chennai on the Vandavasi road. A small village it is gaining in popularity thanks to the magnificent Vittobha temple built by Swami Haridoss Giri.

The 30 dancers who had assembled for three days not only had an interactive face-to-face with the different dimensions of dance but a rare experience of carrying the procession deity on their shoulders. During the Garuda Seva, they danced in front. They gently rocked the Unjal for the procession deities and also danced.

Natyarangam had planned the camp to get dancers come together and look at the four aspects of presentation i.e., Angika of the body, Vachika of lyrics and music, Aaharya of decor and costume, Sattvika of the inner involvement.

For Angika there was an early morning yoga session with Yoga Maiyyam E. R. Gopalakrishnan. Dancer C. V. Chandrashekhar, who was the coordinator for the faculty, took on the sessions for Angika in the prescribed movement vocabulary of Bharathanatyam.

Carnatic vocalist Geeta Raja gave insights into music and the dancers examined its relationship to dance other than the composition. Poet Vaideeswaran gave a good insight into poetry and open mindedness and this writer spoke about Aaharya and its presentation. Sattvika Abhinaya was explored by Kalanidhi Narayanan.

``Natyarangam's aim,'' says Sujatha Vijayaraghavan, a founder, ``is to get the dancers involved with the art of dance and the dance scene and not only in one's performance. There seems to be very little interaction between the various disciplines of dance among the young dancers of today. There are many dancers who cannot read and write or understand an Indian language, who have no understanding and training in music. Many dancers are not even acquainted with each other. ''

Natyarangam was formed with a view to providing dancers an opportunity to interact with the others and to have a platform for experimenting within the tradition and to interact with other disciplines. Mr. Krishnanswamy of Narada Gana Sabha provided the space, infrastructure and the resources to give young dancers the opportunities to perform, experiment and to interact. The Narada Gana Sabha trust also organised this camp. Fayil, a young Russian boy, a student of C. V. Chandrasekhar gave excellent spontaneous Abhinaya demonstrations.

V. R. DEVIKA

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Entertainment
Previous : From scratch to success
Next     : Treatment made all the difference