Nrityagram Dance Ensemble
Let Dance Elevate Your Spirit...
The Lensic, Santa Fe's Performing Arts Center
Presented by the Aspen Santa Fe Ballet
March 29, 7:30 pm
Sponsored by BODY
“The ensemble mesmerized a sold-out audience with its artistry, energy, technique and beauty!” -Dance Magazine
Let dance elevate your spirit…Back by popular demand, the internationally acclaimed Nrityagram Dance Ensemble from Southern India, transports viewers to enchanted worlds of magic and spirituality with the sensuous flow of Odissi, the oldest of India’s classical dance forms. Ancient wisdom, sacred rituals, and divine transformation unveiled and interpreted in electrifying dance. Surpa Sen’s compelling choreography is the elusive union of meaning and abstraction, set to an original score performed live and a stunning ensemble of female dancers.
The Philosophy of Nrityagram is that dance is a way of life, a matter of faith and belief, nurtured and enriched by the souls of it's own people. They believe that being a good dancer is second only to being a good human being. Self-motivated holistic lifestyle focused on dance and the higher principles associated with the arts is necessary. As members of Nrityagram, all residents experience this way of life. So that, in keeping with their beliefs, at the end of training, they will be a complete dancer and more importantly, a complete human being!
The Nrityagram is a lifestyle based on the age-old Gurukul tradition. As per this ancient method, students look after and care for their Guru by growing fruit and vegetables on the land, cooking, cleaning, and earning through dance recitals. At Nrityagram, the institution fulfills the role of the Guru - as protector and as someone who makes available knowledge and experience. Trainees learn under the tutelage of several Gurus, however their duties towards Nrityagram are of prime importance. Along with the intensive dance training, they learn Indian Literature, mythology, poetry, Sanskrit, music, aesthetics, history of dance, philosophy, spiritual thought and dance theory. Regular workshops are conducted in martial arts, yoga, mime, meditation, sculpture, etc. These workshops, in other disciplines use the body and help to improve stances and energy levels. They also inculcate an awareness of the interdisciplinary approach and an understanding of the inter-relatedness of all arts and physical traditions, not only of India, but also of other countries.
"I dream of building a community of dancers in a forsaken place amidst nature. A place where nothing exists, except dance. A place where you breathe, eat, sleep, dream, talk, imagine - dance.
A place where all the five senses can be refined to perfection. A place where dancers drop negative qualities such as jealousy, small-mindedness, greed and malice to embrace their colleagues as sisters and support each other in their journey towards becoming dancers of merit." "A place called Nrityagram."
– Protima Gauri (October 12,1948 - August 18, 1998)