By LAURA BLEIBERG,
The Orange County Register
The intersections where classical dance of India and American modern dance meet are not obvious to most of us. Even if you know a few facts, such as the 1906 encounter between modern-dance innovator Ruth St. Denis and a performing troupe of Indian dancers at Coney Island, helping to precipitate St. Denis' "orientalist" style - even if you know that, it's hard to recognize the lasting, overarching relationship between the forms.
Shining a light on these connections is one purpose behind a May 21-22 symposium called "Dance Conversations 2005 – Indian Dance in California: Past, Present and Future." Sponsored by the recently opened Ektaa Center in Irvine, the two-day conference will bring together an impressive roster of scholars and dancers, discussing some weighty issues and exploring current trends in dance.
In addition, the presenters have organized two performances - one an evening concert and the other a more informal presentation at the center - that feature a who's who of masters and emerging artists. The May 21 showcase (at the William Bristol Auditorium in Bellflower) features veteran artists who have never appeared together on the same stage: Anjani Ambegaokar, Nanditha Behera, Ramaa Bharadvaj, Ramya Harishankar, Mythili Kumar, K.P. Kunhiraman and Viji Prakash. The daytime show (May 22) highlights young, contemporary-dance artists, including three graduates of the UCLA dance department who formed a group they call Post Natyam Collective, a name that references both post- modern dance and the classical-dance form called bharata natyam.
It all sounds a bit heady. But organizers don't want it to become a Ph.Ds-only event. They hope to attract the average dance-goer.
"It could appeal to people who generally go and see different kinds of performances, people who might only go see modern dance and might be interested in these kinds of interconnections," said Priya Srinivasan, assistant professor of dance at the University of California, Riverside, and one of the organizers.
Ramya Harishankar, a master teacher of bharata natyam and a co-founder of the Ektaa Center, said she began thinking about such a forum when she saw the enthusiastic turnout for a flamenco dance festival at the Irvine Barclay Theatre.
"I'm hoping that at some point, Indian dance will be mainstream and they (the public) will be a little bit more knowledgeable and thereby enjoy it more and not think of it as something intimidating," she said.
To that end, the daytime discussions will touch on seminal artist Balasaraswati and the early years of Indian dance in California; a conversation among today's master artists based in California, as well as a look at the innovations in dance going on in India; and the non-Indian California post-modern choreographers who have been influenced by South Asian dance, such as Victoria Marks.
Registration forms and the complete schedule of events are available at www.ektaacenter.org (click on the "At Ektaa" icon after the home page). Tickets for the evening show, "Xpressions: Performances by California Masters of Dance," are at www.sulekha.com/losangeles. Or call (949) 300-8912 for more information.
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