Indian Classical

Second South Asian Classical Dance Festival to feature 50 dancers

Read More

Dancers will present various facets of prakriti at the second South Asian Classical Dance Festival

As the Colorado Fine Arts Association (CFAA) prepares to host ‘Prakriti’, the second edition of the annual South Asian Classical Dance Festival in Denver, founder Ajay Menon says, “We had to adapt quickly to the changing environment and organise virtual performances.”

Explaining the aim behind this mega festival, which starts September 19, he adds, “While Bollywood dance is big in North America, Indian classical dance shows are still not popular. So, we wanted to do something to showcase the rich cultural heritage of India and South Asia.”

This year, more than 50 dancers from 10 countries will perform 10 dance forms. The festival is not ticketed, and the plenary sessions will feature senior artistes Alarmel Valli and Priyadarsini Govind.

CFAA started work on the theme of the 2020 edition at the end of last year’s festival. Last year’s event was ‘Yaathra – The Journey’ with the focus on the challenges of climate change.

The lockdown has been both good and bad. While the fest had to go online, Ajay says, “We also decided to expand the line-up as there were no travel and boarding expenses.”

The curatorial effort, according to Ajay, has been to present diverse styles and artistes from different countries, especially those who could not be accommodated in earlier years due to financial and logistic constraints. “We reached out to artistes across India and the U.S. We also have artistes from Singapore, Canada, Trinidad, France and the UAE.”

This edition also offers a platform to up-and-coming classical dancers from North America. “Though we wanted to include Kandyan and Kathakali performaces, we couldn’t due to logistics issues. Hope we can incorporate whatever we miss out this time in the third edition,” says Ajay.

Read More

Related Articles

Back to top button