Prema Natya Vidyalaya will be having dance camps and workshops this July, 2008.
If you are interested in attending please contact me at (919) 259-1625.
Adult beginner/intermediate Dance Workshop - July 7th-11th from 5:30pm-8:30 pm
Classes will be held at the Ruritan Club Building B in Efland, NC.
Girls Dance Camp - July 21st-25th from 9am-1pm
This camp is for girls ages 4-12 years old, and besides learning dance we will do different art projects including making our own dancing bells, flower hair pieces, and jewelry. The camp will be held at my home.
Advanced Dance Workshop - July 28th-August 1st from 9:30am-12:30pm
Classes will be held at the guest house at the New Goloka temple.
6/23/08
Prema Natya Vidyalaya
Bharata-natyam, literally meaning the 'dance of India' is an ancient classical dance form. It combines bhava (emotion), raga (music), and talam (rhythym), for a complex and intriguing art that is fascinating to watch, and a joy to perform. I can clearly remember the first Bharata-natyam dance performance I watched. I was sitting cross-legged in the front row in the upstairs cultural room of the Devasadhan Mandir in Detroit, Michigan. Sudha Chandrashekar was there with some of her dance students. But who I remember the most from that day was a lady named Clara, an American born with white skin like mine. She was dressed impeccably in a purple-blue dance outfit, and she danced to Jagjit's song dedicated to Srila Prabhupada. When she began dancing, my heart stopped and I was completely mesmerized. My memory of it still brings me close to swooning, as I felt as if my heart was being squeezed. I thought of those dancers for days, the way they moved their feet to the enchanting music. Soon after Clara started teaching at my school how to act out, with mudras (hand gestures), verses from the Bhagavad-Gita. Her patience, joy, and expression made a deep impression on me. Shortly after, I began formal dance classes with the world renowned dancer, Sudha Chandrashekar.
Thus began my love affair with Bharata-natyam. I continued with Sudha for four solid years. Those years gave me a strong foundation, and instilled within me a deep dedication to the art. I have had different teachers over the years, but found Hemavathi Sharma of Nritya School of Indian Dance in Kansas City when I was 20-years-old. With her I took my dance to a professional level and completed my arangetram, solo dance debut. Since moving to North Carolina, I have had the gracious tutelage of Veena Argade and her school Nritya-bharati in Greensboro.
In October of 2006, after recieving the blessings of my different Gurus (teachers), my dance school Prema Natya Vidyalaya performed it's first official dance performance for the Govardhana-puja and Diwali celebrations at the New Goloka Temple in Hillsborough, NC. Teaching dance has taken it to a much deeper level for me. I now have to imbibe the very soul of a dancer, and with the patience, joy, and dedication of my previous teachers, pass this beautiful art to the dancers of tomorrow. It is a profound honor to teach Bharata-natyam to others.
Thus began my love affair with Bharata-natyam. I continued with Sudha for four solid years. Those years gave me a strong foundation, and instilled within me a deep dedication to the art. I have had different teachers over the years, but found Hemavathi Sharma of Nritya School of Indian Dance in Kansas City when I was 20-years-old. With her I took my dance to a professional level and completed my arangetram, solo dance debut. Since moving to North Carolina, I have had the gracious tutelage of Veena Argade and her school Nritya-bharati in Greensboro.
In October of 2006, after recieving the blessings of my different Gurus (teachers), my dance school Prema Natya Vidyalaya performed it's first official dance performance for the Govardhana-puja and Diwali celebrations at the New Goloka Temple in Hillsborough, NC. Teaching dance has taken it to a much deeper level for me. I now have to imbibe the very soul of a dancer, and with the patience, joy, and dedication of my previous teachers, pass this beautiful art to the dancers of tomorrow. It is a profound honor to teach Bharata-natyam to others.
Dance School Meaning
After teaching dance for a few years, I realized I needed a school and a name for my school. Names give things identity, and bring them to a more realistic level. After some thought, I chose to ask my diksa-guru, B.V. Swami Tripurari, to name my school. After consideration he named it Prema (divine love) Natya (dance) Vidyalaya (place of learning), the Dance School of Divine Love. He chose it with this verse from the Caitanya-caritamrita in mind.
Radhikara prema-guru,
ami-sisya natya
Sada ama nana nrtye
nacaya udbhata
(Caitanya-caritamrta Adi 4.124)
“My guru is Radharani,” Krsna says. “In loving affairs My guru is Radharani, so She always makes Me dance according to Her tune.”
He said that prema-natya is the dance school that Krsna attends. Thus with this auspiciousness my dance school began.
I find it a most fitting name, and it has given shape and meaning to my teaching. Dance for me is an intimate service to the Divine Couple. It is my way of using my mind, body, emotions, and thoughts in seva (service). It is my way of showing this world a glimpse into the spiritual realm, where every word is a song, and every step is a dance. And if the words are songs, and the steps are dances, than can we imagine what the singing and dancing of that place must be like?
Radhikara prema-guru,
ami-sisya natya
Sada ama nana nrtye
nacaya udbhata
(Caitanya-caritamrta Adi 4.124)
“My guru is Radharani,” Krsna says. “In loving affairs My guru is Radharani, so She always makes Me dance according to Her tune.”
He said that prema-natya is the dance school that Krsna attends. Thus with this auspiciousness my dance school began.
I find it a most fitting name, and it has given shape and meaning to my teaching. Dance for me is an intimate service to the Divine Couple. It is my way of using my mind, body, emotions, and thoughts in seva (service). It is my way of showing this world a glimpse into the spiritual realm, where every word is a song, and every step is a dance. And if the words are songs, and the steps are dances, than can we imagine what the singing and dancing of that place must be like?
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