Siddhi Natyalaya Bharata Natyam Recital

Born centuries ago in the temples of India, Bharata Natyam is an earthy, dynamic and

From left - Christine Vithayathil and Kasturi Mitra with their teacher Jaya Krishnamurthy (center) a very graceful art of dancing. The contemporary form of Bharata Natyam evolved sometime during the late 18th or early 19th century. It is an extremely precise dance style, where a huge repertoire of hand movements is used to convey moods and expressions. There are three main aspects of the dance: Nritta, consisting of movements and patterns of dance; Nritya, the expressional aspect of the dance; and Natya, which adds an element of drama to the composition.

Jaya Bharathi Krishnamurthy began her initial training in Bharata Natyam at the age of six. In addition, she has also received training in Mohiniattam and Kathak styles of classical dancing. She has performed internationally and received numerous awards. At the young age of eight, she was chosen to perform in front of a distinguished audience that included the then President of India - Giani Zail Singh, several foreign dignitaries and heads of State.

Natasha Porwal and Natalie Mathews in the folk dance Cheluvyya With more than 20 years of experience, she has conducted numerous workshops and choreographed several dance recitals. Currently, she lives in Danbury and runs Siddhi Natyalaya. She is dedicated to promoting classical Indian dance in keeping with the traditions of this ancient art.

On July 10, she conducted a workshop at the Brookfield Library, and some of her students performed Bharata Natyam as part of the "Be Creative" series organized by the Library.

The recital began with the traditional Pushpanjali dance, where the dancer pays her obeisance to the Guru and the Lord in the form of a Pushpanjali (an invocation with flowers). Natalie Mathews performed this dance beautifully.

This was followed by the Ganesha Vandana and the Ganesha Stuti, in which the dancer seeks the Lord's continued blessing for her performance. Kasturi Mitra gracefully performed to the song Ananda Nartana Ganapati.

Alaaripu is a perfect introduction to the audience of the basic framework in Bharata Natyam technique. A short and crisp nritta item, Alaarippu is performed to the accompaniment of rhythmic syllables. Very precise, the movements should draw clean lines in space. The geometry of triangles drawn by the body becomes obvious. Crisp movements of the neck, eyes and shoulders show exactly how the body works in Bharata Natyam. Christine Vithayathil demonstrated all of this very skillfully.

Aleena Jacob and Sanjana Shriram performing Shriman Narayana There were also a few South Indian folk dances, including rustic songs conveying the simple joys of village life and the excitement brought about by the festival season. The exuberant performance of Aleena Jacob, Sanjana Shriram, Natalie Mathews and Natasha Porwal created a festive feel and certainly made the audience happy.

The recital concluded with the Thillana, which is considered the pinnacle of all "pure dance." or nritta. The music is just one repetitive line - there are no words involved - only rhythmic syllables set to tune and melody. The dancer presents her rhythm in such a way that brisk and racy sequences of rhythm are followed by moments when the dancer freezes in a pose.

Kasturi Mitra performing Ganesha Vandana