BHARATNATYAM DANCE

CLASSES :

       Tuesday Classes  

• 6 - 6.30 pm (Kids 4 to 5 years)  - Dhanashree Karmarkar
• Tuesday 6 - 7 pm (Kids 6 years + ) - Dhanashree Karmarkar
• Tuesday 7 - 8 pm (Adults) - Dhanashree Karmarkar

      Saturday Classes

• 10 - 11am (Kids) - Neha Parikh (Starts Sept 9)
• 11 - 12pm(Adults) - Neha Parikh (Starts Sept 9)

Class Duration: 1 hour/week

Fees: 

• $100/month
• $80/month for 4-5 yrs old (30 min class)

Students: 6 to 8 per class

India has 8 classical dances. Bharatnatyam is the oldest and renowned classical dance form performed by both male and female dancers all over the world. 

In these lessons we are going to focus on all aspects of Bharatnatyam. Your child will get lots of opportunities to enjoy dance as well as learn to appreciate the form, history, and technique. 

On stage performances will take place at the end of each level for all to enjoy

About the Instructors : 

Neha Parikh is a well-acclaimed dancer in the New England area well known for her choreographic skills. Neha is the founder and the artistic director of “Chidambaram Nritya kala Academy” founded at the beginning of 2005. She inspires all her students to strive for perfection with her authentic style of teaching and uncompromising discipline, that helps her students reach the highest standards in dance. 

Neha was exposed to this art form at a very tender age. This deep love for the art form persuaded her to take up dance as her profession. She has acquireda Master’s in Fine arts from Nalanda Institute (Mumbai). The founder of this institute is Padma Bhusan Dr Smt Kanak Rele. Neha had been trained under few eminent Gurus -who were the professors at Nalanda like Smt Tangamani Nagarajan, Smt Malati Agniswararan, Shri Vaibhav Arekar and Smt Ambika Vishwanathan to name a few. Back in India, as a dancer she had several multifaceted experiences in higher academics, stage performances, classroom instruction with wider theoretical dimensions & choreography. Neha was adance teacher for senior students at Nalanda dance research center for 9yrs. She also had her own school where she conducted dance workshops, and had exams every year. She has extensively performed along with the Nalanda troupeand has played major roles in the most prestigious productions of Nalanda, such as Silappadikaram, Santavani, Kanchanmrig, and Swapnavasavadattam.  Along with her Guru Shri Vaibhav Arekar, she was also the part of a Hindi theatre production called Shyam Sakhi.

Here in USA, Neha is listed as a traditional artist in the New Hampshire State arts Council and has been invited several times to perform for the Cultural day each summer. She has been the part of various fund raisers by the non-profit organizations such asthe Vision aid in 2012, Kanchi kamakoti seva foundation, MITHAS, Hindu temple of New Hampshire and Multiple sclerosis society. Individually and along with her students, Neha has performed at few locations in NH, Massachusetts.

Apart from Bharata Natyam, she also teaches another beautiful dance style from keralacalled Mohiniattam.  

Dhanashree Karmarkar has been teaching Bharatnatyam dance since 2000. She has performed numerous times in both India and Massachusetts for various programs including fund raisers, international events, and dance workshops. Dhanashree's syllabus is set according to Gandharva Mahavidyalay, a renowned school in India.

She performed her Arangetram (debut stage performance) after taking 8 years of training under the able guidance of Guru Suchitra in 2000, and continued learning Kalakshetra from Guru Mythili Raghavan for 4 years. She has also received an opportunity to learn the basics of Abhinay from Guru Priyadarsini Govind. 

Dhanashree's passion kept her active in teaching and performing in India after her first performance, and that same passion has followed her to Massachusetts, where she has founded her own dance school, Nritya Sadhana. Dhanashree has won multiple awards that certify her skills as both a dancer and choreographer, including a certificate from the Mayor of Boston in 2013 and a choreography prize in a competition that took place in Mumbai.

Dhanashree Karmarkar's Class Schedule and Descriptions:

The lesson plans and goals are as follows:

Level 1/First year :

Namaskriya

Exercise corrosponding to the Adavu's:

1) Tatta Adavu, 2) Natta Adavu, 3) Metta Adavu, 4) Tatta Kuditta metta Adavu, 5)Tirmanam Adavu, 6) Kuditta metta Adavu, 7) Vishru Adavu.

Theory: 1) Asamyukta hand gestures from Abhinaya Darpan 2) Paadabheda 3) Shirobheda 4) Mandala Bheda 5) Knowing names of four classical dance styles and their original place. 6) Meaning of the term Bharatnatyam.

Level 2/ Second year:

Adavu's (advance level):

1) Shikhara Adavu. 2) Sarikal Adavu 3) Tirmanam Adavu 4) Mandi Adavu 5) Peri Adavu 6) Tatti metta Adavu.

All above adavus including previous year in three speeds.

Theory: 1) Samyukta hand gestures, 2) Drishti bheda, 3) Grivaa Bheda 4) Sthaanaka 5) Hasta Prachaara, 6) Reciting Taalam ( chatushra jati and tishra jati ) in three speeds. 7) Explaining what is Adavu, Laya, Nritta, Nritya and Natya.

Level 3/Third year:

• Alaaripu ­Tishra or chatushra eakam.
• Presentation of the item.
• Identification of Raaga and taala.
• Identifying shiro, drishti, griva and mandala bheda.
• Pushpanjali or Kavutvam­ Presentation of the item and identification of the Raagam and Taalam.­ Presentation as well as taalam.

Theory:

1) Give identification of adavu, korvai, jati and Tirmanam. 2) Basic information of the classical styles of India with special reference to place of origin, style of dance , salient features, styles of music (Hindustani or Carnatic). 3) Definition: Adavu, Mandala and sthaanaka, chari, bharamari, utplavana. 4) Basic information about Bharatnatyam ­including the meaning of the term, place of origin, and important features of the techniques. 5) Short notes of Natyakrama, paatrapraana, patra lakshana, sabha lakshana. 6) Definitions: taala, matra, lasya, aavartana, anga/ vibhaaga, sam, usi/offbeat.

According to Abhinaya Darpan, there are 10 important aspects of  being a successful dancer. They are as follows:

Javaha (Agility )                Sthirathvam ( Steadiness )

Rekha (Grateful lines)       Bhramari ( Balance)

Drishti( Glance)                 Shramaha ( hard work)

Medha ( Intelligence)        Shraddha ( devotion)

Vacha ( good speech )      Geetham ( Singing)

More about Bharatnatyam:

Bharatnatyam is divided in three divisions: Nritta, Natya and Nritya .

Nritta: is pure dance, involves Adavus (Basic dance steps without emotions) which is combination of hand, feet as well as head and eye movements.

Natya: is pure Abhinaya (expressions). Sahityam is presented in Abhinaya dance. It has emotions, expressions and meaning shown through facial expressions and hand gestures. The whole body is used to express the story.

Nritya: Involves Abhinaya as well as pure dance

Payment and Missed Class Policy:

Training requires consistency in order to achieve the most benefit. However, we understand that students may occasionally need to miss a class. Use the following guidelines to ensure that you get the most out of your classes at The Academy of Creative Arts. 

1. Your fees are due on or before the first class in a month
2. Payment may be made by cash, check or credit card
3. If you pay for several months in advance and cannot complete all months, we will refund months not used when notice is received before the beginning of the month
4. If you or your child plan to miss a class - 48 hour advance notice is required - so another student can be accommodated - if the student does not provide 48 hour notice, student can coordinate the make-up class with the instructor.
5. Your monthly fee pays for your space in class for the month. It is your responsibility to make up classes if you or your child miss the class. 
6. One makeup class will be offered each month. During any month that you are enrolled, you may make up a class by attending any other appropriate session (please coordinate with the instructor for scheduling the make up class).  Make up classes should be completed within 60 days of missing the class. Fees for missed classes are not refundable.
7. If you are having trouble scheduling a make up class, please let us know and we will try to accommodate you
8. Class timings and schedule are subject to change

We wish you a wonderful learning experience - these policies are required so that we can be respectful of the instructors time and commitment.