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| First international Kuchipudi conference / Houston By a rasika / Houston |   | |||
| Labor Day Weekend, 2001, witnessed the First International Conference in North America on 'Indian Dance in the Diaspora - Traditions and Innovations', presented by Samskriti. Two years later, on Labor Day Weekend, 2003, Samskriti presented a tribute to the classical dance style of Andhra Pradesh, Kuchipudi, made possible by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the City of Houston and the Texas Commission on the Arts through the Cultural Arts Council of Houston/Harris County, and co-sponsored by the Telugu Cultural Association of Houston.
Convened by entrepreneur businessman Charan Reddy, the conference was inaugurated by Mayor David Wallace of the City of Sugar Land, after the traditional lighting of the lamp by actress-dancer Meenakshi Seshadri. Deputy Consul General of India in Houston, R. L. Koli, released the commemorative souvenir replete with informative articles and letters of commendation. Devesh Soneji, Professor of South Indian Religions, McGill University, Montreal, Canada, gave the keynote address on the evolution of Kuchipudi in the modern day context. In a nice and heart-warming gesture, Samskriti volunteers recognized each of the conference delegates by presenting them with a rose each.
The inaugural dance, 'Swagatham', featuring 12 dancers from the Anjali Center for Performing Arts, and set to lyrics specially penned for the occasion by Dr. Uma Eyyunni of Jacksonville, Florida, and a dance drama version of Thyagaraja's 'Nauka Charitram', choreographed by Samskriti's Artistic Director, and curator of the conference, Rathna Kumar, were the two cultural highlights of the morning. These dance numbers were further enhanced by the live music, provided by artists from India, J. Ramesh (vocal), N. K. Kesavan (mridangam, pakhawaj and kanjeera), and B. Muthukumar (flute), who were joined by local artists Vasantha Putcha, Kumari Susarla and Uma Bhaskar, led by singer/teacher Anuradha Subramanian. Lighting effects, designed by Seetha Ratnakar, Asstistant Station Director, Doordarshan, Chennai, made 'Nauka Charitram' a memorable presentation. Special mention must be made of Yarlini Vipulananadan, the 8 year old child prodigy who played the role of little Krishna, and stole the hearts of the audience, so much so that Swapna Sundari, the featured dancer for the evening, spontaneously came up on stage and presented her bouquet of flowers to Yarlini, as a token of her appreciation. Wonderful blessings from a great artist indeed! The morning's programme was emceed by one of Houston's best, Kalyani Giri. Following a special luncheon for the delegates, hosted by Deputy Consul General Koli, the focus shifted to panel discussions, which, in the course of the next two days, covered a variety of topics such as 'Kuchipudi in the context of the allied narrative dance and drama traditions of Andhra', 'The dance drama in modern Kuchipudi', 'Shifting patronage: Globalization and non Telugu audiences for Kuchipudi', and 'Social protest and the arts in India'. There were also lecture-demonstrations of Salaam Daru and Bhama Kalapam. The panelists were Dr. Devesh Soneji, moderator, Dr. P. V. Rao, Professor of Physics at Emory University, a scholar, and the man responsible for introducing Kuchipudi as a credit course at Emory, Dr. Saradapurna Sonty, Program Coordinator, Potti Sreeramulu International Telugu Study Center in Chicago, Illinois, Dr. Uma Eyyunni, a physician and a prolific writer of songs for dance, Nilimma Devi, dancer/teacher/scholar and an American Institute of Indian Studies Fellow, and renowned dancer Swapna Sundari, who was specially sent as a performer/participant to the conference by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations, New Delhi. These lively discussions ended with an animated exchange of views by the younger generation of dancers - Sangita Rangala, Pallavi Ahobila, Rumya Putcha, Mangala Maddali - all born and raised in the US. The first evening witnessed 'Parampara - Young Artists' Showcase', featuring students of well known performer-teachers living in the US - Anuradha Nehru (Washington, DC), Bala Tripura Sundari (Jacksonville, FL), Divya Yeluri (New Jersey), Kamala Reddy (Pittsburgh, PA), Rathna Kumar (Houston, TX), Revathi Komanduri (Atlanta GA), Sandhya Sree Athmakuri (Detroit, MI), Sasikala Penumarthi (Atlanta, GA), Srilatha Suri (Dallas, TX), followed by the feature presentation, an unforgettable performance by Swapna Sundari and her troupe of dancers from India. Chief guests Kusum Tayal, First Lady of Houston's Indian community, and Meenakshi Seshadri, commented on the mesmerizing quality of Swapna Sundari's Abhinaya, and the off-beat subject matter of her dances. 'New Choreographies' and 'New Directions in Kuchipudi Dance' were presented on the second day at the Kaplan Theater, Jewish Community Center, with performances by Sangita Rangala (Chicago, ILL), students of Rathna Kumar - Aneesha Srikar (Washington, DC), Pallavi Ahobila (Houston, TX), Rumya Putcha (Chicago, ILL) - Anuradha Nehru and her students Silpa Thotakura and Chitra Kalyandurg, Siri Sonty and Wendy Clinard (Chicago, ILL), Bala Tripura Sundari, and a video presentation of an innovative piece by Nilimma Devi (Washington, DC). Following this was a lively dance drama in the typical Kuchipudi tradition, 'Keechaka Vadha', by Pasumarthy Venkateswara Sarma and troupe from India, with guest artists from Detroit.
Seetha Ratnakar, one of the very first students of the Kuchipudi Art Academy, made a video presentation of excerpts from Dr. Satyam's dance dramas, five of which she had the distinction of producing for the national television. Led by Rathna Kumar, who curated the entire conference, and whose brain-child it was, a coalition was formed, of Kuchipudi Dancers in North America, enthusiastically and unanimously supported by all the attending scholars, dancers and their students. Secretary of SNA, Kastuar promised full support on behalf of the Akademi, and Swapna Sundari offered her help in India to visiting Kuchipudi dancers from the US. The conference ended with a performance of one of Dr. Chinna Satyam's earliest dance drama choreographies, 'Sri Krishna Parijatham', presented by Dr. Kamala Reddy as Rukmini, Sasikala Penunumarthi as Satyabhama, Revathi Komanduri as Narada, and Sasikala's student Vasu Tummala as Krishna. At the end of the 3-day conference, one of the young delegates' mothers had this to say of the whole event - "I feel sad that it is all over. This was the most wonderful thing that has happened to us in a long time, artistically speaking. We loved the performances, the panel discussions, the food, and the warm hospitality. You have made us all very welcome in your city. We are ready to come back any time you invite us. This has been such a great learning experience and an education for our children as well as ourselves. Thank you so much, Samskriti." And Rathna Kumar, the brain behind the conference, had this to add - "My job was the easiest. I merely envisaged the whole event. But none of this would have been even remotely possible without a dedicated team of volunteers, and we had the best in the world, who spent long and arduous hours meticulously planning and executing every aspect of the conference to perfection. Samskriti is truly fortunate in having such a fine team of selfless workers." For more information contact: Rathna Kumar, Artistic Director, Samskriti, | ||||
