Photo courtesy www.artindia.net

The fest will be inaugurated on December 9, 2004.

The 'Nrithya Choodamani' title will be awarded to Odissi dancer Madhvi Mudgal. And dance guru Indira Rajan will be honoured with the 'Acharya Choodamani' award.

Renowned Odissi dancer and Chairperson of Sangeet Natak Akademi, Sonal Mansingh will inaugurate the fest and Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam will felicitate the awardees.

The inaugural concert features a Odissi duet by dancers Surupa Sen and Bijayini, both from Nrityagram, Bangalore.

Highlight of this year's festival is the six-part Ramayanam dance-drama series of Kalakshetra, to be featured from December 15 to 20.

The Natya Kala conference will be held in the mornings, from December 14 to 20. Dance-couple M.V. Narasimhachari and Vasanthalakshmi (who were awarded the 'Nritya Choodamani' last year) are the convenors of the dance conference. Titled 'Pibare Natya Rasam' (experience the bliss of dance), the conference will be inaugurated by Ashok Jailkhani, Director, Doordarshan Kendra, Chennai.

Yagnaraman, Secretary of the sabha told Kutcheribuzz, "This year, we've planned a new talent promotion series for young musicians. A special music series from December 10 to January 1 (1 pm to 2 pm), will feature youngsters below 15 years of age. This is open to all rasikas."

Contact: Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, 20, Maharajapuram Santhnm Salai, T. Nagar, Chennai-600 017. Ph: 28140806

24th Natya Kala Conference, December 14 - 20, 2004 Conveners: M.V. Narasimhachari and Vasanthalakshmi. Name Theme Date Time C.V.Chandrasekhar Bhava & Nayakas 14-12-04 9.30-10.30 am Ratikant Mohapatra & Sujata Nritta in Odissi 14-12-04 10.45-11.45 am Padma Subrahmanyam Karana 15-12-04 9.30-10.30am Uma Sharma Rhythm and Expression in Kathak 15-12-04 10.45-11.45 am The Dhananjayans Auchityam in choreography 16-12-04 9.30-10.30 am Darshana Jhaveri Angika & Aharya in Manipuri 16-12-04 10.45-11.45 am Chitra Visweswaran Rasa 17.12.04 9.30-10.30 am Sadanam Balakrishnan Dharmi in Kathakali 17-12-04 10.45-11.45 am Lakshmi Viswanathan Abhinaya 18-12-04 9.30-10.30 am Gopika Varma Nritta in Mohiniattam 18-12-04 10.45-11.45 am Kalanidhi Narayanan Ashtanayika 19-12-04 9.30-10.30 am Uma Ramarao Element of Natya in Kuchipudi 19-12-04 10.45-11.45 am The Narasimhacharis Natya Veda 20-12-04 9.30-10.30 am Dr. Krishnaraman Pose & Counter pose Yoga therapy for dancers 20-12-04 10.45-11.45 am