Kathaka: Dancing Rhythms and Stories of India
The ancient art of Kathak is one of the eight forms of classical Indian dance. Its name comes from the Sanskrit word for “story.” Kathak dancers use swift and precise footwork and graceful gestures to tell traditional Indian stories. Through movement, music and math, Kathakas perform “Kathak Yoga” – a technique which unifies the recitation of taal (rhythm), the singing of a melody and the dancing of complex footwork and rapid spins. Students will learn to count out complex poly-rythmns to help the dancer keep time and a few volunteers may learn some basic Indian dance steps. Performances are tailored to the grade levels of each audience. For older grades, performers delve deeper into rhythm, math, history and philosophy.
Remote adaptation: A full performance is available online, and even through the screen, participants can join in on clapping, stomping, moving from head to toe while learning the meaning of hand movements, and how characters are sketched through movement.
Audience Limit: 300
Curriculum Connection: Indian Classical Dance, Indian Culture, Mythology, Math (counting polyrhythms)
Video: Remote Arts Learning Showcase (Kathaka begins at 19:33)
Video: Anjali Nath Performance Clips
Video: Anjali Nath – Traditional Solo
Video: Tirwat dance at Mumbai Royal Opera House (featuring Anjali Nath)
Video: Dance medley (featuring Anjali Nath)
Video: TEDx Talk (featuring Anjali Nath)
Video: About the Chhandam dance company where the Kathakas were trained, and teacher Chitresh Das
Video: Chitresh Das performs kathak with tap dancer Jason Samuels Smith
Video: Upaj movie with Chirtresh Das and Jason Samuels Smith (Amazon Prime)
Single Performance: $750
Additional Performances: $600
Travel: $65 per day
Pricing may vary for weekends/out-of-school time
Processing Fee of $30 added to all contracts
Remote (live online)
School sets up link for remote meeting and makes the artist a co-host. Artist is also happy to set up a zoom link, if helpful. Screen share must be enabled, however please turn off ‘annotation’ feature. Artist may need to sign on 20-30 minutes prior to the meeting to check sound levels. A representative from the school must be on the call to spotlight artist video, facilitate Q+A and mute students as needed. Please introduce the performer as an Arts for Learning Massachusetts artist.
In-person
Provisions:
- An aux cable set up so the artist can plug their iPhone into a sound system to play music from. Please have this set up before the artist arrives so they can simply plug their phone into the sound system and test the volume of the sound for the audience before the audience arrives. It is helpful to have someone who is familiar with the sound system on hand to meet the artist when they arrive.
- Ideally the dancer is on a stage or space with tiered, or theater seating to maximize the audience view of the dancer from head to toe, so they can see and hear the facial expressions, body movements, and footwork. That said, they are experienced in adapting to any space.
- Changing room and restroom
Sound equipment needed:
- 1 ready sound system w/aux cord to play music from an iPhone with proper speakers so audience can hear.
- 1 standing mic
Performance Space Requirements: Smooth, clean swept, solid floor surface (artist dances and spins barefoot)
Arrival time before first performance: 30 min
Strike time: 5 mins
Time needed between performances: 15 min
Please introduce the performer as an Arts for Learning Massachusetts artist.
