India Post News Service
ST. LOUIS: St. Louis’s most popular ethnic Indian dance festival, American Natya Festival, will be held from April 19 to 21 2019 in the Clayton High School Auditorium.
The organizers, Soorya Performing Arts, will be marking the 11th anniversary of American Natya Festival by making a full presentation of stories through 12 mesmerizing performances.
The 11th American Natya Festival will bring a unique blend of performances starting April 19. Local St. Louis artists will be presenting Bharata Natyam and Kathak performances. Soorya Dance Company is known to present new dance ideas through young minds. It will be presenting 70 students in a series of beautiful dance pieces.
A young dancers’ group, Rani, will present a moral story based on Hindu mythology regading evil king Raavana, who wishes to obtain the Holy Grail, called Atma Linga (Soul of Shiva), to conquer the universe. Another young St. Louis dancers’ group, Katha, will present the famous story of Parvati Kalyan in Kathak style. Samanvita Kasthuri and Sara Parikh will lead the caste.
On April 20, a huge team of dancers from Guru Vandana Academy, Louisville, Kentucky, will be presenting Vaigai Express. This dance drama takes the audience through the journey of history and legends of ancient city Madurai from 2nd century BC to 15th Century AD. Gentle, flowing and graceful Manipuri dance will be presented by Angahar Dance Academy, Kolkata, India.
Another visiting team, Kala Sampada, from India will be performing a spiritual dance “Gyana Maaragam”. Well-known dance academy of Bengaluru Natyantharanga will be presenting Tri-Nritya Shailee exploring the beauty of Bharata Natyam, Kathak and Odissi in collaboration.
The famous fable Pied Piper will be presented as Vismaya by Sanskriti School of Dance, New Jersey. This is an Indianized version of a story from Western civilization. One of the most famous stories told in India, “Sri Satyanarayan Katha”, will be brought to stage for the first time in St. Louis. This is a presentation by Acharya School of Dance, Chicago. A creative Bible story of Four Horsemen will be presented by Jiva Performing Arts, New York. A contemporary theme is presented through Shakti- Women Empowerment by Nrityarpana School of Dance, Cincinnati.
As in the past festivals, this year also students from all over US are being given an opportunity to participate in the national level classical dance competition “American Natya Idol”. This competition provides a platform for students to showcase their skills and receive constructive feedback from visiting senior teachers on various aspects of dance forms: abhinaya (expressions), dance complexity, clarity in poses, and choice of music.
This festival is supported by patrons of Soorya Dance and Music School, Missouri Arts Commission, Brightway Insurance, US Wide Financials, Stone Land Granite and Marbles, and other corporations and art patrons. For more details, visit www.natya.org.
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