NDEO鈥檚 Guest Blog Series features posts written by our members about their experiences in the fields of dance and dance education. We continue this series with a post by Nisha Pradeep, Bharathanatyam Dancer, Teacher, and Choreographer.聽 Guest posts reflect the experiences, opinions, and viewpoints of the author and are printed here with their permission. NDEO does not endorse any business, product, or service mentioned in guest blog posts. If you are interested in learning more about the guest blogger program or submitting an article for consideration, please click here.
In this blog post we will look at how a movement can be aesthetically enhanced by learning to extend it through space and time.
The sound of a chollu (sound/syllable) or a sound uttered has a life. It may live for a few seconds to even as small as a millisecond. The skill of a dancer is in embodying that sound fully and wholly within their movement. Every movement sequence聽(adavu) in Bharathanatyam is associated with a specific sequence of syllables set to rhythmic pattern. The dancer executes each movement sequence in accordance to this rhythmic syllable sequence that is usually recited by the teacher or the vocalist.
What is a movement in terms of dance?
I consider movement as a shift in the body's alignment from the base form. In Bharathanatyam we can attribute the base form as Samam (body held straight). The Samam posture is the stance where every part of your body is held straight. Eyes, head and toes point straight. Arms are folded and held at the waist.
A movement when executed to its maximum spatial and temporal capacities will enhance the aesthetics of the dance. It creates a harmony which is an important factor required in a dance presentation. A dance comprises several such harmonious movements. Each of these movements do not exist on its own. A dance sequence is interconnected by each of these units. Harmonious execution of each of the movements within the sequence will result in a well rounded and aesthetically pleasing presentation.
A dancer has to train their body and mind to attain this harmonious spatial and temporal existence as they move through their dance sequence. This requires training their mind and body. An effective method to train a dancer鈥檚 body and mind to get to this state is to practice every move at an extremely slow pace before doing it at its intended pace. Most Indian classical dances have the practice of doing every Adavu (movement sequences) in a gradation of speeds (1st to 3rd).
Adavus in Bharathanatyam are movement sequences. A particular movement sequence of the legs can be combined with various matching arm movements. And this constitutes a set of Adavus or movement sequences. For example the very first movement sequence a Bharathanatyam dancer learns involves rhythmic tapping of the feat combined with extended arms. The second set of movement sequences introduces the stretching of the legs to the side and matching movements with the arms.
Executing the adavus (step sequences) in a slower pace than the customary 1st speed, in slow motion, where each syllable sound is extended to match the movement, can be an effective way to get the dancer to become one with every movement. Each movement sequence set has a Chollukettu (sound syllable) which is sung by the teacher as the student executes the movements.
Let's look at an example by taking one of the Bharathanatyam adavus (movement sequences) that are done to a beat 4 beats or 8 beats.
Let's take this as the 1st speed. (Each |---| represents a beat and || represents the ending of the 4th beat of a 4 beat cycle.)
| 1 - - - | 2- - - | 3 - - - | 4 - - - ||
| 5 - - - | 6- - - | 7 - - - | 8 - - - ||
In order to do a deeper meditative practice the same adavu(movement sequence) can be done at
| 1 - - - | - - - - | 2 - - - | - - - - ||
| 3 - - - | - - - - | 4 - - - | - - - - ||
| 5 - - - | - - - - | 6 - - - | - - - - ||
| 7 - - - | - - - - | 8 - - - | - - - - ||
Pacing each movement to the extended time period will be a good practice to get each move registered with the right spatial and temporal alignment.
In short, take every step slow and steady to make your dance highly defined and aesthetically pleasing. It also induces a deep sense of connection to the movements in the dancer. This type of mindful practice is essential to experience the yoga-like impact of Bharathanatyam and other Indian classical dance forms.
Nisha Pradeep is an Indian classical dancer, trained in Bharathanatyam and Mohiniattam. She has an MFA in Bharathanatyam from Annamalai University, India. Her keen interest in history and dance has kept on the path of researching and studying the evolution of dance as well as its socio-political impacts. Through the years she has also delved into enhancing her movement vocabulary of contemporary Indian dance by imbibing from western and other eastern classical traditions.
Photo Credits (in order from top to bottom): Anthony Johnson, Fotolaya, and Nisha Pradeep