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Performances

DC Youth Music and Dance Festival

Sunday June 16, 2019
Sri Siva Vishnu Temple MD, USA

Highlights

Celebrating Datta Jayanti

Saturday June 15, 2019
Sri Bhakta Anjaneya Temple MD, USA

Highlights

Atirudram Mahayagnyam

Tuesday July 17, 2018
Sri Bhakta Anjaneya Temple MD, USA

Highlights

Multicultural Festival

Saturday May 19, 2018
International Hostel DC, USA

Highlights

Portfolio

Youtube Highlights

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Photos

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Other Highlights

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The Art

Bharatanatyam originated about 2,000 years ago in southern India. It is one of the most graceful, subtle and sophisticated styles of dance. It is a traditional art that has been evolving through the ages helping to entertain, educate and enlighten audiences of all backgrounds. It is rooted in The Natyashastra, a treatise on dance, music and drama written by the sage Bharata about 3,000 years ago. Combining the three aspects of the dance, namely, Nritta (pure dance), Nritya (expressional dance) and Natya (drama), the Natyashastra suggests a way to communicate and create rasa, an aesthetic experience that transforms the audience. A Bharatanatyam dancer communicates a language of gestures through movements of the limbs, rhythms through footwork and the art of expressing emotions through abhinaya or facial and body language. The main theme and the final goal of the performance interpreted by the dancer and understood by the spectator is the deeper spiritual importance of the eternal quest of the human soul for unravelling the interconnection and the union with the omnipresent divine. With a rich inheritance of dance-theatre, Natya Dance Theatre comments on the spiritual and the social, the past, present and the future through Bharatanatyam dance.

About Yasaswini

Yasaswini Iyer is a disciple of Smt. Hema Rajagopalan and has been learning the classical art of Bharathanatyam since the age of 5. She grew from being a curious learner to a passionate student under the guidance of her guru and from Ms. Krithika Rajagopalan. As a part of the Natya Dance Theater, she has had the privilege of performing at various prestigious venues such as the Chicago Navy Pier, the Chicago Cultural Center, the Field Museum, the Millennium Park and the Art Institute of Chicago. She also had the opportunity to perform in coordination with the Lookingglass Theater Company and the Chicago Children’s Choir at the Harris Theatre in a musical production of “Sita Ram.” Yasaswini has also appeared on the CBS morning news and has danced for various charity events and fundraisers. Complementing her dancing, Yasaswini has been learning Indian Carnatic vocal music since the age of 4. She also played violin at her school. Yasaswini has a basic conversational understanding of multiple languages including Tamil and Hindi. All these have helped her better appreciate the nuances associated with Bharatanatyam. To Yasaswini, Bharatanatyam is not just a dance form, it is an interdisciplinary skill, which has helped her develop a greater understanding of her cultural roots. She wishes to continue her passion for Bharatanatyam by sharing the joy of dancing with diverse audiences.

Contact

Email: yasaswiniiyer@gmail.com

Natya Dance: info@natya.com