2006 Dance Newsletter - Slippery Rock University

India in our Bodies
Submitted by Rachel Mess, Rachel Renock and Nicole Russ
(SRU dance department students)
the Summer of 2005, with the
In support of the Dance Department,
the Sociology/Anthropology/SocialWork
Department and the International
Initiatives Office at Slippery Rock
University, we spent a month in the city of
Chennai, India taking part in an internship
where we continued our studies of the
classical Indian form Bharata Natyam under
master teacher Revathi Ramachandran.
Before this intensive workshop, we had
studied this classical Indian form for a
semester at SRU with Ms. Jaya Mani as a
component of out World Dance course.
Our trip to India was a life changing
experience. It expanded our views of
the world, our approach to life and our
understanding of dance.
Several hours of training a day in the
Bharata Natyam dance form with Ms.
Ramachandran was a once in a lifetime
opportunity that we will cherish forever.
Understanding the complexity of Bharata
Natyam did not happen immediately.
It took us a while to process and digest
so much information that is involved in
this dance form. A unique factor that we
discovered about Bharata Natyam is that
it is very integral to the Indian culture;
it cannot be perceived as an independent
cultural expression; it is clearly connected to
other aspects of the Indian culture such as
its food, its music, its religion.
Another highlight of the trip was sharing
with Indian students our knowledge and
perception of dance. We were given the
opportunity to teach a Modern Dance class
to Ms. Ramachandran’s regular Bharata
Natyam students who had no exposure to
any other form of dance but the classical
Indian form. We struggled to express ideas
and find images that would substitute for
our Modern Dance terminology. We found
ourselves breaking down movement to its
smallest fragment of expression in order
for them to grasp concepts so foreign to
their bodies. They were amused by moving
at a low level and allowing their various
body parts to contact the ground. We were
challenged to re-think and re-discover
Modern Dance technique through their
bodies. Their curiosity and eagerness to
learn from us, just as we were learning from
them, was inspiring and truly touching.
This overall experience opened our eyes,
allowed us to see beyond our familiar world
and made us more culturally aware and
sensitive to other
realities. It also made
us come to appreciate
the education we are
receiving at Slippery
Rock University. We
will remain forever
grateful to everyone
who has helped us get
to where we are today.
8 DEPARTMENT OF Dance