23 November,2017 09:20 AM IST | Mumbai | Snigdha Hasan
The first edition of a three-day festival offers a platform for the country’s ballet community to network with each other under one roof
If you have been training in ballet or are a professional dancer or teacher of the art form in India, chances are that you may have found your pursuit somewhat solitary. With scattered dance studios, each focussing on its own courses and programmes, and live ballet performances that are few and far between, there is little scope for engagement and networking among the ballet community.
To change that, Mumbai-based Ashifa Sarkar Vasi and Karene Lawyer - both trained extensively in ballet in the US - decided to organise a festival dedicated to the art form. The three-day intensive event that starts tomorrow and is open to participants with a minimum of one to two years of consistent training in ballet, features an array of classes, seminars, ballet film screenings, panel discussions and networking opportunities.
"At the heart of the festival are eight teachers from India and across the world. Through this mix, we wanted to show that India has highly qualified ballet teachers too," says Vasi, who has been teaching the art form for 18 years. Among Indian faculty members are Tushna Dallas and Khushcheher Dallas, while the international invitees include Cindy Jourdain, who coordinated the ballet section for the closing ceremony of the 2012 Olympics Games; Renee Chatelain, president and CEO of the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge, USA; and Michel Casanovas, choreographer, teacher, and practitioner of the Feldenkrais Method across Europe and India.
From : November 24 to 26, 8 am onwards
At : Future School for Performing Arts, inside Bharti Workshop, 167 CST Road, Kalina, Santacruz East.
Register : goo.gl/Vri1uR
Email : balletfestivalofindia@gmail.com
Workshop : Rs13,000 plus tax
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