Natya

A great overview of the important work that Natya does to perpetuate the culture and values of Bharata Natyam!

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Something magical happened last week. Almost 200 dancers, singers, acrobats and musicians took to the stage at Chicago's Harris Theatre and transported capacity audiences to a place of awe, beauty, magic - and, above all, love.

We can't think of a better way to celebrate the holidays!

We could not be happier that SITA RAM, which Natya created in collaboration with the Chicago Children's Choir and Lookingglass Theatre Company, was an unqualified success with a diverse ... continue reading »

Krithika Rajagopalan of Natya Dance Theatre (center), David Kersnar of Lookingglass Theatre Company (right), and Josephine Lee of Chicago Children's Choir (left) brought Sita Ram, an original world musical, to the stage at Harris Theater for Music and Dance on December 14 and 15, 2012, for three critically acclaimed performances.

In 2002, Josephine Lee commissioned David Kersnar and Jai Uttal to create a world musical that reflects the rich diversity and cultures of Chicago. Premiered ... continue reading »

On Saturday, April 14, Natya presented the world premiere of PUSHED TO THE EDGE, which was created in collaboration with Mordine and Company Dance Theater, one of Chicago's oldest and most critically acclaimed contemporary dance companies. The premiere took place at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie and generated a positive response from members of the diverse audience. Here are a few comments taken from our audience survey:

Great concert, great ... continue reading »

8 pm, Saturday, April 14, North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie

The fourth collaboration between critically acclaimed Chicago choreographers Hema Rajagopalan and Shirley Mordine, PUSHED TO THE EDGE continues their thoughtful examination of Eastern and Western cultures through movement, allowing the physicalities of each company, Mordine & Co. Dance Theater and Natya Dance Theatre, to exist alongside each other, equally celebrated.

PUSHED TO THE EDGE will demonstrate ... continue reading »

The Natya Dance Theatre School has started two new children's beginner classes, at the convenient times and locations shown below, so if you have a child age four-and-a-half or older who would like to learn Bharata Natyam, now is the time! For more information, contact Program Coordinator Bill Jordan at (312) 212-1240, or bill@natya.com. Hema Rajagopalan teaches in Natya's Downers Grove Studio.

Sundays, 10:00-11:00 am
Natya Dance Theatre Studio
1524 Centre Circle ... continue reading »

Join us for The Flowering Tree. Hema and Krithika choreograph 16 dancers, Rajkumar Bharathy creates an original score with 27 musicians, Dipankar Mukherjee Director of Pangea World Theatre directs Natya Dance Theatre's - The Flowering Tree. Natya creates a world premiere bringing Dance, Theatre and World Music together in an amazing evening of awareness, social change, and a hope of building a strong relationship between humanity and nature.

This past weekend, at St Louis Indian Dance Festival 2011, Artistic Director Hema Rajagopalan was awarded the Soorya Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of her lifetime creative contributions of outstanding artistic significance to the field of Indian dance. We're all very proud of her here at Natya!

Natya will be returning to St Louis on May 27th for Dance St. Louis' Spring to Dance 2011. We will be presenting a new work, entitled "Interior Landscapes" ... continue reading »

Natya Dance Theatre is thrilled to announce that we have received a grant from the New Stages for Dance Initiative, funded by MetLife Foundation and administered by Dance/USA and its Chicago partner, Audience Architects. The grant will fund the development and presentation of a new work, "Pushed to the Edge", created in collaboration with Mordine & Co. Dance Theater. Look out for this novel exploration of dance in Spring 2012 at the North Shore ... continue reading »

Natya will take a major step in its artistic life on October 8, 2011, with the world premiere of The Flowering Tree at Chicago's Harris Theater. This will be the first time Natya has performed its own bill at this prestigious venue. Conceived and choreographed by Natya founder and artistic director, Hema Rajagopalan and Natya associate artistic director and principal dancer, Krithika Rajagopalan, The Flowering Tree will be a truly international, multicultural ... continue reading »

On November 13, students of all ages offered a free public performance at the Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago in Lemont, IL. Annaul Day gives these students, who are all disciples of Natya founder and artistic director, Hema Rajagopalan, the opportunity to perform for family and friends but also for the public. "This is an opportunity for our students to gain confidence in their growing abilities," Ms. Rajagopalan said. "It's also a chance for people outside the ... continue reading »

Natya took to the stage August 30 to present Padma: The Evening Rose, at this prestigious Chicago venue. Padma was set to original music by the Natya Dance Theatre orchestra and also to the music of Chopin. This was Natya's first appearance at the Pavilion in an evening timeslot. In 2008, the company performed at the Pavilion with cellist Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble before an audience of 13,000.

July 29-August 1, Natya partnered with Mordine & Company, one of Chicago's best-known contemporary dance companies, to present Encountering the Other, which brought together Bharata Natyam and contemporary dance to explore the challenges of cross cultural communication. Performances of this innovative work were offered at the Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA) Storefront Theater in downtown Chicago and drew a diverse audience. Encountering the Other drew ... continue reading »

Vidya Govind-Thomas, a senior disciple of Hema Rajagopalan, was the proud recipient of a Level I ($3,000) Award in dance from YoungArts, the core program of the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts (NFAA), and was a Presidential Scholar semi-finalist. YoungArts winners are chosen from nearly 8,000 applicants. YoungArts celebrates and rewards exceptional student artists from across the U.S. in nine artistic fields: cinematic ... continue reading »