Posted by marie (207.118.106.72) on May 29, 2005 at 14:58:46:

 In Reply to: dance practise

Posted by shantha on May 25, 2005 at 09:31:28:

On injury:

Thanks for the encouragement, Shanta. I am trying to stay on the positive side since I injured myself 1 year ago, and am still having problems. I took about four months off to recover, which it did about %90. At that time I did no stomping, only static postures I could maintain without pain, and I would hold them for as long as I could. I resumed adavu practice slowly and with caution. Soon I was able to dance just fine again, so long as I listened to my body. Now it has flared up again for no apparent reason (it is a nerve problem) and I cannot walk without pain. Dance has become a part of my life and not being able to jump up and do what I want with my body is something I've never had to deal with before for this length of time. I suspect it is brining maturity into my life but it is hard to see when in the midst of it. I am wondering, perhaps prematurely, if Bharata Natyam is not the style I shoud be studying right now because of the aggresive footwork that seems to easily aggrivate my foot. But since I have a couple years of hard work into it, it would be hard to give up! I have had some Odissi training and have thought of just taking up that style exclusively, since there is a lot I can work on without the full use of my foot (torso and wrist movements). The only teacher of that style is a couple hours from where I live, and regular lessons are a problem. One way or the other, I must keep dancing. There is no other option for me. I have been looking my whole life for this art, and now that it has found me I must follow it!

Styles:

Does anyone have thoughts on Bharata Natyam vs. Odissi insofar as injury and the ability to practice late into one's life is concerned? Odissi seems less strenuous and it seems like one could do pure dance later in life whereas Bharata Natyam pure dance seems like it would be harder to do later in life. Any thoughts on the two styles in general?

On maturity:

One benefit that I think is being honed in me in the process of dealing with the blow of a long-term injury is ego tempering. It is stripping away pride that I have brought to the dance with my own athleticism and sheer determination in the physical sphere. It is making my love for the dance mature, and my appreciation for small, subtle movements develop where before I was impressed with the dynamic athleticism more. I feel that it is causing me to appreciate the full range of the dance more completely: equally loving the expressional pieces, becoming more aware of the relationship between dancer/audience, noticing the fine line between loving dancing and self promotion (I recently saw a performance where the dancer seemed very conceited and interested in being a beautiful dancer, but not interested in communicating with the audience. Her movements were technically proficient and graceful, her expressions seemed generated by an attitude of "Look at me, aren't I gorgeous?" It wasn't pleasurable to watch, I felt like I was watching someone prance in front of the mirror in excessive self admiration, like she was there to boost herself above the audience in the spotlight. Yes, she was a great dancer, technically, but there was also something desperately missing; the love for the audience was not there. Another person watching the dance I spoke with thought the same, it was subtle yet distracting and took away from the art.) I have learned that dance can be used as a lever for vanity, and to watch out for that in myself. Anyway, my injury has caused me to become aware of motives people (including and most of all, myself) bring to the dance. If I REALLY love it, my love for dance and my dancing will endure all odds.

Despite the pain of not being able to dance like I want to, I can still dance, but I must find smaller movements, invested with love for the dance, and fill them out. Masters of dance captivate and audience with the smallest getsture, and that takes years of knowing and cultivating the magic that a getsture must be filled with. I know that even when injured to the point of not being able to beat my feet, I can cultivate that magic; in acting training it is often called "intention." I hope that my injury will make my intention more pure and powerful. I think it is, however slowly, so this whole thing is a bittersweet experience right now.

Thoughts, anyone?