Beginning in September I will be offering a weekly movement class based on the exquisite ancient devotional art of Odissi dance.
Odissi is derived from the ancient yogini temples of Orissa, India. Devadasi’s – temple dancers - devoted their lives to dancing in ritual to celebrate deities, nature’s majesty, and raw, sensual humanity. When women were forbidden to dance in India by Western invaders, the Odissi art form was held and continued, though differently, by young boys, known as Godipuas. Though stylistically the art remained recognizable, it took on an acrobatic quality. To date, Godipuas continue to captivate and amaze audiences in India.
The traditional art of Odissi was re-invented in the 1940s and continues in present day to remind dancers and audiences around the world of the divine within each of us. Our most precious and genuine essence is made manifest in the practice and performance of Odissi dance through playful expressions of masculine and feminine energies. This ancient and re-birthed dance form exquisitely crafts an intricate and harmonious relationship among spiraling, sinuous, and sensual gestures, and rhythmic stomping, distinct angles and postures, and creative story-telling, evoking images of deities and common women and men alike reveling in the glory of the human experience.
Dance has forever been a defining aspect of world cultures; a mark of humanity, community, and relationship with the divine. Invoking this now – aligning with the life-affirming potency of inner beauty – as humanity traverses pivotal milestones in consciousness and evolution, is, in my mind, an exquisite opportunity to engage in the conscientious re-patterning of our individual and collective future.
All levels of fitness and experience are welcome to participate. Drawing from my education and experience in a variety of healing arts including Yoga, Qi Gong, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Craniosacral Therapy, and Ayurveda, I will create a transformative dance fusion experience that will empower your feminine essence. Each dance session will begin with meditation and gentle inner healing practices crafted to invoke a sense of groundedness and calm, as well as deep appreciation for our beautiful, powerful bodies and minds. We will practice exercises and dance sequences specifically intended to gently stimulate inner radiance and rejuvenation, while training our bodies to move in a manner that awakens and harnesses our innate intelligence, natural confidence, and grace.
Classes will be an hour and fifteen minutes in duration, with time and space to enjoy tea, light refreshments and conversation together afterwards. Price, to be determined, will be on a sliding-scale basis, and scholarships will be available. No one who truly has the innate desire to dance will be turned away. Classes will be held at Dansstudio Laetana in Eindhoven. The Fall schedule and details for registration will be posted soon.
In the meantime, I will be offering 2 free trial classes during the month of August, one morning session and one evening session. If you would like to join me for a free trial class email me now! I will schedule these sessions based on responses to this inquiry, and will post confirmed dates next week.