Getting off on the right foot

The Attakkalari Centre for Movement of Arts (ACMA) launched ‘Attakkalari India Biennial 2015’ at Ranga Shankara recently.

The event saw a multitude of independent artistes, corporates and people from different sectors. The highlight of the evening was the discussion on the incorporation of dance into the education system.

The artistic director of ACMA, Jayachandran Palazhy, spoke about the importance of incorporating dance in schools and colleges. “A national educational framework has to be worked out so that students get more opportunities to access the art form. Schools should implement this seriously so that students don’t miss them.” 

Centred around the theme of ‘Dance Connect’, the Biennial is a 10-day event from February 6 to 15, where international artistes from places like France, Belgium, Australia and Poland will be performing across different venues in the City. 

Emerging artistes and choreographers will also be trained by international artistes from January 5 to February 5 and the best works will be showcased in front of international dance directors during the Biennial at different venues like Ranga Shankara, Chowdaiah Memorial Hall and Alliance Francaise. 

Jayachandran spoke about several outreach programmes and initiatives that will be held September onwards in various schools, colleges and other educational institutes. A series of seminars, lecture demonstrations and ‘Meet the Artist’ sessions will also take place that will bring thinkers and policy makers under one roof to focus on dance concepts, theories and practices. 

The other programmes include ‘Writing on Dance’, a residency that will encourage critical thinking and new approaches in dance writing linking dance with other disciplines and ‘Dance on Camera’ which will present films and videos featuring dance enabling access to some iconic works from international scenes.

Jayachandran said that the theme for the event was decided as ‘Dance Connect’ because dance has the ability to cut acrosss boundaries and age groups. He described Bangalore as a great City for dance as it’s a city with young people.

“Bangalore is termed as the capital of contemporary dance and through generations, there has been a great response,” he said and added, “‘Attakkalari India Biennial 2015’ will mark the coming of age of contemporary dance practices in India and open up new avenues for dance artistes and audiences alike.”