Summer session will have just begun, so we hope to attract some of the students interested in other cultures to the event. The headliner of the event, Namita Bodaji, is a classically trained traditional dancer from Bombay who specializes in the Bharata Natyam style of dance. She is an internationally acclaimed performer in this demanding art form. Bharata Natyam is one of the four main classical Indian dance styles. It developed from ancient ritualistic dances, which were performed as an offering to the deities of Hindu temples and, in a more sophisticated form, in the courts by solo female dancers.
Indian dance can be both an act of religious devotion and a superb entertainment at the same time.
In a successful performance, philosophy and human emotion blend, making every sound and movement important. Sisters in Color, a Houston-based troupe specializing in West African traditional dance, will also perform. Its leader, Sister Jendyi, has been choreographing, performing and teaching African dance for more than 15 years. She has performed across the United States in theaters, festivals and dance conferences. The troupe performs dances originating in Mali, Senegal, Ghana, Gambia, Guinea and French Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Zaire and the Ivory Coast.