Press Release: Ragamala Dance Company makes Santa Fe debut with a stunning performance exploring humanity’s relationship to nature

Minnesota-based Bharatanatyam troupe to perform Sacred Earth on April 2

Santa Fe, NM, March 7, 2023 – Outstanding practitioners of the South Indian dance form Bharatanatyam, the Ragamala Dance Company fuses timeless stories and myths of the Indian subcontinent with contemporary themes of human experience, offering “some of the most transcendent experiences that dance has to offer” (New York Times). Under the co-directorship of Ranee Ramaswamy and Aparna Ramaswamy, the company creates multi-disciplinary dance works, engaging the community, and educating the next generation through teaching and performance. Their Sacred Earth program is a breathtaking original work exploring the interconnectedness between human emotions and the environment that shapes them. Performed with live musical accompaniment, the dancers create a sacred space to honor the divinity in the natural world and the sustenance we derive from it.

Presented through the generosity of Natalie Beller and Heritage Hotels and Resorts
22–23 Season Sponsors: Ann Murphy Daily and William W. Daily; Leah Gordon

Details

Ragamala Dance Company: Sacred Earth. South Indian dance presented with live musical accompaniment, exploring themes of humanity’s relationship to nature. Ranee Ramaswamy and Aparna Ramaswamy, Artistic Co-Directors. Presented by Performance Santa Fe at the Lensic Performing Arts Center. Sunday, April 2, 4 pm. Tickets: $35–$115. PerformanceSantaFe.org, 505 984 8759.

About Ragamala Dance Company

Ranee Ramaswamy and Aparna Ramaswamy, Artistic Co-Directors

Under the leadership of South Indian American artists Ranee Ramaswamy and Aparna Ramaswamy, Ragamala Dance Company creates original dance works for the stage. Through creating multi-disciplinary dance works, engaging the community, and educating the next generation, Ragamala epitomizes intercultural and immigrant narratives that evoke a shared sense of humanity. Rooted in the South Indian dance form of Bharatanatyam, Ragamala seeks to realize the kindred relationship between ancient and contemporary that is urgently needed in today’s world.

Founded by Ranee in 1992, Ragamala is now celebrating its 30^th Anniversary Season. Ragamala has toured extensively throughout the U.S., India, and abroad, highlighted by the Joyce Theater, Lincoln Center, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, American Dance Festival, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Cal Performances, Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi, Just Festival, Bali Arts Festival, Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, and National Centre for Performing Arts (Mumbai, India), among others. In September 2021, Ranee and Aparna’s Fires of Varanasi: Dance of the Eternal Pilgrim was selected to open the Kennedy Center’s 50^th Anniversary celebration. https://www.ragamaladance.org/

Hailed by The New York Times as “a master of abhinaya… her careful art glimmers with the strangeness of the divine,” Ranee Ramaswamy (Co-Creator/Choreographer/Principal Dancer)isFounding Artistic Director of Ragamala Dance Company. As a dancemaker, performer, and culture bearer, Ranee’s creative vision is driven by a profound commitment to the artistic lineage imparted to her through four decades of training under legendary Bharatanatyam dancer/choreographer Padmabhushan Smt. Alarmél Valli, intertwined with a pioneering spirit of innovation and collaboration across culture and discipline.

Since immigrating to the U.S. in 1978, Ranee has been a trailblazer, working tirelessly to create a place for her culturally rooted choreographic work on the major stages of the U.S. dance landscape. Ranee serves on the National Council on the Arts, appointed by President Barack Obama. Her honors include a Guggenheim Fellowship, Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, Bogliasco Foundation Fellowship (Italy), Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Research Fellowship (Italy), United States Artists Fellowship, McKnight Distinguished Artist Award, Bush Choreography Fellowship, and 14 McKnight Fellowships for Choreography and Interdisciplinary Art, among many others. www.raneeramaswamy.com

Described by The New York Times as“thrillingly three-dimensional… rapturous and profound,” Aparna Ranaswamy (Co-Creator/Choreographer/Principal Dancer)is a dancemaker, performer, and culture bearer whose work mines the artistic, philosophical, and intellectual depths of her artistic lineage, evolving ancestral and cultural knowledge in the diaspora as a catalyst for contemporary human thought. She is the life-long disciple and hand-picked protégé of legendary dancer/choreographer Padmabhushan Smt. Alarmél Valli, one of India’s greatest living masters, who has selected Aparna as the artist to carry her artistic lineage into the future.

As Executive Artistic Director of Ragamala Dance Company, Aparna has catalyzed a bold new vision for Bharatanatyam in the diaspora, charting previously unimagined paths for South Asian dance in the U.S. Aparna’s choreographic work ranges from emotionally spacious yet intimate solo presentations performed with live music, to large-scale, multidisciplinary theatrical works. Her honors include a Guggenheim Fellowship, Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, Bogliasco Foundation Residential Fellowship (Italy), Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Research Fellowship (Italy), Joyce Award, four McKnight Fellowships for Dance and Choreography, and the 2022 Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award from Carleton College, among others. www.aparnaramaswamy.net

Jupiter Ensemble: All-Vivaldi. Selections of vocal and instrumental music by the Baroque composer. Presented by Performance Santa Fe at St. Francis Auditorium at the New Mexico Museum of Art. Tuesday, March 21, 7:30 pm. Tickets: $35–$115. PerformanceSantaFe.org, 505 984 8759.

About Performance Santa Fe

Performance Santa Fe has been bringing the very best of music, dance, and theater to iconic Santa Fe locations since 1937. Now in its 86th season, the organization upholds excellence in the performing arts and brings joy and enrichment to the community. Alongside its extensive performance season, the organization runs three dynamic, exciting, and inclusive educational programs for students in the community— Arts for Life, the Masterclass Series, and the Field Trip Series. PSF’s 2022-2023 season brings 27 performances to Santa Fe and celebrates the diverse possibilities of artistic expression. Learn more at PerformanceSantaFe.org. Performance Santa Fe is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.

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