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NEW YORK, NEW YORK, July 15, 2003: Five beautifully trained dancers from India’s Nrityagram Dance Ensemble received a standing ovation at the Central Park Summer Stage. The ensemble is from Nrityagram, a dance village in Karnataka set up by the late Protima Bedi. The moment artistic director Surupa Sen was revealed under a solitary red light, in a Goddess Durga war pose, there was pin-drop silence. Bijoyini Satpathy, barely visible in the half-light, circled her — a devotee making offerings. The 45-minute performance called “Sridevi,” dedicated to mother Goddess Durga, had begun. “Aarabhi Pallavi”, which followed, was a restaging by Sen of an old piece by Odissi genius Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra and performed by Ayona Bhaduri, Priyambada Pattanaik and Pavitra Reddy. The evening ended with “Shiv Tandav Moksh” in which Satpathy, accompanied by Reddy and Pattnaik, captured the fierce power of Lord Siva, the Lord of Dance in His cosmic form. The Nrityagram Dance Ensemble is possibly the only dance company from South Asia which has made it to the top rank of dance companies that tour the United States.

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