| 5th Summer School of Studio Kalari |
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Leaders: Sankar Lal Sivasankaran Nair (Studio Kalari) and Chitrangee Uppamah Sat–Sun 4–12 July 2015 Brzezinka, forest base of the Grotowski Institute The Summer School will include classes in the martial art of kalarippayattu (Southern style) and in the kuchipudi dance form. Despite their differences, these two forms of spiritual and artistic expression have much in common, including power, dynamics, energy, co-ordination, beauty and precision. For beginners, the school will provide an introduction to these two systems of practice, and for advanced students – an opportunity to develop their skills. Kuchipudi is an Indian dance from Andhra Pradesh, a state in southern India. Originally a prayer, it is one of the seven classical Indian dances. Kuchipudi dancers enact mythological stories to the strains of traditional South Indian Carnatic music. Their movements are graceful, elegant and noble. Kuchipudi has much in common with bharata natyam, but has several distinctive features including a dance performed on the edges of a brass plate, with a pot full of water on the dancer’s head and two oil lamps in her hands. Participants will learn basic postures; mudras (hand gestures); neck, eye and head movements; steps; as well as gestures and facial expressions (bhavas). They will also acquire basic knowledge on classical Indian dances, with emphasis on the kuchipudi style, as well as on Carnatic music. Chitrangee Uppamah is a Mauritian dancer, choreographer and teacher of Indian origin, the only exponent of kuchipudi in Italy, where she lives. Well-known in Italy and the rest of Europe, she has collaborated with many world-renowned artists. Chitrangee started dancing at the age of 14 under the guidance of acclaimed teachers Premila Uppamah (Mahatma Gandhi Institute, Mauritius) and Sathyapriya Ramana, a disciple of legendary dancer and guru Vempati Chinna Satyama, the founder of the Narthana Saala School in Madras. She graduated from the Mahatma Gadhi Institute in Mauritius and then studied at the Sathyapriya Kuchipudi School in Madras. She has worked as a dance teacher in Italy since 1990 – first in Catania, then in Turin. In 2002 she opened her own school, the Shruti Kuchipudi Indian Dance School, at the Reale Società Ginnastica in Turin, the oldest such organization in Italy and one of the oldest in Europe.  Kalarippayattu is a martial art from Kerala, South India. Rich in ritual, kalarippayattu includes the study of movement sequences, incapacitating locks, close combat techniques and handling wooden and metal weapons (sticks, knives, swords and spears) as well as strengthening, stretching and breathing exercises. In addition to physical training, kalarippayattu includes a unique healing system closely related to Ayurveda. It includes, among other things, massages that heal the body and make it more flexible, and the knowledge of marmas, the vital points of the human body. Elements of kalarippayattu have for centuries been used in the traditional training of Kerala actors and dancers, e.g. in kathakali. Regular kalarippayattu practice improves flexibility, agility and body coordination as well as developing strength, stamina and concentration. Most importantly, however, it helps its practitioners to become aware of their potential, improves their capability to control energy as well as developing their spiritual awareness. Participants will learn the first few sequences of movements (cuvadukal), stick spinning (sarira vathi), as well as strengthening and stretching exercises. Emphasis will be put on precision, co-ordination and body awareness. Sankar Lal Sivasankaran Nair is a kalarippayattu teacher and certified Ayurvedic massage therapist born in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. Sankar started studying the Southern style of kalarippayattu in 1990. His masters have included Tirupuram C. Madhavan (Anjaneya Kalari Sangham), Jayachandran Nair (Kerala School of Martial Arts), Thankappan Assan and Ajith Kumar (Maruthi Marma Chikilsa Kalari Sangham and Ayurveda). His current master is Raja Gopalan Assan. He received a diploma in ayurvedic massage after studying ayurvedic treatment and massage in Thiruvananthapuram between 1999 and 2008 (including at the Institute of Ayurvedic Studies, at Maruthi Marma Chikilsa Kalari Sangham, and at the private hospitals of ayurvedic doctors P. S. Sharma and B. S. Jacob). He also worked as a therapist at theSivam Ayurvedic Hospital. Between 2005 and 2008 he worked with Milón Méla, an Indian theatre group, co-conducting numerous workshops and performing at festivals across India and Europe. In 2008 he moved to Wroc³aw, Poland. Sankar teaches Southern Kalarippayattu (he runs regular classes in Wroc³aw as well as workshops in Poland and abroad, among others in Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Russia and India) and practices Ayurvedic massage (ayurvedam.pl). He is a co-founder of Studio Kalari, which operates as part of the BodyConstitution research programme of the Grotowski Institute. More information: www.studiokalari.art.pl  Photo galleries from previous years Schedule Sat 4 July, afternoon: travel from Wroc³aw to Brzezinka Sun–Sat 3–9 July 7:30–9:00 kuchipudi 9:30 breakfast 10:30–12:30 kalarippayattu 13:30 lunch 15:00–17:00 kuchipudi 18:00–20:00 kalarippayattu 20:30 dinner Sun 12 July, morning: return to Wroc³aw Fee Kalarippayattu and kuchipudi classes: 280 EUR*/410 EUR Kalarippayattu: 200 EUR*/300 EUR Kuchipudi: 200 EUR*/300 EUR *Participants from Central and Eastern Europe. Fee includes: work sessions, transport (Wroc³aw–Brzezinka–Wroc³aw) as well as food and lodging (participants prepare the meals and clean the working space). Please transfer the fee by 20 June 2015 to the bank account of the Grotowski Institute, Rynek-Ratusz 27, 50-101 Wroclaw, Poland, Bank PKO BP SA, SWIFT: BPKOPLPW, IBAN: PL 98 1020 5226 0000 6602 0416 7565, with the reference “Studio Kalari Summer School 2015”. Those who cancel after June 20 will get a 50% refund. Contact and application Please email your completed application form to Justyna Rodziñska-Nair at studio@studiokalari.art.pl (+48 509 345 995) by 20 June 2015. The number of places is limited. Upcoming workshops |