Dancer Uday Shankar: Integrating
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DANCER UDAY SHANKAR: INTEGRATING EAST AND WEST by Jayantee Paine submitted to the Faculty of the College of Arts and Science of the American University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Performing Arts, Dance Signature of Committee Members: Chair ‘ Nmrna Prevotsr~p y r iA juxJL, Brupe C. Robertson 'I'/huJLlut-c H. Donahue Dean^f College of Arts and Science Date 2000 American University Washington, D.C. 20016 MEMCM OMVERSm UMMU | Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number 1402148 ___ ® UMI UMI Microform 1402148 Copyright 2001 by Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. To mvv 4oarents Ramen & Julie Paine Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. DANCER UDAY SHANKAR: INTEGRATING EAST AND WEST By Jayantee Paine ABSTRACT Indian dancer, choreographer and teacher Uday Shankar (1900-1977) was heavily influenced by western dance and integrated many western dance ideas into all aspects of his work in dance. He did this during the 1920s through the late 1930s in a period when Indian dance was heavily traditional and isolated from western ideas. Analysis consists of Shankar’s performance background, choreography and teaching methods. Uday Shankar is a very important dance figure in India and also was the first Indian dancer to tour Europe and America. His company continues to exist in India after his death, and is directed by his wife Amala Shankar. The teaching methods he developed are also continued today under his wife’s direction and by his daughter and daughter-in-law. ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. PREFACE This is the first study to fully analyze Uday Shankar’s choreography and U « tM fl o«^ mo • T« <4< J n« « a n J f U ^ W « n ^ n r icaciiiiih, itis iiiiiuciicc uii cuiiidiipuiui^ iaiuian uaucc, emu uic tuiiuiiuauuu Gi ilia tuCaS through the current company. In his choreography, Shankar was able to integrate ideas from dance as it developed in Europe and America. The author is able to provide a unique perspective because of her access to private videos and her period of study with Shankar’s son. The author is also an expert in traditional Indian dance forms, and this allows for in-depth comparison and analysis of the ways in which Shankar’s work developed and went beyond these forms. Shankar’s teaching methods alsc provide an important perspective on his integration of Indian and contemporary western dance ideas. His studios attracted many students; his influence was far reaching. A careful look at the company and studio today shows how Shankar’s ideas have been developed further with new and important influences from contemporary dance. This thesis is based on oral interviews, private dance videos, rehearsals, and classes with Shankar and his family. The author will use her own training and background as source material. The author’s study and training is in two classical forms of Indian dance: Odissi and Mohiniattam. Reviews of Shankar’s performances will be used. Videotapes of specific choreographic works have been made available to the author. These include excerpts and complete versions of the following choreography: “Machinery,” “Snanam,” “Mother,” and “Dream.” Personal experience in performing and rehearsing with Shankar’s son will also be included as a primary source. Secondary sources will include theses and in Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. dissertations such as Ruth Abraham’s The Life and Art of Udav Shankar (1986) and Uttara Asha Coorlawala’s Classical and Contemporary Indian dance: Overview, criteria and a choreographic analysis. (1994). Books will also be used as secondary sources, such as Mohan Khokar’s His Dance. His Life (1983) and Traditions of Indian Classical Dance (1979), and Dibyendu Ghosh's The Great Shankars; Udav. Ravi (1983). iv Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my teacher, mentor and advisor. Dr. Naima Prevots, Chair, Performing Arts Department and Director of Dance, for guiding me and encouraging me to explore the topic of Uday Shankar’s contribution to Indian dance. Her knowledge and support gave me the confidence to proceed with this paper. I am also grateful to Mrs. Ann Donahue for all the wonderful things I learned in her classes and from watching her dance compositions. I am grateful to Dr. Bruce Robertson. Director of South Asia Studies at the State Department Foreign language Institute, for sharing his knowledge of Indian arts, culture and studies with me. He constantly encouraged me to speak about and demonstrate Indian dances for American Diplomats going to India. I would like to thank both Mrs. Donahue and Dr. Robertson for reading my paper. My mother and father's perseverance in continuing studies of the dance arts of India, furthering my dance education at the University and devoting my time to performing arts, is one of the reasons I was able to begin this research project. I am blessed that they are the driving forces behind all of my artistic and dance endeavors. I graciously thank Dr. Pradeep Ganguly for being there for me at all times during the writing of this paper, for believing in me, patiently encouraging me to finish and waiting for me. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT....................................................................................................ii PREFACE....................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS..........................................................................v Chapter 1. DANCE IN INDIA FROM 1920-1945...................................1 2. UDAY SHANKAR’S BACKGROUND AND EARLY DEVELOPMENT..................................................... 10 3. SELECTIONS FROM SHANKAR’S CHOREOGRAPHY................................................................. 34 4. UDAY SHANKAR’S TEACHING METHODS AND PHILOSOPHY...............................................................48 5. CONCLUSION ......................................................................... 59 BIBLIOGRAPHY.........................................................................................65 VI Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER I INDIAN DANCE - 1920-1945 TTHn*roUuji JiiuiiAiU 'voc»>uO ao ptOiiwwt m in utuiuii Tn/^ion tiiUUwuirnoHorn uuitwv.Honra TK<»i tiw ronoiccqnrpt wiiuijOuiiwv **4in LTnHionitututt dance, which began in the late 1920s and flowered in the 1930s, is part of Uday Shankar’s development as an artist. His major contributions manifested themselves during the last years of British colonial rule; before India’s independence in 1947, Shankar benefited from the pioneering work of several individuals and in turn was able to influence future generations. Indian dance was practically dormant in the early twentieth century because of British colonialism, and there was complete degradation and disrespect for classical dances demonstrated by the respectable and notable members of society, both British and Indian. The arts of dancing and singing were shunned as base, disgraceful and scandalous. Participation in dance events had become unacceptable by the