Arts For Youth
“Brilliant choreography, humorous, and totally spell-binding! I loved the richness of the culture that was presented.”
- Audience member and Participant
Research has shown without refute that the expressive art forms of dance, music, theater and creative writing are not only critical to a child’s well being, but help students engage and succeed in all academic areas!
Dancing Storytellers Assembly Shows
The Dancing Storytellers are multi-talented artists who transport audiences through exceptionally crafted programs that blend the contemporary with the traditional. South Asian dance and music forms collide with humor and theatricality to engage, enlighten and entertain audiences!
Currently, the Dancing Storytellers have two wonderful shows that can be booked for theaters, museums, libraries and schools. Our shows are geared for families and primary school aged children k-6.
Indian Mythology and Me
This dynamic duet artfully weaves foot rhythms, hand gestures and facial expressions into an interactive exploration of Indian mythology and its connections to our world today. Audience members are playfully integrated into the performance as each story emphasizes empathy and the power of expression in Indian dance forms. Indian Mythology and Me offers innovative and contemporary interpretations of traditional texts that reinforce human compassion and celebrate our differences.
The stories include “Bheema Meets Hanuman” from the epic Mahabharata, “The Mice That Set Elephants Free” from the Panchantantra Folktales and “Durga and Mahishasura,” a mythological story connected to the festival of Navaratri. These stories are expressed through theater and contemporary Indian dances, Kathak and Bharatanatyam, as well as the Gujarati folk dance Garba Raas. Audiences will be entertained and enlightened as they experience first-hand the power of story-telling through hand gestures, rhythms and facial expressions.
The Sum of All Things
The “Sum” of All Things illuminates the patterns of cycles in nature through South Asian dances, music and stories. Audiences will delight in Bhangra, a North Indian/Pakistani farm dance that celebrates the harvest, while exploring the life cycle of plants and what all living things need to grow. An interactive classical Indian hand dance will engage students with the cycle of a butterfly’s life, and a beautiful Sufi story will uplift our spirits as we follow a river on its cyclical journey as it evaporates into the clouds and rains down into the ocean.
This STEAM based performance incorporates science, math, dance, theater and music for an exciting and eye opening experience, while additional workshops can provide participants hands-on-explorations of arts and engineering practices.
AUDIENCE KUDOS
PRESENTER KUDOS
Workshops and Teaching Residencies in Music, Dance and Theater
Global Rhythms
Sheetal helps students to discover the subtle ways that rhythm winds its way into human lives and shapes the way we respond to our world. Participants will drum, sing, clap, stamp and move, as they discover the fun in playing with polyrhythms!
The Culture of India
Sheetal uses dance, storytelling and song to educate students about the history and culture of India and the South Asian subcontinent.
Students may learn...
- The popular Gujarati folk-dance “Dandia Raas”. This partner dance uses sticks and teaches rhythm and cooperative collaboration.
- Classical Indian dance hand gestures called “mudras”. The gestures are performed in synchronicity with recited poetry, teaching symbolism in movement, vocal articulation and compassion.
- Other forms of dance such as the popular Punjabi folk-dance called Bhangra, Bollywood dance, and the North Indian Classical dance form called Kathak.
Drama Within
Sheetal uses various modes of movement exploration and theater games to teach students important life skills including:
- a strong sense of self confidence
- a personal connection to their environment
- an ability to work with others in harmony
- creative thinking
- respect and curiosity for what is outside of their current understanding
