Movements and Migration: Understanding Race and Caste in Bharatanatyam Choreography in the United States

Since the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, it is even viewed as a form of cultural education and expression for South Asians in the United States. Placing Bharatanatyam practice in the context of anti-Blackness and Asian American citizenship in the United States, Dr. Ramaprasad asks how South Asian American dancers navigate issues relating to colorism, racism, and casteism within choreography.  This lecture studies three Bharatanatyam pieces of choreography in the context of the Black Lives Matter movement.  Ramaprasad draws on Suraj Yengde’s theorization of Dalit and Black American solidarities and uses movement analysis and ethnography, to reveal how Bharatanatyam’s appropriative past and transnational presence in the United States impact dancers' engagement with race and caste in different creative ways.  

Dr. Preethi Ramaprasad is a dancer, curator, musician, and researcher. Her journey teaching and performing Bharatanatyam has led to artistic community-building endeavors across India, Europe, and the United States. She co-runs When Eyes Speak Choreography Festival, The Varnam Salon, and Performing Voices of Bhakti which aim to create safe spaces to share South Asian expression in the diaspora. Ramaprasad has a doctorate in Critical Dance Studies from UC Riverside where her dissertation focused on representation and the performance of myth among transnational Bharatanatyam practitioners. Ramaprasad's work has been funded by and earned accolades through the San Francisco Arts Commission and SF Public Library Residency, American Society for Theater Research, Gluck Fellows Program, Zellerbach Family Foundation, American Conservatory Theater ArtShare Program, Deborah Slater Dance Theater, SAFEhouse Arts Lead Resident Fellowship, and the All-Rounder Yuva Kala Bharati for Young Artists. More at preethiramaprasad.com.