BALAM Dance Theatre: Past Summer Events

Past Summer Events

Photo of Nani Devi by Julie Lemberger

Sunday, July 21, 2-3 p.m., The Faces of Love, FREE

BALAM Out & About series. Fort Lee Public Library. 320 Main St., Fort Lee, NJ 07024 . (Out & About Series)

An eclectic collection of dances that demonstrate different kinds of love, from romantic to martial passions. Dance styles presented include Balinese, Baroque, Spanish, Japanese Noh and contemporary dance. For the audience's pleasure and enrichment, dvds created by BALAM offer brief introductions on the culture and history of each of the pieces.

Photo of Toshinori Hamada as Rahwana by Julie Lemberger
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Friday, July 12. 11 a.m.-12 p.m. Ramayana: Abduction of Sita

Hunter Elementary School gymnasium, 7794 Main St, Hunter, NY 12442. Free and open to the public. The performance will highlight new choreographic segments and animal characters performed by the children with BALAM's performers.

Support is provided in part by the Puffin Foundation Ltd. and the Catskill Mountain Foundation.

Sunday, Aug. 18, 3-4 p.m. Summer Integrated Arts Faculty Recital

Suggested Donation $18. Eugene D. Nesin Theatre, 22 St John St., Monticello, NY 12701

Carlos Fittante in Message Home performing diverse musical works are Pascal Archer of Exponential Ensemble, Kenneth Hamrick of American Virtuosi, Akiko Hosoi and Andrew Trombley-Directors of the Nesin Cultural Arts Aspiring Young Artists program, Rachel Evans-Baroque violin and Nancy Wegrzyn-Viola, Jessica Nesin and Jeffrey Young on piano, and Mauricio Villalobos singing.

Sunday, Sept. 15, 12-1 p.m., Enchanted Dances of the Forest

FREE. Peter Jay Sharp Children’s Glade in Central Park located at 105th St. and Central Park West. NY, NY.

Photo: Julie Lemberger

Program

● Oleg Tambulilingan, a traditional Balinese dance duet known as the love dance of the bumblebees, with Nani Devi and Carlos Fittante

● Audience Balinese dance lesson

● El Beso de España sung by Inma Heredia

● La-Tinita with Robin Gilbert
● Una Paloma Blanca sung by Inma Heredia and danced by Olsi Gjeci as a masked winged bird and Robin Gilbert as La-Tinta

● La Madrileña, a 19th century flirtatious Spanish Escuela Bolera dance with castanets, performed by Barbara Romero of Danzas Españolas

● Audience Lesson in Spanish dance

● Ramayana: Abduction of Sita, an action packed story ballet inspired by the Hindu epic, blending Balinese and diverse movement styles

Monday, Oct. 14, 1:45-2:45 p.m., Captivating Rhythms, FREE

Woman's Club of Englewood

187 Brinckerhoff Ct., Englewood, NJ 07631

Terunajaya

Video excerpt Isle of Bali

Caracoles Antiguos

Fandangos de Huelva

El Vito

Video Introduction of the Escuela Bolera

Garuda Gila

Teaching in the Community

August 11-23. Nesin Summer Institute. Nesin Cultural Arts. An opera workshop for children with original music motifs by Nancy Wegrzyn and instruction in choreography by BALAM Dance Theatre. Monticello, NY.

Sunday, June 30. 10-1 p.m. Yoga, Karate and Balinese dance workshop for the Venice Youth Group of the Ecclesial Carmelite Movement. NYC, closed to the public

July 1-12. Monkey Chant for the Catskill Mountains, a workshop and performance residency. Hunter, NY.

BALAM will present a workshop inspired by the Balinese Kecak for children from Hunter and Tannersville, New York.

July 15-18. Nesin International Music Festival

BALAM will teach period dances and classes for teenage music students with a focus on rhythm and embodying music at Monticello High School (MHS). Monticello, NY. (MHS graduate, Emma Lauferweiler performs a minuet.)

About BALAM

BALAM has performed throughout the United States and internationally at renowned venues such as: Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, American Museum of Natural History, and the Bali International Arts Festival. Its work has received acclaim from audiences, critics, scholars, and dignitaries alike, including critical praise mentioned in the New York Times, Village Voice, and endorsements from the Indonesian Consulate of New York, and the Governor of Bali.

The company's long standing interest in dance research, along with its extensive collection of Balinese masks, and cutural costumes and props, make it a resource for educators, artists, and scholars.

The Deeper Meaning of the "Ramayana"

By Shelley Lynne Cummins, www.jaisriyogis.com/

Shelley Lynne Cummins is a yoga and Oneness Blessing trainer, as well as a dancer.

The first two limbs in the eight fold path of yoga are the Yamas, Awareness of the obstacles in life, and Niyamas, cultivating practices to remove the obstacles. As these limbs are activated in harmony, a balance or zero point arrives allowing causality to permeate. The classic tale of the Ramayana is a perfect depiction of this inner balance Of polarities producing unity.

As a dancer and yogini, I have had the great opportunity to study and dance the Ramayana for many years. Every time I enter into this great epic, new realizations are found. It is likened to the dance of day, going to sleep and awaking again in the morning for a new play. Amidst the routines of life subtle realizations appear as the mystery of unity Dances around in the unseen worlds.

A yogini's reflection of this great great tale.

The Ramayana is the story of the divine marriage within. It is everyone's story with all the players aspects of their self. The story begins with a happy and harmonious marriage of Sita and Rama. Sita symbolizes the balanced female and Rama the balanced male within each individual.

One day Sita is enticed by a golden deer into the cave of the evil demon, Rawana.

The capture of Sita is a metaphor of the ego consciousness trying to gain control over the potential of all. The golden deer represents the possible deception and false allure of the illusion of this physical plane.

Upon hearing the news of Sita's capture, Rama gives his golden ring to Hanuman the Monkey King. He orders Hanuman to deliver the ring to Sita so she will know help is on the way.

Here Rama embodies his higher masculine qualities of protection of the unseen and the absolute creation which lives in his word.

The ring symbolizes the circle of light around the body, known as the merkabah or golden carriage of light.

Hanuman the Monkey King represents our monkey mind constantly chattering. As our mind unites with the purpose of reinstalling causality, it becomes a servant of the heart. In service Hanuman flies across the ocean to deliver the ring to Sita. He is able to tap into the One Heart Mind And use his merkabah to transport himself where needed.

Hanuman delivers the ring to Sita and upon his return tells Rama of her whereabouts. Rama goes to fight the evil demon, Rawana, for the release of Sita.

Rama is fighting the ultimate battle of light and dark in order to regain the feminine intuitive, All knowing, nurturing life force. The light always wins as it illuminates the dark corners and shadows. Rama reunites with Sita and together they live happily ever after in the diversity and play of unity.

And to think we know the whole story, the entire ring in the circle of life.We boldly go on experiencing each section of the ring.

As Joseph Campbell says: We are each a heroine or hero on a great journey.We begin enlightened creating a life of experiences in order to realize and reunite with our all encompassing light.