BALAM Dance Theatre: Golden Night, BALAM's New Year's Eve Program

BALAM will perform Golden Night on New Year's Eve in Morristown, NJ
Presbytarian Parish House Upstairs, 65 South St, Morristown, NJ 07960.
7:15-8 & 8:15-9 p.m., Festival Pass: $25. For tickets, go to /http://firstnightmorris.com/

BALAM's Artists: Nani Devi, Toshinori Hamada, Carlos Fittante.

Guest Artists: composer, Elias Guzman of New York Music and Arts Center, his student Alexandre Moreira Dumaine, Caitlin Klinger from the Dance Ensemble of the Boston Early Music Dance Festival, and Barbara Romero from Danzas Españolas.

Program

Percussion Welcome Dance (world premiere)

Choreography & Dancer: Carlos Fittante

Music: Drum orchestration composed and played by Elias Guzman, assisted by Alexandre Moreira Dumaine

Mask: Vaslav Jirovec

Costume: Edward Sylvia, Casandra Saulter

Margapati, a Balinese dance solo inspired by magnificence of a lion

Choreography & Dancer: Nani Devi after the traditional

Music: Traditional Balinese Gamelan in the Gong Kebyar style

Costume: Traditional

Folia: Fantasia Baroco Español

Choreography: Carlos Fittante in the Baroque style

Music: La Folia by Arcangelo Corelli performed by Leah Gale Nelson

Dancers: Caitlin Klinger, Carlos Fittante

Masks: Jane Stein

Costumes: Carlos Fittante, Robin Gilbert, Katherine Klinger

El Vito (Spanish Escuela Bolera dance style)

Choreography: Jerane Michelle after the traditional

Dancer: Barbara Romero

Music: traditional performed by Francisco de Goya group

Panaderos Flamenca (Andalusian folk dance style)

Choreography: Mariano Parra after the traditional

Dancers: Barbara Romero, Carlos Fittante

Music: traditional performed by Francisco de Goya group

Rey de Oriente

Music composed by Elias Guzman, performed by Elias Guzman and Alexandre Moreira Dumaine

Sunda Upasunda (a dance fusion inspired from a myth from the Hindu epic, Mahabharata)

Choreography: Toshinori Hamada

Music: I. Ketut Carter from the Semara Ratih Gamelan of Ubud, Bali

Dancers: Nani Devi, Toshinori Hamada, Carlos Fittante

Masks: Jane Stein

Costumes: Steven Campos

Photo: Julie Lemberger

BALAM Dance Theatre - Contemporary dance inspired by Balinese theatre
and world dance styles

balamdancetheatre@gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/balamdancetheatre
https://twitter.com/BALAMDance

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.