Jayachandran
Palazhy is a well-known choreographer, dancer and teacher whose
work is at the forefront of contemporary South Asian work both
in India (which is his country of origin) and the UK (where
he worked for more than a decade as a director and choreographer).
He has trained in several Indian physical forms as well as contemporary
dance at the London Contemporary Dance School. He is now based
in Bangalore and is the artistic director of Attakkalari Centre
for Movement Arts, which he set up along with artists from several
disciplines. It is a multi-faceted institution that works with
contemporary physical expressions and digital arts. Attakkalari
under Jayachandran’s leadership has evolved its own distinctive
form of contemporary dance. This form is informed and influenced
by Kalarippayattu (martial art), Yoga and Bharathanatyam (classical
Indian dance) as well as other Indian movement styles.
Attakkalari’s core team is well versed in martial arts,
classical forms of dance, yoga, contemporary techniques, body
conditioning, creative dance and dance pedagogy. The dancers
train with internationally acclaimed choreographers and teachers
and constantly upgrade and hone their skills.
The dancers of Attakkalari use all the above-mentioned styles
in teaching dance and conducting workshops. Attakkalari has
a comprehensive education programme and offers movement art
in schools and colleges as well as to professional dancers.
These workshops may be in any of the three mentioned disciplines
or it could be in Attakkalari’s unique style of movement.
Participants will have an opportunity to work with principles
that govern Indian physical traditions such as eye focus,
Mudras and other micro movements. The sinuous and earthy quality
of Kalarippayattu as well as the use of breath from Yoga and
the distilled lines of Bharathanatyam feature in the workshops
too. Attakkalari also conducts specially designed workshops
and residencies for specific groups according to their needs.
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