The Artists
Anandavalli is an internationally-renowned dancer, choreographer and teacher of Bharatha Natyam and Kuchipudi, with a carer spanning over 38 years. She began her training at the age of seven and was discovered by the late Professor P.Sambamoorthy, one of the greatest authorities on Indian music and dance, who later recorded that Anandavalli ‘was born with bells on her feet’. Her mother Lingambikai, daughter of the late Professor C. Suntharalingam, accepted the responsibility of cultivating the natural ability of this child prodigy.
Described by international dance connoisseurs as one of the finest artistes of his generation, Ramli Ibrahim has set stages ablaze in venerated centres of dance from Australia and India to Paris for more than three decades. His rigorous training in ballet, modern and Indian classical dance reflects not only his diverse technical accomplishments, but also his multifaceted approach to the arts. As artistic director and principal choreographer of the Sutra Dance Theatre, he has been a fountain of creativity, conceiving stunning works with a personal signature and distinctive Malaysian identity.
American-born Chinese composer Alex Dea is trained in Western classical music and received a Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology from Wesleyan University, with a specialty in Javanese gamelan music. Mentors include prominent avant-garde composers La Monte Young, Terry Riley, and Robert Ashley. He studied raga for five years with the late Hindustani master, Pandit Pran Nath.
Astad Deboo has been described as a pioneer of modern dance in India. He has extensive training in the Kathak and the Kathakali styles (the Indian classical dance forms). Astad trained in the Martha Graham dance technique and was an apprentice under Pina Bausch of the Wuppertal Dance Company and Alison Chase of the Pilobolus Dance Company. Along with these and other experiences with various dance companies in Japan and Indonesia, he has created a dance theatre style of his own.
From being a pioneer in bringing the electric guitar to international acclaim as a concert instrument for the ancient Indian art form of Carnatic music, to being a force in the cutting edge of Jazz, Classical and World music, Prasanna continues to stun music enthusiasts with an ever-evolving palette of vocabulary as a composer and improviser.
Albert is a choreographer, dancer and teacher of contemporary dance and jazz. His dance creations incorporate aboriginal traditional dance, including dances from the Torres Strait Islands. Albert has spent time with various indigenous communities throughout Australia and with the permission of Aboriginal elders, Albert is able to draw upon what he has learnt from these communities and from his own Torres Strait Islands community to teach and choreograph contemporary traditional dance.
A consummate dancer, Veshnu is one of a very few Indian classical dancers from Singapore to have achieved a high professional status in the art-form. He has developed his kinetic skills both in the traditional genre of Bharatha Natyam as well as in the innovative sphere of new dance vocabulary.
Seran’s initial training in Bharatha Natyam started at the age of 12 under Usha Karunakaran. In 1998 in preparation for his <emArengetram</em> (dance debut) Seran went to Chennai in South India, where he underwent rigorous training in the art form under the renowned ‘dancing duo’ the Dhananjayans. Back in Sydney he presented his dance debut under the able guidance of Dhamayanthy Balaruju.
Born in Sri Lanka and having lived in Indonesia, Singapore and Papua New Guinea, Kavita started learning Bharatha Natyam at the age of four under Smt. Neila Sathyalingam in Singapore. Migrating to Australia in 1986, Kavita was one of Anandavalli’s very first students and the first graduate of the Lingalayam Dance Academy to perform her Arangetram (dance debut) in 1994. Having performed in all the Dance Academy productions, she has been a member of the Lingalayam Dance Company since its inception in 1996. Kavita has an unwavering, grounded love for this ancient art form.
Saipriya was initiated into the art of Bharatha Natyam at the tender age of five, while living in Nigeria. Furthering her training in Sri Lanka she performed her Arangetram in 1992 at the age of ten. After migrating to Australia, Saipriya came under the tutelage of Anandavalli in 1993 as a student of the Lingalayam Dance Academy. Joining the Lingalayam Dance Company in 2001, the intervening years saw her blossom into a disciplined and dedicated dancer.