Indian dancing

A Stee i

7

EASTERN AND WESTERN DANCE FORMS COMPARED

oe "f

AFTER this brief introduction to the various forms and aspects of Indian dancing, let us consider some of the differences between the choreographic art of the East and that of the West.

AGE

European ballet, the most popular form of stage dancing in the West, is a comparatively modern art. Its history, dating back to the seventeenth century, when Louis XIV of France gave it his patronage by opening the Académie de la Danse, is but a fragment of the entire history of European dancing, which may be traced back to the Greeks and the Romans. Moreover, ballet has undergone considerable transformation since the days of the Bourbons, achieving, perhaps, its zenith with the Imperial School of the Russians.

Classical Indian dancing, on the other hand, goes back to the beginning of time itself, with Lord Shiva’s Dance starting the cosmic cycle of creation, destruction, and preservation. While legend cannot be entirely reliable as a guide, the fact that the source of Indian dancing is found in mythology proves its antiquity. And it has not been found necessary to alter fundamentally the technique of dancing as expounded by Bharata in his famous Natya Shastra. Even Kathak, one of the youngest schools of Indian dancing, goes back in origin farther than the beginnings of Western ballet.

EMOTIONAL APPEAL VERSUS MECHANICAL VIRTUOSITY Indian dancing has its germ in religion. It is still closely bound up with Hindu thought and philosophy. Hence it has a profundity not to be found in ballet, a spiritual fervour missing from the Western

99