Bollywood Dance with Swati Chaturvedi
Using ‘Bollywood Dancing’ as the vehicle, Swati Chaturvedi introduces the sounds and rhythms of India to showcase its diversity of culture, music, and the arts.
Pennsylvania Curriculum Standards
(A=Assembly; W=Workshop; R=Residency)
9.1 Production, Performance and Exhibition of Dance, Music, Theatre and Visual Arts A, W, R
9.2 Historical and Cultural Contexts A, W, R
15.4 Learning Through Experience A, W, R
25.3 Pro-Social Relationships with Adults W, R
25.4 Pro-Social Relationships with Peers W, R
Art Form(s): Music, Dance
Genre: Asian
Video Residency Available
Assembly, Workshop, and Residency Offerings
Bollywood Dance Assembly
The Bollywood Dance Assembly starts with an audio/visual cultural journey across India, showcasing the diversity of culture, music, and the arts across India. Using ‘Bollywood Dancing’ as the vehicle, Swati Chaturvedi introduces the sounds and rhythms of India.
Swati will have students engaged and out of their seat in this interactive assembly. Students will learn some basic steps and sequences, as the audience works towards helping Swati as she performs a short dance routine.
An immersive experience suited for all ages and skill levels, and is flexible to adapt to groups of all sizes.
Best for: ELC • PreK-12 • Special Needs • After-School/Community
Bollywood Dance Workshop
The Bollywood Dance Workshop starts with an audio/visual cultural journey across India, showcasing the diversity of culture, music, and the arts across India. Using ‘Bollywood Dancing’ as the vehicle, Swati Chaturvedi introduces the sounds and rhythms of India.
The program continues with an engaging and fully interactive Bollywood dance workshop where students learn a new form of dancing in a fun and relaxed setting. Starting with basic steps and sequences, the group works towards a short dance routine. The program concludes with an energetic final group ‘performance’ led by Swati!
An immersive experience suited for all ages and skill levels, and is flexible to adapt to groups up to ~25 students.
Best for: PreK-12 • Special Needs • After-School/Community
Bollywood Dance Residency
Music and dance are universal forms of expression and draw upon each individual’s unique personality and abilities. In a celebration of the idea that anyone can dance, Swati Chaturvedi leads Bollywood Dancing, Musicopia’s first Asian Dance residency.
Musicopia’s Bollywood Residency Program Goals:
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Introduce students to a new form of dance as expression
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Introduce students to the country of India
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Provide an appreciation of diversity of the arts and cultures across the planet
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Introduce students to the Hindi language
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Provide an appreciation of the human body and how it must be cared for in order to be healthy and active
The program will include an introduction to India, including fast facts, geography, cultural and diversity; Hindi vocabulary; dance training and art activities. The students will begin with the basics of dance and will gradually incorporate enough advanced techniques to do a final performance which will include a student-led presentation about India, a recital performed with Swati and a Bollywood Art Show featuring all of the work created by the residency students.
The residency will tie-in to the school’s curriculum by addressing:
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Geography: Workshops will incorporate the study of India – continent, topography, quick facts about the country
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Social Science: Workshops will include discussions about the diversity of people and cultures on our planet Earth – discuss the diversity in India in terms of culture, food, clothing, climate, etc.
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Language development and appreciation: Students will dance to a Hindi language song and will learn 5 -10 new words in Hindi which will be translated from the song to which the students will perform.
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Science: Workshops will address human anatomy and how our muscles and core systems work to support dance, injury prevention in dancing, transferring body weight to achieve balance and different dance forms
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Art: The students will create drawings based on the “India and Bollywood” them with a focus on celebrating diversity
Best for: K-12 • Special Needs • After-School/Community
Featuring: Swati Chaturvedi
Swati Chaturvedi founded the Community Bollywood Dance Project in Philadelphia in 2009.
The Term “Bollywood”
The term Bollywood was created by combining two names, Bombay (the city now called Mumbai) and Hollywood. Bollywood based in Mumbai (Bombay), is India’s – and the world’s – largest film industry in terms of the number of films produced, and also the number of tickets sold each year. In fact, Bollywood has become so internationally ubiquitous that it now has its own entry in the Oxford English Dictionary!
An International Sensation!
It is not unusual to see Western pop and pure classical dance numbers side by side in a Bollywood film. The international appeal of Bollywood dancing is something that has been in the making for many decades. Originally it was found only in places that had a significant consumption of Indian films. But today it is rising in popularity in the US, Canada and Europe. With the success of films such as the Oscar winning movie “Slumdog Millionaire”, Bollywood films and dance have taken the world by storm & has now come into the global spotlight. Much of this is due to the ever expanding Indian diaspora, but a significant proportion also comes from non-Indians who are fascinated by the exotic, larger than life qualities inherent in it.
A True East-West Fusion Dance Style
The highlights of Bollywood movies are elaborate dance sequences and original soundtracks. Over the years, Bollywood movies have developed their own signature style of song and dance, which combines the rich texture of India’s many classical and folk dances, fused with elements of Jazz, Hip – Hop, Arabic and Latin Forms.
Joined Musicopia: 2014