Indian Classical Dance
Madhusmita Bora, a performer of the Sattriya Dance Company, takes you on a journey through a 500-year-old dance tradition from Assam in India. Sattriya was preserved, nourished, and practiced by monks in monasteries located on a tiny river island. The outside world had very little access to the dance until about the year 2000. In the program, students are exposed to the ritualistic practice of Sattriya, stories from Hindu mythology and will learn about the monks and their lives through a documentary screening (12 minutes). Masks, costumes and props help to bring the tradition to life. Madhu will also lead students in movements and exercises and uses percussion instruments and chanting to investigate Sattriya's musical elements.
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
10.5 Concepts, Principles and Strategies of Movement 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
Musicopia offers quality
“Little Ones” programming
for Early Learning Centers
Assembly, Workshop, and Residency Offerings
About Madhusmita Bora
Sattriya is Madhusmita's heritage. Born and raised in Assam, she grew up to the rhythms of this incredible art form practiced routinely at her village prayer house. She made her debut as a dancer before she turned four, performing at her village temple for the annual Raax festival, dedicated to celebrating the life of Lord Krishna. Madhusmita has trained under Padmashree Jatin Goswami, Guru Ramkrishna Talukdar, Guru Naren Barua, Anita Sharma, Adhyapak Dr. Bhabananda Barbayan and Gobinda Kalita from the Uttar Kamalabari Satra. Her dedication to propagate the art form has been recognized by the media in her native Assam, U.S. and also by the City of Philadelphia. Madhusmita is also a freelance business journalist and teaches English at Lincoln University. Her film, Dancing the Divine, received wide appreciation at its maiden screening at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. She curated and produced the first U.S. tour of the Dancing Monks of Majuli.
Awards: Art & Change Grant from Leeway Foundation, 2009, 2010 and 2011; Pennsylvania Council on the Arts Grant, 2013, 2016; Nritya Sharadi Award, 2014; IIDF Award 2016; The Pew Center for the Arts and Heritage Grant, 2016
Sattriya is Madhusmita's heritage. Born and raised in Assam, she grew up to the rhythms of this incredible art form practiced routinely at her village prayer house. She made her debut as a dancer before she turned four, performing at her village temple for the annual Raax festival, dedicated to celebrating the life of Lord Krishna. Madhusmita has trained under Padmashree Jatin Goswami, Guru Ramkrishna Talukdar, Guru Naren Barua, Anita Sharma, Adhyapak Dr. Bhabananda Barbayan and Gobinda Kalita from the Uttar Kamalabari Satra. Her dedication to propagate the art form has been recognized by the media in her native Assam, U.S. and also by the City of Philadelphia. Madhusmita is also a freelance business journalist and teaches English at Lincoln University. Her film, Dancing the Divine, received wide appreciation at its maiden screening at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. She curated and produced the first U.S. tour of the Dancing Monks of Majuli.
Awards: Art & Change Grant from Leeway Foundation, 2009, 2010 and 2011; Pennsylvania Council on the Arts Grant, 2013, 2016; Nritya Sharadi Award, 2014; IIDF Award 2016; The Pew Center for the Arts and Heritage Grant, 2016