Artistic Highlights

TRADITIONAL TO THE CONTEMPORARY

  • Recipient of the Oregon Arts Commission Individual Artist Fellowship award, first artist in her genre
  • Nominated for the NEA National Heritage Fellowship Award
  • Author of two books on Indian dance published May 2015, sold over 250 books locally and online Amazon
  • Traditional Master Artist Award of excellence in teaching, for seven years– four years honored as an out of state artist from Washington State Arts Commission and three years from Oregon Folklife program
  • NEFA-NDP National Dance Project, for choreography – production and touring grants, (first artist of her genre in the world)
  • Assistant Professor of dance at Portland State University – first Bharatha Natyam faculty in the Northwest and first Indian dance faculty in Oregon
  • US National tours supported by grants from MAAF Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, NEA National Endowment for the Arts, Oregon Cultural Trust, and Westaf-Tourwest.
  • Regional Arts and Culture Council – RACC Individual Artist Project grants (over 20 grants in past years in Portland) as well as numerous Professional Development grants
  • Oregon Arts Commission numerous Career Opportunity grants
  • Only performer, choreographer and producer in the Northwest of her genre to have performed and toured nationally with rave reviews and full house audiences.
  • Choreographed and presented over 30 full length dance productions and over 600 solo and group works, and performed over 2000 concerts in past four decades in US and internationally.
  • Only choreographer to have collaborated with leading dancers and musicians from India, with all seven classical Indian dance styles, including recent Chau dances
  • Collaborated with artists of multiple genres including Mac Arthur genius fellow, NYU faculty/ New York based drummer Dafnis Prieto, and Guggenheim Fellow – Jazz artist Chuck Israels, Modern and Ballet dancers
  • Arts Leadership Award for being a promoter and arts advocate from City of Beaverton and Beaverton Arts Commission
  • Invited as grant panelist to review peer Traditional Artists and Fellowship grants by RACC, Oregon Arts Commission and Illinois Arts Council
  • Performance reviews in Oregonian, Washington Post, DANCE Magazine, Atlanta Journal, Willamette Week, Houston Chronicle, Seattle Times, Valley Times and national newspapers
  • Received the prestigious ‘Creative Heights‘ grant from Oregon Community Foundation
  • Dubbed by public and peers as the ‘Gold Standard of Indian dance in the Northwest’
  • Reviewed by local and national press as a ‘scholar’, ‘world class dancer’, ‘dance maven’, and ‘region’s best choreographer and performer of Indian classical dance
  • Founder and Director of NATYA Dance Academy offering classes in Bharatha Natyam over 25 years with many graduates, and students advancing to professional performing and teaching
  • Only artist of her genre featured in the book “Beauty is Experience: Dancing 50 and Beyond” by  Emmaly Wiederholt featuring West Coast dancers