Aug 30 2006 /
2005 Alumna Uses Dance to Build Bridges

by Rupanshi Thakrar 2005, Gujarat, India to Beaverton, OR

How does one put into practice the term ‘’cultural-exchange’’ through the medium of dance, which I consider my life? By teaching Indian classical dance (Kathak) to students at my US host school, Arts & Communication Magnet Academy in Beaverton, Oregon, and choreographing a fusion routine of Kathak and American Modern Jazz!

It was not easy! Especially because the school where I was placed mainly focused on arts and the dance department of ACMA was the biggest. They taught a whole seven year course of all the four dances i.e. Ballet, Modern, Jazz and Tap. I went there with a focus of performing arts—Dance and Theatre— and when I saw how vast the dance dept. was, I was shocked! It took me at least three months to let my dance teachers know me and also know that I am there for just one year and so I want to gain as much as I can and use it for my future. I stood outside the dance class every single day after the class was over to talk to my teachers because I have learnt from all my dance schools, namely Kadamb in India and ACMA in US, that if you are a confident artist then you HAVE to speak up for yourself. Don’t just talk and day dream but actually DO it!

So I came up with the idea of choreographing a fusion for the annual spring recital of ACMA. I asked my teachers to hear different fusion pieces which are based on both Indian and Western percussions. Once my teachers approved, I started working, both mentally and physically, and I succeeded! The start was successful and that seven minute fusion piece choreographed by my school’s modern-jazz teacher and me as a student teacher was performed and immensely loved by a full audience for two days. It was one of my main goals of the year and by God’s grace I could try my level best to achieve it just two months before I was to return to India.

Then the two months passed and it was my time to go home, so I started to think of what I could do when I returned. I knew that everything I had gained in the US did not deserve to be wasted. During my YES year, I had been e-mailing my principal, Mr. I.D Reubens, who has been very supportive throughout my whole school life, and updating him about my achievements in the US. And then as soon as I came back from the US, I went to meet him and we had a discussion about my whole year and how shall I forge ahead now. He asked me whether I would like to conduct dance classes in school and use it as a start to experience a reverse cultural exchange.

Again, it wasn’t easy but it was something I badly wanted to do, and so we made an announcement about tap and modern-jazz classes being offered in the school. Amazingly, the response was totally inspiring; 30+ students signed up and all were unbelievably excited to learn. I don’t really know for sure but my principal says that there isn’t even a single person trained from US in the whole city of Ahmedabad who runs tap and modern-jazz classes. This fact was something that inspired me more, but it was and is a lot of pressure. I felt a lot of responsibility and loyalty because, after all, it is about presenting a culture. With all this weighing in my mind I reached the decision that no matter how challenging it is , I will do it.

Thus 14th August 2006, the day before the Indian Independence Day, was the inauguration of the Reubs High School’s Tap & Modern- Jazz class.
I first shared with the students about AFS/YES and my experiences at ACMA during my one year stay at Portland. I then explained the basics of jazz and tap; this was followed by demonstration of two various pieces of ballroom jazz and cowboy tap. Finally I encouraged one of the girls to dance with me. I could feel the eagerness of each and every girl to come on stage and try it out along with me and soon we were running out of time!

I began this with the hope and determination that my small step must prove to be a big leap in the direction of fulfilling my commitment to spread the true meaning of cultural exchange through the medium of dance and music. I told myself that yes, big things have small beginnings…..