CLASS DESCRIPTION:

The workshop will be an opportunity to discover the two main elements of the classical south Asian dance style Bharatanatyam. The workshop is tailored for contemporary dancers who want to expand their knowledge of rhythm and narrative. The class will start with a basic introduction of classical Bharatanatyam movements to develop into a more in-depth analysis of different rhythmic patterns. Such patterns transcend their origin and could become interesting stimuli for any kind of dancer/mover in order to explore movement from a rhythmical point of view. The last part of the workshop will focus on the narrative power that movement can have. Participants will have the opportunity to discover some gestures of Indian classical dance, but also to understand how to create a vocabulary that can originate from Bharatanatyam, but then develops into a more personal interpretation of it.

Moritz Zavan Stoeckle

Moritz Zavan Stoeckle began his Bharatanatyam training in 1995 with Savitry Nair. In 2007 he started his career as a lighting designer in Venice at Teatro Fondamente Nuove. In 2010 he started training in contemporary dance. In 2012, he won the audience prize of the GD'A Veneto competition. In 2013 his Bharatanatyam solo debut was presented by Mavin Khoo in Venice, and the same year he performed in India under the guidance of Seetharama Sharma. Since then, he has performed several solo shows in India and Europe. Since 2012 he is also working as a fre-lance dancer and collaborated with several international companies and choreographers such as Contact Dance Company, Shobana Jeyasingh and Seeta Patel, with whom in 2022 he performed The Rite Of Spring at the Sadler’s Wells. In 2018 he obtained an MA in ‘Performing Arts – Dance’ with a dissertation on multi-genre choreographies that merge Indian classical dance and contemporary dance. Currently he is working as a freelance dancer, lighting designer, and movement director while also working as assistant lecturer at Mcast, Institute for the Creative Arts in Malta. Sponsored by APS Bank & Finaro