An intimate portrait of one of the great performing artists of the twentieth century
This is the first complete biography of T. Balasaraswati (1918–1984), a dancer and musician from southern India who became recognized worldwide as one of the great performing artists of the twentieth century. In India she was a legend in her own time, acclaimed before she was thirty years old as the great dancer of traditional bharata natyam. Balasaraswati was a passionate revolutionary, an entirely modern artist whose impact was proclaimed by some of the most prominent figures in contemporary dance in India and the West. Her art and life defined the heart of a tradition. Her life story offers an extraordinary view of the enigmatic matrilineal devadasi community and traditional artistic practice from which modern South Indian dance styles have emerged. This deeply engaging biography draws together Balasaraswati’s personal account of her life and her reflections on the process of making dance and music. It includes the commentary of family members and dozens of contemporaries from throughout her fifty-year career, revealing hereditary artistic values and conventions that have virtually disappeared in modern India. The book is generously illustrated with rare historical photos and a duotone gallery of distinguished photographers’ images of Balasaraswati’s dancing.
Endorsements:
“A gripping account of the hereditary system of transmissions in the performing arts through the biography of one of India’s greatest dancers, T. Balasaraswati. Douglas Knight, Jr., unfolds many layers of the personal, social, artistic, national, and international aspects of T. Balasaraswati’s life.” —Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan, scholar and founder of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts
“Imagine a fascinating book written with knowledge, understanding, and talent celebrating the 20th century's greatest bharat natyam performer, the incomparable Balasaraswati. Well, here it is.” —Charles L. Reinhart, director, American Dance Festival
Click here for TABLE OF CONTENTS
|
|
DOUGLAS M. KNIGHT JR. is a musician and independent scholar whose personal and artistic relationship with India and Balasaraswati’s family began in the late 1960s. He has appeared in performance with Balasaraswati, her brothers Ranganathan and Viswanathan, her daughter Lakshmi Knight, and her grandson Aniruddha Knight. He has been a Fulbright Scholar and a Guggenheim Fellow, as well as the recipient of other honors and awards.
|
|
A Driftless Series Book
|
|
This book is the 2010 selection in the Driftless Connecticut category, for an outstanding book in any field by a Connecticut author.
The Driftless Series is funded by the
Beatrice Fox Auerbach Foundation Fund
at the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving.
|
|
|
