Saturday 13 June 2020

Article - Mental health and well-being in classical dance - An inquiry - Ramaa Venugopalan

A recent article in a world dance magazine addressed the mental health of dancers in ballet companies. The counsellor revealed key points that hinder the mental well-being of dancers through their training years. The article had a deep impact on me, and I could not resist from a similar inquiry into the world of Indian classical dance.

Are we classical dancers living in a mental sphere of happiness or anxiety? What are the factors that make up this health index? Are we assessing our mental and emotional well-being? Most importantly, are we dancers truly happy? Warped in layers of perceived notions of divinity, adherence, non-questionable notions, unspoken rules, dancers are so caught in multiple layers of agony that an inquiry into the mental well-being has been rarely assessed.

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1 comment:

  1. This article addresses almost all the points that runs in every dancers' mind in the industry. There needs to be more awareness and attention paid to the mental health aspect of the art form and how it is taught. Really appreciate Rama akka for writing this very important and informative article that makes one feel included in the industry. At some point or the other, every dancer experiences one of the above mentioned issues and it's usually just kept within until this subconscious pattern is even acknowledged. I wish we had discussions and workshops for mental health tailored specifically for the teaching and performance set up in the industry.

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