Ballet Manila has awarded scholarships to two students from Rhythmus Happy Feet, a dance school in Mumbai, India, for the 2016 School of Ballet Manila Summer Intensive
Program.
There had been a remarkable improvement in the Mumbai school’s ballet students, notes Osias Barroso.
The scholars are Krisha Shah, 12, who was given a full scholarship, and Eesha Karnani, 12, who was given a half scholarship.
Both girls will be included in the Level 1-A and Level 2-B classes. Ballet Manila will also welcome Rhythmus co-founder and co-artistic director Deepika Ravindran as a faculty member for the summer workshop, to teach Bollywood dance classes.
Ballet Manila co-artistic director Osias Barroso interacts with students at the Rhythmus Happy Feet school in Mumbai, India.
“This is a great endeavor for The School of Ballet Manila, to open our doors to international ballet schools, students and teachers,” enthuses Osias Barroso, co-artistic director of Ballet Manila.
This development resulted from two visits Barroso made to Mumbai, first in January 2015 upon the Mumbai school’s invitation through its founders Swara Patel and Deepika Ravindran. Rhythmus Happy Feet offers classes in ballet, jazz, hiphop, funk, creative movement and Bollywood dance.
Patel and Ravindran had wanted to conduct an examination for their ballet students and asked their Filipino ballet teacher, Butch Godito, to communicate with Ballet Manila as the two expressed a preference for the Russian Vaganova system which the company espouses. Ballet Manila artistic director Lisa Macuja-Elizalde learned the Vaganova technique from its birthplace in Russia in the 1980s, at the then Leningrad Choreographic Institute.
Macuja-Elizalde sent Barroso to India in 2015 to make student assessments. On that trip, Barroso also offered to conduct a one-on-one teachers’ course to Ravindran which the latter welcomed.
“They have an admirable vision for their school and continuously seek ways to help their student and their school progress,” says Barroso of the Rhythmus Happy Feet co-founders. “Deepika and Swara got so overwhelmed with all the information that I gave them,” relates Barroso.
Osias Barroso, Swara Patel and Deepeka Ravindran with another batch of Rhythmus students
Ravindran subsequently attended The School of Ballet Manila’s 2015 Summer Workshop. Since returning to Mumbai, she has been in communication with Barroso and Macuja- Elizalde for further guidance.
Barroso was invited to Mumbai again earlier this month. On this visit, he gave three master classes and a variation class and conducted examinations for ballet students. He also met with some of the parents.
The two scholars who are attending the summer workshop garnered the highest ratings from the examinations.
Osias Barroso with newly named BM scholars Krisha Shah (second from left) and Eesha Karnani (to his left) in this photo with Rhythmus Happy Feet co-founders and co-artistic directors Swara Patel (in blue) and Deepika Ravindran (with red sash) and students.
“I am very pleased with the remarkable improvement in the ballet students in their modest school. Deepika applied everything that she has learned in BM. Their students are still Level 1 but they are in the right direction. Even the parents of their ballet school noticed the difference in how ballet classes are conducted,” Barroso notes.
Rhythmus Happy Feet students are learning the rudiments of the Russian Vaganova technique espoused by Ballet Manila.
He adds that they will continue to cultivate Ballet Manila’s relationship with Rhythmus Happy Feet and perhaps explore similar ones with other schools abroad in the near future.
Krisha Shah has received a full scholarship to The School of Ballet Manila’s Summer Intensive Program.
There had been a remarkable improvement in the Mumbai school’s ballet students, notes Osias Barroso.
“Hopefully, we can also develop such ties with other ballet schools in Asia and keep promoting Ballet Manila’s Vaganova style and culture of collaboration,” he says.