We conducted the following special programmes during the year under report:
1. To give additional training in dialogue etc. we conducted a Yakshagana Talamaddale in memory of the great artiste late Sri Sheni Gopalakrishna Bhat. We projected small video clippings on life and contributions of his on 4th May 2007. Mr. Kolyuru Ramachandra Rao gave lecture-cum-demonstrations of various episodes connected with male and female roles and their dual sequences (22 to 27 July 2007).
2. Our Guru Sanjeeva Suvarna was awarded Dronacharya Prashasti on 29.04.2007 by Karnataka Kaladarshini organization, Bangalore Udaipur
3. President, Land Developers and Builders Sri Jerri Dais presided over a function and handed over uniform to the newly admitted students of the Kendra on 22nd June 2007. Sri Gulme Krishna Naik gifted ceiling fans, pedestals, lights etc. to the second floor mini theatre; authorities of M/s Corporation Bank have donated 75 plastic chairs for the same. Dr. N.T. Bhat donated a TV with DVD player for the benefit of the students.
4. We participated as one of the organizers of Muddu Krishna Competition of Sri Krishna Matha, Udupi in connection with the Janmasthami programme of Sri Lord Krishna in Sep. 2007. This was financed by the Paryaya Swamiji of Sri Krishnapura Matha. The Krishna Matha authorities gave two quintal of rice every month to the students of the Kendra.
5. We received salary (Rs. 6,00,000/-) and seminar (60,000/-) grants from the Department of Culture, New Delhi
Annual Report for the period from April 1, 2008 to 31st March 2009
Introduction
This Kendra was established in 1971 to impart training to the young interested students in the art of Yakshagana in all its shades- dance, music, percussion instruments, facial make-up, costuming and costume make-up etc and to turn them into masters in the field of Yakshagana. Ours is the only institute where the knowledge is imparted to the boys in a much systemized way all through the year with a summer vacation of five weeks at the end of the first year.
The second year is for specialization in the field of dance, music and percussion instruments. The school is run on Gurukula system with the students and the teachers living under the same roof thus providing more opportunity to the students to interact with the Gurus. Here the education is free in all respects and the comforts of the students is met with by the administration.
Annual intake is 15 boys for the first year course and 5 for the second year. And the professional ensemble is there to propagate and to popularize the Yakshagana of traditional form in and around the country. The troupe called “Yaksha Ranga” is helping the Kendra to maintain the tempo by performing and earning for the Kendra.
Yaksha Ranga is the professional troupe of Yakshagana Kendra trained both in the traditional style and in an experimental theatre with no dialogue but with full of Abhinaya, dance and rich music.
As our teachers are busy training our regular students the senior artistes of Yaksha Ranga were engaged during their leisure hours to teach and train the school going children, both boys and girls, in traditional Yakshagana beyond their regular class hours either in the morning or in the evening. One may be surprised to know the popularity of the system that it involves nearly 4000 students in and around our place touching nearly 40 schools. It is now proved that the students who are attending the classes of Yakshagana have shown remarkable improvement in their class performances. The students are very active throughout the day, their reception and memory has shown marked progress. As the students of the schools and the school authorities have shown remarkable interest in it we have inducted the services of other artistes not belonging to our school but connected with our school in other ways. The public have taken interest in this venture and it will be a crusade as far as Yakshagana training is concerned in the region. Our local MLA Sri K. Raghupathi Bhat met the expenditure of honorariums for the teachers from Parivara Trust and encouraged our adventure. Also the local organizations are working for the common good of the Yakshagana art and artistes M/s Yakshagana Kala Ranga are supporting our efforts and taking keen interest in the venture.
We received by Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi
SPECIAL REPORT
Physically challenged Children perform Yakshagana Dance
YAKSHAGANA is a perfect theatre with gorgeous costumes, attractive facial make-up, elegant dance interspersed with conversation often having a bearing on the modern society, sonorous singing, virulent chande and melodious maddale. All these culminate into an enticing performance cum educative piece of production to the rural masses of Coastal Karnataka.
The main requirements of an excellent artiste are sharp ears and presence of mind with flowering language. Only such an artiste can win the hearts of the audience and rule the stage.
But to our great surprise and astonishment a dedicated team of teachers trained a band of deaf and dumb boys/girls as artistes sensitive to Yakshagana. The episode culled from Ramayana was performed in ballet style.
The special school set apart for hearing & speech impaired students ‘Vagjyothi School
The physically handicapped children outwitted their counterparts in the performance. No one could guess that they were incapable of hearing sound and speaking.
It is a hurculean task to train and set them on the stage, that too with short time training. The miraculous performance was possible because of the day and night toiling by Guru Sanjeeva Suvarna, Principal, Yakshagana Kendra, MGM College Campus.
According to Guru Sanjeeva Suvarna the students of Vagjyothi School
As the boys are unable to speak we had to switch over to dumb show – Yakshagana ballet laying stress on movements, action and dance. As they can not listen to the music and percussion the boys would go on the stage and perform in imitation of their teacher who would dance and act on the side wing, accompanied by the music of chande/maddale.
The whole episode was presented only through dance, mime and gestures. For enquiring great skills in this respect the Children were applauded by the public.
In the string puppet school the trainer/or the artiste will hold the strings standing behind the curtain making the puppets dance only dancing by himself behind the screen. Here also Guru Sannjeeva Suvarna used the same tecquinic making the boys dance looking at the dancing teacher/Guru Sanjeeva Suvarna.
Guru Sanjeeva Suvarna, Principal of the Yakshagana Kendra and a few other artistes – Sri Sathish Kedlaya, Sri Prathishkumar, Sri Krishnamurthy Urala and Sri Umesha Poojary participated in the International Theatre Workshop organized by Asian Theatre Education Centre in Bejing , China New Delhi
Publications: 2008-2009
1. Yaksha Raatri, Dr. R. Ganesh
2. Bharatiya Ranga Sampradaya, Dr. R. Ganesh
Visitors:
1. Sri Kumbale Sundra Rao, President, Karnataka Yakshagana Akademy, Bangalore
2. All members of Karnataka Yakshagana Akademy, Bangalore
3. Dr. Morijiri , Japan
4. Sri Chittani Ramachandra Hegde, Famous Yakshagana Artiste
5. Sri M.D. Kaushik, TV Actor/Director, Bangalore
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