My First Dance Performance

Dancing has been a passion with me for a long time. My mother tells me how any melody had me dancing when I was a toddler. On growing up I tried learning some serious dancing and after trying both Bharat Natyam and Kathak, I decided to pursue Kathak seriously.

So, I have been learning Kathak for more than a year now. My Guruji teaches me twice a week about the steps, taals and abhinaya of Kathak.

My passion for Kathak has grown since I started learning it. After my sessions I spend time rehearsing the steps and mudras and also love to watch performances on stage ant TV. I have been longing for an opportunity to perform onstage before a live audience.

I did not have to wait long for an opportunity to dance on stage because the teachers decided to put up a Kathak group dance for the Class Five's form evening.

Preparing for the final evening was as much fun as the event itself. We were a group of eighteen girls. Some, like I, had some background in Kathak while others were dancing in this style for the first time. The teachers worked hard with us over a period of twenty days. They encouraged the team and were patient with us as we fumbled with the steps. It was hard work as the steps of the dance were changed few times till we got the steps all the eighteen girls were comfortable with. We did not grudge the effort and looked forward to performing before the parents.

While the steps of dancers and the co-ordination amongst the team was being repeatedly rehearsed, the teachers decided upon the dresses, jewellery and makeup of the dancers. I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of the preparation to the big event.

Finally, the day of the form evening arrived. The parents in the audience were in for an impressive display. Ours was the third item. The girls trooped in eager to give their best and to make the class look good. We all danced to the music, perfect and well co-ordinated in our steps. I was right in the centre and was one of the two dancers in the front. It was a wonderful feeling. My dream of performing live had come true. It was thrilling. A never to be forgotten feeling.

We exited the stage, gracefully, as the music faded away. The parents broke into loud applause. Back stage we were ecstatic. Our hardwork had been rewarded. At the end we went back to take our bow and end the evening with the national