Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Our very own...
Heather Rastovac.
Heather Rastovac has been studying, performing and teaching Iranian and
Near Eastern dances since 1997. She currently performs as a soloist and
as a member of the dance ensemble Delshodeh, co-founded with Sonja Hinz.
Delshodeh performs the dances of Central Asia, particularly the dances of
Iran and Tajikistan. Heather participates in Delshodeh as an artistic
director, dancer, choreographer, researcher and lecturer. From 2001 to
2004, she was a member of Shourangeez Persian music and dance ensemble
and participated in the Northwest Folklife Association's
Folklife-in-the-Schools program. Heather spent two months in Tajikistan
during summer 2007 studying and researching dance and is currently
pursuing a Bachelors degree at the University of Washington in Persian
language, Anthropology and Dance.
If any of you have videos of your many talents, I'd be happy to post them to the blog. Do you see any ballet in this kind of dancing?
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35 comments:
wow! Heather! That's really pretty!
That was really beautiful! I saw a piece you guys did at the Folklife festival last year! I don't really see any ballet influence but I'm sure all dance has something in common. I just can't see that with this style of dance.
I liked telling heather this morning at the water fountain that her dancing was beautiful and something i'd never seen before. mostly because of the awesome confused expression she wore, not understanding how i had seen it. apparently mr. louis...didn't mention he was putting her video on the dance blog. beautiful though. very mystical.
-bergman
How surprising and sweet that Louis posted the video! : )
I can definitely say that ballet has improved my dance form in general since Iranian/Central Asian dances are very lifted and have many turns (though not quite shown here) that require core strength. Also, since it is a form that emphasizes lots of lyrical arm movements, I can say that ballet has certainly improved and influenced my arm and upper body carriage.
What I can also say that this dance form is NOT as far as ballet is concerned is leaps, jumps and any leg and foot work.
Ballet has actually had great influence on many 'traditional' dance forms of the world. For instance, dances of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan (which is partly what I do) had been completely transformed during Soviet rule, when ballet was brought to these countries. It has influenced dance training, choreography, staging, and the creation of state ensembles, etc.....
In Iran, during the early to later 20th century, Persian 'classical' dance (which is what this video, more or less, depicts) was created by dancers who had trained in ballet, much as was the case in China. Therefore, there is no 'real' classical Persian dance as there is in India and other south east asian cultures, but was created by ballet trained dancers who incorporated Persian aesthetics.....
That's awesome! And thanks for the background information, that's really interesting that it's derived from ballet - I never would have guessed! I love the confidence that you exude with your posture!
Congrats to Heather for all of her wonderful achievements. The costume and the movement of the Persian Classical Dance remind me of classical ballet. I can see Louis XIV doing similar small precise movements with full costume in a French court.
That was really beautiful Heather. I think dances have some sort of ballet incorporated in it one way or another. I can see how tendu and the turns can be influenced by a releve an susu turn in ballet. I think cultural dances are awesome as it has been a part of my life for quite some time now.
Hi again,
Firts of all, thank you all so much on your encouraging comments!!!!
Otherwise, I wanted to touch upon Samantha's comment and clarify, since I think I may have been a little confusing in my 'history' rant : )
Though classical Persian dance has been, in a sense, recreated by dancers who were trained in ballet, Persian dance doesn't derive from ballet at all - it has actually existed much longer than ballet dance has (we're talking B.C. here)
The issue is, throughout centuries of various political influences (in the region of present day Iran and elsewhere), dance traditions can often be and have been lost, especially since dancers in many parts of the world have historically been marginalized people or banned from performing or banned from particular courts throughout different centuries.
And since dance is a temporal art form, as well as an art form often not considered worthy of scholarly attention, remnants of what dance was like can be lost.
With this said, in mid 20th century, dancers in Iran who were trained in ballet decided to recreate Classical Persian dance based upon old depictions of dancers in paintings and on pottery (hence part of the aesthetics) and put it on a stage in theater settings. Oftentimes (though not always) the fact that traditional dance forms are on stage, in itself, is an influence from Western dance forms, i.e. ballet since most traditional dance forms were more of a communal/social activity and rarely choreogrpahed.
So though ballet had a lot of influence on Persian dance in mid 20th century, it definitely didn't derive from it...
: )
One more note - I think traditional dance forms have actually had more influence on ballet than we may think since ballet, in reality, is a relatively new form of dance in the history of the world. : )
Heather! That's so incredible! I love learning about different things that people excel in! That was so incredibly beauitful and graceful! I could see many elements remniscent of ballet in this dance, such as reaching into space with your arms.
Tres belle!
p.s.
Thanks for the history on dance - that's very interesting to note that ballet is a newer form of dance, when I usually think of it being the classic standard! :)
Heather, THAT IS AMAZING. I (obviously from class the other day) had no idea that was you! I feel honored to be dancing with such talented individuals. I have sadly never seen Persian Dancing until now. And I just read Heather's blog entry and thats very interesting that ballet has transcended into your other forms of dance. I'm currently only taking ballet right now, but it would be interesting to see if dancing other styles would be improved due to ballet.
Anyway, GREAT JOB!!!
Very pretty. I really enjoyed the graceful arm movements and the great posture. I can see ballet in the dance, especially the posture and arm work. I guess that could be because maybe ballet derived from older traditional dance styles.
This is amazing! I had no idea! This type of dance is very comparable to ballet at it requires balance, fluidity and specific focus points.
I watched the video and had no idea that it was Heather! On the way to the water fountain I heard Erika tell heather how much she liked the video, and I was like OOOOOOOOOOHHHHH! That's HEATHER! lol. I think she did a wonderful job, and it was really interesting to hear the background of it.
That was really incredible. The thing that jumps out to me the most, in relation to ballet, is the overall gracefullness of the movements. It all seems very technical and precise but flows together so nicely. The control is also very evident, that must have taken a lot of practice. Its unbelievable how old some of these traditions can be but its so great that they are still around and prevalent today.
I am so amazed that i am actually dancing with this great dancer in the same class!!! I am so proud!
I have never seen Iranian dance before but this video inspired me a lot. Now I am so curious that I can not help scanning Youtube for this kind of dance!!
I really like this mysterious gentle and smooth movement. I can feel kind ness, warmness and sexiness from this beautifull dance.
You know, I've actually always been in awe of the incredible graceful control that Heather has over her arms...now I see where it comes from. It's really cool to see how different forms of dance can inspire and inform one another...rock on heather!
Wow...Persian Classical dance is something that you don't see too often in the western world. Really, Most history/culture from this region(including dance) has been demonized to such an extent that western 'culture' never really accepted it (for examples of this deminization watch the movie 300).
But i digress...the dancing was lovely, and something I've never seen before. It reminds me of the flowing and breezy movements that we were trying to capture in class the other day.
The dance movement that Heather make was very beautiful. Even thou i have hard time to tell every single movement because she cover herself with the cloth but the movement was very pretty.
You guys are all sooooooooo sweeeeeeet! I am very humbled.
Thanks again for all of the kind words. This has made my month! : )
Being in ballet classes has been humbling as well. It had been a very long time since being a beginner in a dance form so at first it was honestly a little bruise on an artist's sensitive ego... lol!
But I have gotten over that and have learned to laugh at myself, remember the love of movement, and have become inspired and determined to excel and learn to express myself through this dance form which is new to me...
Thanks to everyone I look to in the class for guidance during combinations I have trouble with!
:P
That is very beautiful dancing. I think that grace and poise in the upper body are things that both this kind of dancing and ballet have in common.
Heather, Thank you for sharing your beautiful art of dancing. I could see your commitment and passion translated into your presecnce and poise. Your poise and the way you carried your head translated into using your e pau ma (spelling error) eye gaze and focus in Ballet. Also the directivness in your movement and fluidity reminded me of ron da jons in our floor omibinations and the circular pathways that are ever present in ballet movements such as turns, energy pathways through arms motions and waltz turns.
Ashley Howisey
Heather, your dancing is beautiful! I could see a lot of ballet in her dancing, mostly in her arm movements and overall gracefulness and carriage. It is so interesting to learn about the connections between ballet and Persian dance.
Though there may not have been obvious ballet in this particular video.. I'm sure many dance and technique have somehow in one way or another been derived from ballet; either through structure or movement.
Heather! I am so curious about how you got interested in this type of dance and how it became such a significant part of your life. I wonder if it snuck up on you and weaved itself in without you realizing it. Good for you for allowing yourself to remake yourself in new ways by participating in a beginning class. You know, I was there at the Women's center when you were on the panel for traveling and women. But I didn't know you at the time and I can't quite place if you brought up dance. You owned these dances and your arms were beautiful. (As I write these words, I'm trying out the same arm motions by watching myself in the reflection of my window...) Good luck on your future endeavors.
All the best, Farah
Wow that was absolutly gorgeous! I love seeing different types of dance and seeing how differnt types of dance are influenced by each other. There are certain aspects of dance that carry over from one genre to the other.
Farah,
I am asked very frequently how it is I became so interested in this dance form and have always had challenges in explaining it - but you nailed it exactly when you said, "... it snuck up on you and weaved itself in without you realizing it."
I think that is how I will describe it from now on! : )
This is so amazing. I love seeing things like this because it reminds me that everyone in our class has other interesting things that they do.
I think that there is a language that is in the undercurrents of all dance forms that links them together, so it's not so much that we see the parallels between ballet and Persian dancing as we see the inherent qualities of dance coming through. I do feel like a link could be drawn between this dance and ballet through the arm usage and head placement.
I love the attitude that Heather is able to express through this dance. It's fun and flirty and enjoyable to watch. Way to go!
wow i had no idea!! heather that was bomb! love the costume its so pretty!
Wow Heather! You are such a beautiful dancer and your grace is very evident both in class and on the video post! I have never seen Persian dance before and appreciated your comment on the history behind it! I love watching different types of dancing and wish you the best of luck in your endeavors!
I am very much impressed to be exposed to all types of dancing and movement. I think that dance is so universal, and its easy to see ballet in pieces like this and those types of dances in ballet.
o wow heather that was pretty awesome. I wonder how you got into that type of dance? I have never seen it before, but it was really pretty. I can see somewhat of a comparison to ballet in that it is flowy and also very graceful :)
That's really cool. I like the costuming. The dancing is so flowy and graceful. I can see the ballet in her dancing.
Wow heather! that's so beautiful. i agree with erika, its something i never seen before.
i think ballet influenced most of types of dance. i heard it from my teacher that, whoever has basic training in ballet, are able to dance any type of dance, beautifully. like you can see a difference. like the "so you think you can dance " winner.
she has done ballet, and look how she moves!!
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