ART IN EDUCATION CONFERENCE OF
N Y STATE EDUCATION DEPT (1976)
In March 1976, the Dhananjayans were invited by the NY State
Education Dept to undertake an educational tour of NY State, a great honour
because among many institutions in India that were screened for the purpose,
the Dhananjayans were chosen for the educative quality of their presentation.
They were invited
to participate in the ‘Towards Harmonising Education’ annual conference
of New York State University, a rare privilege extended only to top dancers
and co-sponsored by the Education Dept of UNESCO and Indian Council for
Cultural Relations. The 3-day conference attracted around 3000
delegates from all over the State including educationists and artists.
In addition to discussions, lec/dems on Indian dance and regular dance
performances formed part of the conference. Though there were other representatives
from India, the Dhananjayans represented Indian dance at the conference.
Dhananjayan got a standing ovation for retaining his Indian identity by
wearing his customary white dhoti and kurta and the red tilak on his forehead.
| "I want to
tell you of the superb performance made by Mr. & Mrs. Dhananjayan,
here in New York State. They have made a fine impression and are indeed
brilliant representatives of India…"
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Ewald E. Nyquist, Commissioner of Education, New York State Education Department,
USA
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| "The Dhananjayans
were magnificent during their visit. Every one they met seemed to feel
better for having met them. Educationally, their techniques, personalities
and universal humanism combined to create beautiful learning experiences
in every situation. They never failed to produce the most highly desirable
outcomes, integrating their art into psychological, sociological, philosophical,
historical and aesthetic learnings."
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Dr J Lawrence Coulter, Associate in Performing Arts Educations, Albany,
New York
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- Details
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