Kuchipudi Dance

   Kuchipudi Dance is the classical dance style that receives its name from the village of Kuchipudi in Andhra Pradesh, South India.  In the 17th century this village was presented by a local ruler to several families of Brahmin performers in appreciation for the dance dramas they were staging.  These dramas were devotional enactments of the life of Krishna, performed only by men who took the roles of both male and female characters.  Prior to this time, even as early as the 8th century, prototypes of the Kuchipudi dance drama centering on the life of Siva and other Hindu gods had been performed and was known as nattuva mela.
   The tradition of Kuchipudi dance was passed down through generations of Brahmin families in Kuchipudi village and interacted with the temple dance traditions as well as the other drama traditions of South India.  The tradition has remains so unbroken that even today in some of the coastal areas of Andhra, Kuchipudi is still performed by all-male troupes.  However, in the past 30 years, the dance has undergone a revival as both a solo and dance drama tradition and is now performed on the modern stage around the world by both man and women. Both geographically and stylistically, Kuchipudi dance can be best understood as located between the classical dance styles of Odissi, the classical style of Orissa, and Bharata Natyam, the dance of Tamil Nadu.  Kuchipudi blends the sensuousness and fluidity of Odissi with the geometric line of today's Bharata Natyam.  As in all the classical dance styles of India, the dance is both interpretive and lyrical, making use of abstract dance sequences as well.  In either case, Kuchipudi dance retains its devotional character with an emphasis on dramatic expression.  It is no wonder that Kuchipudi dance enjoys great popularity and is recognized as one of the foremost classical dance styles of India.