An evening to remember

by Ankaret Dean

Every step, every hand movement, every head pose is an element in the classical Indian dance known as Bharathanatyam. Visitors to the Café MEREA ‘World Beat India’ two weeks ago at the Schoolhouse were very fortunate to have the chance to see Blanchefleur Lavigne as she performed two classical Indian dances.  Dressed in traditional dance costume, she wore a yellow and black silk dress with a pleated gold fan over skirt, bangles on her arms to add to the rhythm, a beautiful jewel neckpiece, and a flower hair clip holding her long braid.

Her feet and each finger were painted with red dye to draw attention to their movements, similarly her eyes were heavily outlined in black make-up. 

Blanchefleur was born in Alberta, and moved to Auroville in southern India when she was two years old.  A year later, at the age of three, she started to learn classical Indian dance. She attended Kalakshetra, the world-renowned school of fine arts and dance where she received 2 diplomas, graduating in 2000. She returned to Canada in 2002 and is presently a student and staying with the Brown family in Elphin.

The evening at MERA also included Raintree, a world-folk group from Almonte, and One Big Smile, an Indian Music ensemble from Ottawa. The world came to McDonalds Corners for an evening, and many thanks to Les Russett, the director of Café Merea.