Programmes

The Lewis Foundation of Classical Ballet conducts various programmes that are ongoing initiatives to provide students with the opportunity to enhance personal and artistic development. Some of the major ones are listed below

November 2007
Pirouetting to greater heights

Siddananda Gudananda Babbur Mutt and Elina Wisung, students and volunteer assistant teachers of The Lewis Foundation of Classical Ballet have returned from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where they appeared for the Intermediate ISTD Vocational Graded Exam in Imperial Classical Ballet. The exams were hosted by Aurora Ballet Academy in Subang Jaya, Kuala Lumpur and conducted by Ms Heather Fish, a senior member of the Imperial Ballet Faculty. The Foundation is extremely proud of their accomplishment in the examination.

Congratulations to both of them!

Siddananda and Elina both give their services voluntarily to the Foundation as teachers, and as performers with the Yana Lewis Dance Company (YLDC). Siddananda has undergone free training with the Foundation for many years, and has been accepted to the Northern Ballet School in the UK. His trip to Malaysia was his first outside India; the experience was invaluable in terms of exposure and interaction with other dance professionals. Elina spent her childhood in Malaysia before moving to India, where she began her training with Yana Lewis. This was also her first ballet exam.

December 2007
Excitement, exuberance – and all that jazz

The Lewis Foundation of Classical Ballet, in collaboration with the Yana Lewis Dance Company (YLDC), took street jazz and traditional jazz using the sounds of marimba drums and safri tubes to Cubbon Park, Bangalore, where the company performed to house-rocking rhythms for the Born Free Arts School – Childrenize the World. The show was a bright, magical experience for the 300 children watching, and adults were equally mesmerized by the fluorescent colours in the bright sunlight. Artwork by the children of Born Free Arts School served as a backdrop to the stage. The children’s expressions of awe and amazement were a sight to behold, as YLDC electrified them with their vibrant performance.

After the show, Yana Lewis and the company held a workshop in jazz dance and inspired all the children to participate; everyone danced with great energy and enthusiasm. A fantastic day for all the participants!

January 2008
How dance can change lives

The Lewis Foundation of Classical Ballet has begun implementing a programme placement in the Yana Lewis Dance Academy (YLDA) for three students coming from an underprivileged background. The children are from the Born Free Arts School and expressed a keen interest in Iearning dance with Yana, after they experienced the show by the Yana Lewis Dance Company in Cubbon Park in December 2007. They came to the Academy with horrific tales about their short lives, yet now they participate in a normal schedule with the YLDA and its other students. This transition came about gradually, commencing with one class a week for each student and building up to the current four to five classes a week. Having previously refused to attend school, one student has already expressed an interest in wanting to overcome his learning barriers, after experiencing Yana’s natural teaching styles and the warm, caring environment that she creates in her classes.

The three children continue their training with Yana and the Foundation, exhibiting commendable sincerity, dedication, hard work, passion for dance, and boundless enthusiasm for everything they are taught. The youngest is an extremely gifted performer and has shown extraordinary ability for mime and ballet technique. The Foundation is very happy with all three and their sustained progress. The children will be participating in the forthcoming major dance production from the Lewis Foundation of Classical Ballet.

Free training

The Foundation offers free training for selected students with outstanding talent in India, to enable them to audition for vocational dance schools abroad and also to learn Yana's teaching techniques.

1. Anirvan Lall Singh, ongoing free training from May 2005, to audition in January 2008 for vocational diploma
2. Elina Wisung, ongoing free training from September 2006, trainee learning Yana's teaching techniques
3. Saravana, ongoing free training from May 2004
4. Siddananda Babur Mutt, ongoing free training from May 2004, appeared for ISTD Intermediate exam

If you are a dancer wanting to undergo further training in India or abroad, or if you feel you have the potential to become a dancer, please get in touch with the Foundation at info@thelewisfoundation.org

Children Outreach

Yana Lewis has worked extensively with under-privileged and disadvantaged children, using dance as an alternative method to explore hidden potential and release existing tensions. She has interacted with several groups in India, involved in empowering street children and those with disabilities, and the success she has met with has inspired her to add this focus to the activities of the Foundation. It is also a unique experience for the dancers and students training with Yana to share the skills and expertise they have acquired with less privileged children.