Biography
RACHNA NIVAS (pronounced RUHTCH-NA NIH-VAAS) is a performing artist, choreographer, educator, community organizer, and activist of Indian classical art. Her work is rooted in elevating feminine consciousness and Eastern philosophies that challenge dominant Eurocentric cultural paradigms. She is a passionate protector and champion of an important lineage of classical Indian dance while advancing its modernity through thoughtful evolution. Called by critics “revelatory”, “charismatic”, a dancer who “radiates power and grace”, she is an innovative and powerful artist. After rising to principal dancer in legendary icon Pandit Chitresh Das’ acclaimed company for 15 years, she is now co-founder of Leela Dance Collective and is building and leading its New York City chapter while also growing her solo body of work in a generative time of her artistic journey. Rachna incorporates elements of spirituality, mysticism, and non-duality into her work, drawing from philosophies of Indian history and civilization to explore the nature of existence, interconnectedness, and higher consciousness through the medium of dance. Her spontaneous risk-taking, playfulness, and joyful approach coupled with her ability to communicate a vast expression of the human experience, both as a performer and educator, have made her a sought-after artist for a multitude of audiences and a compelling leader in her community.
Rachna’s original works include Reclaiming the Divine Feminine, a semi-autobiographical solo work embodying the tantric Goddess Kali, personifying the paradoxes of feminine wholeness to reclaim her limitlessness; Unedited, her risk-bound tour-de-force solo highly improvised with live musicians showcasing the kathak tradition in its purest and most dynamic format; SPEAK, a cross-cultural collaboration that brings together leading women in kathak and tap, bridging Indian and African-American artistic heritage along with co-creators Rukhmani Mehta, Michelle Dorrance, and Dormeshia; Son of the Wind, a large-scale dance ballad based on the Indian epic Ramayana, centered around the historically less highlighted hero, Hanuman; Meera, the story of mystic Hindu princess Meerabai, who found liberation in a starkly patriarchal society of medieval times.
Rachna was awarded the prestigious New York Public Library for the Performing Arts Dance Research Fellowship under the theme, Dance and Ecology. She was also a recipient of the NYC-based CUNY Dance Initiative Residency to complete the creation of her solo work, Reclaiming the Divine Feminine.
Notable venues of Rachna’s works include Los Angeles’s Ford Theaters and Broad Stage, San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Virginia’s Wolf Trap Performing Arts Center, Maui Arts and Cultural Center, Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, Northern California’s Green Music Center, Mumbai’s Royal Opera House and National Center for the Performing Arts, New Delhi’s Epicenter and National Institute of Kathak Dance, Kolkata’s Birla Sabaghar, San Jose’s International Kriya Yoga Congress, Global Women’s Rights Forum at University of San Francisco, LA Tap Fest All-star concert, and Walking Distance Festival at ODC Theatre.
As a member of Chitresh Das Dance Company (2000-2016), Rachna was nominated twice for an Isadora Duncan Dance Ensemble Award while performing in productionslike Shiva, Sita Haran, Pancha Jati, Darbar, Shabd, Fastest Feet on Fire, and many more. Notable venues of her CDDC tours include Cal Performances, Zellerbach Hall at UC Berkeley, Los Angeles’ Disney Cal/Arts Theater, San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts and Asian Art Museum, Kohler Arts Center, Scottsdale Center for Performing Arts, India’s Shaniwarvada Festival in Pune, and Kamani Auditorium in New Delhi.
Rachna’s works have been funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, New Music USA, Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation, California Arts Council, Zellerbach Family Foundation, and Alliance for California Traditional Arts.
As an educator and leader, Rachna has trained and mentored hundreds of students. She is a life-long advocate and mobilizer of community to raise awareness and expand perceptions and appreciation for Indian classical art. She is especially passionate in engendering pride and ownership within the South Asian diaspora for the rich and intricate artistic heritage birthed in the subcontinent, disenfranchised for over a century by British colonization. She is currently Co-Artistic Director of Leela Academy – the official training school for Leela Dance Collective and she is building the New York Chapter of the school. She was also Artistic Director of Leela Youth Dance Company for a decade (formerly Chhandam Youth Dance Company), shepherding excellence, leadership, and dance empowerment amongst teens. Under her helm, the program became a place for the next generation of South Asian girls to find their unique voices to become tomorrow’s leaders and changemakers.
Prior to founding Leela, Rachna was fortunate to be appointed by Pandit Das to direct his educational institution, Chhandam School of Kathak, in the San Francisco Bay area. She was instrumental in building the school to become one of the largest and most influential North Indian art institutions outside of India. Under the tutelage of Pandit Das’ vision, she built organizational infrastructure, trained teachers, pioneered a popular summer camp program, and directed school-wide dance dramas with over 300 students performing.
Rachna has also taught numerous kathak workshops, after-school programs, and outreach events/residencies to communities of all backgrounds, most notably at Krupferberg Center for the Arts, San Francisco Asian Art Museum, North Carolina State Live, Treme Center of New Orleans, Conservatory of Arts in Miami, Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix, LA Tap Fest at Debbie Allen Dance Academy, National Center for Kathak Dance in New Delhi, and many more.