Temples are coming alive with dance festivals now. If the Natyanjali at Chidambaram is the biggest, similar festivals are taking place in the temples at Nagapattinam, Thiruvarur and Kumbakonam.
These have been promoted closely by Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam's Chennai-based 'Nrithyodaya '. Padma hails from Nagapattinam and her family and colleagues have been hosting the dances for a few years now.
If you are travelling to Chidambaram at the time of Sivaratri, these events can be part of your tour schedule. The atmosphere when a dance is held in the temple precincts is unique. Large numbers of the local people turn up for these festivals. Dancers take turns to perform at the three venues.
Here is the schedule of the festival at the three venues:
Venues: Nagapattinam Sri Neelayadakshi Amman Temple
26th February -6 pm to 9.55 pm
Mangala Isai, Inauguration, Krishnakumari Narendran's Students Bharathanatyam, Local Talents, Karaikkal Bharathanatyam, Deepak Venkatesh, Kumbakonam Bharathanatyam, Local Talents, Tiruvarur Bharathanatyam.
27th February - 7 pm to 9.55 pm
Jayashree Rajagopalan and Group, Mumbai Bharatha Nrityam, Uma Sriram and Gayatri Kannan Bharatha Nrityam, Gopika Varma Mohini Attam, Uma Muralikrishna Kuchipudi.
28th February -7 pm to 9.55 pm
R. Madhumathi Odissi, Revathi Ramachandran and Group Bharathanatyam, Udumalai Sendhil and Group Bharatha Nrityam, Nivedita Parthasarathy Bharathanatyam.
1st March - 7 pm to 12.55 pm
Srekala Bharath and Group Bharathanatyam, Sangeeta Dash, Pondichery Odissi, Zakir Hussain Bharathanatyam, Dr. M.S. Sarala's Students, Karaikudi Bharatha Nrityam, Vineeth Bharatha Nrityam, Udupi Lakshminarayanan's Students Bharathanatyam, Trio Sisters Bharathanatyam, Balakumar and Group, Nagapattinam Bharathanatyam.
2nd March - 7 pm to 9.55 pm
Dakshayani Ramachandran's Students Bharathanatyam, Upasana Upadhyay Bharathanatyam, Madurai R. Muralidharan and Group Bharathanatyam, Ravi Sharma and Group Bharatha Nrityam.
Venue: Tiruvarur Sri Thyagaraja Swami Temple
26th February - 6 pm to 9.55 pm
Mangala Isai, Inauguration, Deepak Venkatesh, Kumbakonam Bharathanatyam, Local Talents, Tiruvarur Bharathanatyam, Krishnakumari Narendran's Students Bharathanatyam, Local Talents, Karaikkal Bharathanatyam.
27th February - 7 pm to 9.55 pm
Gopika Varma Mohini Attam, Uma Muralikrishna Kuchipudi, Jayashree Rajagopalan and Group, Mumbai Bharatha Nrityam, Uma Sriram and Gayatri Kannan Bharatha Nrityam.
28th February -7 pm to 9.55 pm
Udumalai Sendhil and Group Bharatha Nrityam, Nivedita Parthasarathy Bharathanatyam, R. Madhumathi Odissi, Revathi Ramachandran and Group Bharathanatyam.
1st March -7 pm to 12.55 pm
Zakir Hussain Bharathanatyam, Dr. M.S. Sarala's Students, Karaikudi Bharatha Nrityam, Srekala Bharath and Group, Bharathanatyam, Sangeeta Dash, Pondichery Odissi, Trio Sisters Bharathanatyam, Balakumar and Group, Nagapattinam Bharathanatyam, Vineeth Bharatha Nrityam, Udupi Lakshminarayanan's Students Bharathanatyam.
2nd March - 7 pm to 9.55 pm
Madurai R. Muralidharan and Group Bharathanatyam, Ravi Sharma and Group Bharatha Nrityam, Dakshayani Ramachandran's Students Bharathanatyam, Upasana Upadhyay Bharathanatyam.
Venue: Kumbakonam Sri Kumbheswara Swami Temple
28th February - 6 pm to 9.55 pm
Mangala Isai, Inauguration, Jayashree Rajagopalan and Group, Mumbai Bharatha Nrityam, Uma Sriram and Gayatri Kannan Bharatha Nrityam, Gopika Varma Mohini Attam, Uma Muralikrishna Kuchipudi.
1st March - 6.15 pm to 12.55 pm
Aiswarya and Group, Kumbakonam Bharathanatyam, Nivedita Parthasarathy Bharathanatyam, Deepak Venkatesh, Kumbakonam Bharathanatyam, Upasana Upadhyay Bharathanatyam, R. Madhumathi Odissi, Bala Namasivayam's Students, Kumbakonam Bharathanatyam, Madurai R. Muralidharan and Group Bharathanatyam, Ravi Sharma and Group Bharatha Nrityam, Geetha Ashok, Kumbakonam Bharathanatyam.
2nd March -6.15 pm to 10.40 pm
Local Talents, Kumbakonam Bharathanatyam, Srekala Bharath and Group Bharathanatyam, Dr. M.S. Sarala's Students, Karaikudi Bharata Nrityam, Zakir Hussain Bharathanatyam, Sangeetha Dash, Pondichery Odissi, Artistes from Karnataka Yakshaganam.
