Preethi Ramaprasad has been learning Bharatanatyam from Prof. Sudharani Raghupathy (Shree Bharatalaya, Chennai) for the last 17 years. As a student born and raised in the United States, she has made annual visits to India to train in dance and nattuvangam from her guru.
Since her arangetram in 1999 at the age of 11, Preethi has given numerous group and solo performances in both India as well as the U.S. Some of these noteworthy venues have included Bharat Kalachar Yuva Utsav, Madras Music Academy Spirit of Youth Festival, Natyanjali Festival, and various sabhas during the December Season, among others. As part of the Silambam Dance Company, Preethi toured the U.S. with her guru's production 'Krishnam Vande Jagatgurum'.
In 2006, Preethi was awarded an ARTS Scholarship from the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts in the United States. Subsequently, her dance was featured in the 2007 Oscar-Nominated Documentary, 'Rehearsing a Dream'.
In 2008, Preethi presented a performance entitled 'Abhyasa: A Tribute to Learning', featuring choreography by Prof. Sudharani Raghupathy. The proceeds of the performance were given to V-Excel Educational Trust in Chennai, which benefits children with special needs. 'Abhyasa' had encore performances at Harvard University, and the December season in Chennai.
Preethi's second themed production, 'Mitra: Glimpses of Eternal Friendship' was premiered in March, 2011 in Chennai. It elaborates on the theme of friendship in various mythological contexts.
In college, Preethi was the founding President of the first Indian classical dance group in existence at Rutgers University, called Natya (RUN). Since its inception, the group has given numerous performances.
Preethi also teaches and has given lecture demonstrations on Bharatanatyam at several venues including YoungArts, NY. The Juilliard School of Arts, NY., Rutgers University, NJ., Barnard College of Columbia University, NY., and Eastern University, PA.
Preethi is a student of Carnatic music for the past 17 years. She has been trained in Western dance forms as well as the Western classical violin and vocal music. Preethi graduated from Rutgers University in 2010 with Honors in the fields of Cultural Anthropology and Political Science. During her time there, she wrote her thesis on the Devadasi tradition as it applies to the modern practice of Bharatanatyam. She recently returned from a intensive year in Chennai to pursue her passion in dance.
