Her hands flutter like a butterfly as she gracefully moves them in time to a slow and steady melody. Dancing comes as naturally to Cecile Berrebi de Noailles as flying does to a butterfly.
The classical and contemporary dance maestro from Paris is in Kochi to conduct a two-month international workshop on contemporary dance techniques for French and Indian students.
Cecile, who began learning classical ballet at the age of five, became a professional dancer at 18, and an international soloist dancer at 20.
After working for American and European dance companies for 12 years, she formed her own dance company — Contemporary Choreographic Workshops of Dance (ACCD, France), where she teaches professional dancers and actors.
For more than 10 years, Cecile has been flying between India and France. “I love India and want to live my life both in India and France. I am here for five months now, till December,” she says.
Quiz her what she likes about Kerala and she says she likes not only Kerala, but the whole of India.
The two-month workshop at Dazzlers Dance Studio, Kochi, will be taught in three modules — yoga, contemporary dance and Mohiniyattam. Cecile, who has learnt a bit of Mohiniyattam, will be teaching contemporary dance techniques while yoga and Mohiniyattam will be taught by Indian maestros.
“Dance and music are international,” says Cecile, when asked about how her Indian students were coping with the art form. Contemporary dance in general is not aligned to any particular nationality and as such poses no difficulty for aspiring dancers to pick it up. “It is about improvising on a movement.”
The performances by the Agora Company, dedicated to the contemporary creation of multi-disciplinary shows, have been directed and created by Cecile ever since 1989. Cecile, in association with the Dazzlers Studio, will be holding a stage performance on contemporary dance in Kochi, on August 19.
