CHSE Odisha Vocational Odissi Dance flashcards
CHSE Odisha Vocational Odissi Dance · Build recall with a focused review session.
33 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Mahari tradition
- The temple dance tradition of Odisha performed by devadasis (Maharis) dedicated to Lord Jagannath at Puri, considered a major root of Odissi dance.
- Gotipua tradition
- A tradition of boy dancers in Odisha who dressed as girls and performed dance in akhadas, preserving Odissi technique after the decline of the Mahari tradition.
- Jayantika group
- A group formed in the 1950s that standardized the Odissi repertoire and helped establish it as a classical dance form on the concert stage.
- Abhinaya Chandrika
- A key Odia text on dance technique attributed to Maheshwara Mohapatra, cited as a source for codified Odissi movement and posture.
- Chowk
- A square, grounded stance in Odissi with knees turned out and weight evenly distributed, associated with the Jagannath cult and used in invocatory items.
- Tribhangi
- The signature Odissi posture with three bends at the neck, torso and knee, producing the graceful, feminine silhouette characteristic of the form.
- Bhramari
- Spins or turns in Odissi, of which uttana and tala bhramari are the two principal types used in pure dance sequences.
- Anga, pratyanga, upanga
- The three categories of body parts in dance: major limbs, minor limbs such as wrists and knees, and facial features such as eyes and lips.
- Mangalacharan
- The opening invocatory item of the Odissi repertoire, including a sloka and salutations, and ending with the sabha-pranamana to the audience.
- Batu Nritya
- A pure nritta item in the Odissi repertoire, performed in a specific tala with a slow-to-fast progression and without expressive content.
- Pallavi
- A pure nritta item in which the dancer elaborates a musical melody or raga through movement, typically set in a tala such as ektali.
- Moksha
- The concluding item of an Odissi performance, depicting spiritual liberation and often ending with a crescendo and a final pose.
- Sabha-pranamana
- The salutation to the audience, guru and deity performed at the end of Mangalacharan, marking respect for the assembled gathering.
- Four types of abhinaya
- Angika (body), vachika (speech or song), aharya (costume and decoration), and sattvika (internal emotion) are the four categories of expressive acting in dance.
- Navarasa
- The nine rasas: shringara, hasya, karuna, raudra, veera, bhayanaka, bibhatsa, adbhuta and shanta, which form the emotional palette of abhinaya.
- Sattvika bhavas
- Eight internal emotional states such as sveda (perspiration) and ashru (tears) that arise involuntarily and constitute sattvika abhinaya.
- Drishti bheda
- Classifications of eye movements described in the Natyashastra, including sama, alokita, sachi and paryavrita, used to direct expressive focus.
- Gita Govinda in abhinaya
- Jayadeva's devotional poem is the most common source for Odissi abhinaya, with the dancer portraying Radha, Krishna or a sakhi.
- Ektali
- A tala of fourteen matras used in Odissi, frequently employed for the Pallavi item and other pure dance compositions.
- Pakhawaj (mardala)
- The primary percussion instrument of Odissi, used to sound bols that the dancer interprets through footwork and rhythmic movement.
- Laya
- Tempo in Odissi music, classified into vilambita (slow), madhya (medium) and druta (fast) speeds that shape the dancer's phrasing.
- Bols
- Rhythmic syllables such as dha, dhin, na and ta recited by the percussionist and matched by the dancer's footwork in nritta.
- Patta saree
- The traditional Odissi female costume, a silk saree with a temple border draped to permit the chowk stance and full leg extension.
- Tahiya
- A traditional silver headpiece worn by Odissi dancers as part of the jewelry set that also includes the matha, tika and earrings.
- Alta
- Red dye applied to the palms and feet of Odissi dancers as part of traditional makeup, along with a white face base and dark eyeliner.
- Kelucharan Mohapatra
- A foundational twentieth-century Odissi guru credited with codifying much of the modern repertoire and training many leading exponents.
- Pankaj Charan Das
- An Odissi guru associated with the Mahari tradition, one of the principal teachers of the revival period alongside Kelucharan Mohapatra and Mayadhar Raut.
- Sanjukta Panigrahi
- A leading Odissi exponent of the revival period who brought the form to international audiences and is widely cited as a major performer.
- Guru-shishya parampara
- The oral transmission of dance from teacher to disciple, central to preserving Odissi's repertoire, technique and stylistic detail across generations.
- Pakhawaj bol notation
- A documentation method that records the sequence of rhythmic syllables within a tala cycle, allowing compositions to be preserved and taught.
- Item documentation fields
- A complete notation entry for an Odissi item specifies its raga, tala, laya, composer or choreographer, bol sequence and corresponding footwork.
- Chowk knee stress
- The deep turned-out chowk stance loads the knees, so dancers should avoid forcing turnout beyond their natural range to prevent injury.
- Bhramari safety
- Spins require a non-slip floor surface and controlled spotting; slipping during bhramari is a common cause of ankle injury in practice.