Tapas Das in Blogs

Letter from the Editor: Summer Steps

It may be summer vacation, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re taking a break from your teaching responsibilities. Whether you’re in the studio daily as part of a summer intensive or you’re enjoying some well-deserved time off but want to look ahead to next season’s classes and performances, Dance Teacher has you covered.

This month, we’ll be posting a lesson plan from University of Iowa associate professor Eloy Barragán that includes a contemporary partnered phrase; a hip-hop playlist from Tiffany Bong, an assistant professor at the University of Southern California; and a deep-dive into how teachers and directors can take steps to avoid typecasting performers. Plus, if you’re in the K–12 sector, we’ve got lesson-planning strategies galore to prepare you for next school year.

In staffing news, I’m delighted to be taking the helm at Dance Teacher in June, July, and August, while Reanne Rodrigues is out on maternity leave. I’m a former DT editor and frequent contributor to all of DanceMedia’s publications, and I can’t wait to spend the summer with you.

Best,

Kathryn Holmes

kholmes@dancemedia.com

The post Letter from the Editor: Summer Steps appeared first on Dance Teacher.

Next Read: Dancer-couple Nirupama and Rajendra revisit the Ramayana in ‘Rama Katha Vismaya’ »

Tapas Das: Tapas Das, a young entrepreneur of our times started TWIST N TURNS in 2005. A person who is kind, generous, creative and down to earth wanted to start his own one of a kind dance academy. According to him, Dance is a language of movements that involves space, time and the human body. He was born and grew up in Kolkata, the cultural hub of India. Being appreciated in the field of dance all his life, he is extremely talented. He has been dancing since the age of four. Once he finished his high school, he learned jazz/modern and contemporary dance. His horizons were broadened even more when he started dancing Bollywood with Beat Busters for 4 years, which then was the most upcoming dance crew in Kolkata. After that exposure, he studied how to be a dance teacher, which later started helping him impart his knowledge about dance. Thus, in 2005, with the help of family and friends, he started TWIST N TURNS. Starting with a mere number of 40 students, today TWIST N TURNS currently has over 500 students. Over the time Tapas has taught and performed all over the country. He has performed in cities such as Kolkata, Delhi, Chennai, Jhansi, Jaipur, Jodhpur, and Udaipur etc. He has been an active participant in the Salsa India Congress in the cities of Bangalore and Bombay, and he has also visited various International Salsa Congresses in Europe, namely in Berlin ,Singapore, Hong Kong,Dubai. He is been also trained recently at Broadway Dance Center (New York), Alvin Alley (New York) and Steps on Broadway (New York). He is not only a dancer or teacher. He is a successful choreographer and has coordinated various shows without difficulty in our country. His leadership skills are exceptional, thus he is where he stands today. His aim in life would be to become a dance educator. He wants to share his tremendous knowledge in the right way to the right people. He is also, simultaneously running other brands like Zumba Kolkata, Bollywood Studio ArtistWala.com and India International Dance Institute.