Aparna Nambiar

🪔 About

Dr. Aparna R. Nambiar is a distinguished scholar and practitioner of Indian classical dance, specializing in Odissi and Bharatanatyam, and a prominent figure in contemporary Asian dance studies. She holds a Ph.D. in Theatre, Dance & Performance Studies from the University of California, Berkeley (2022), and master's degrees from the Universities of Amsterdam and Warwick. Her academic journey also includes a B.Sc.(Hons) in Life Sciences from the National University of Singapore. Nambiar's dance training includes classical Odissi and Bharatanatyam. She began her Odissi training under Raka Maitra in 2009 and has sustained an ongoing practice in experimental works rooted in these forms, often collaborating with Singapore-based choreographers. Early in her career, prior to her academic pursuits, she worked extensively with renowned Bharatanatyam choreographer Santha Bhaskar at the National University of Singapore Centre For the Arts. She was also a founding member of Chowk Productions, a Singapore-based dance company, where her performances have been showcased internationally in cities like Singapore, Kolkata, Washington D.C., Berkeley, and Belgrade. Her practice at Chowk Productions also involved engaging with diverse forms such as Japanese Noh and Butoh, Indonesian Wayang Wong, Seraikela Chhau, and Kalari Payattu, contributing to her focus on intercultural and contemporary Asian dance. Currently, Dr. Nambiar serves as an Assistant Professor of Dance at Davidson College in the USA. She is also a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore. Her research critically examines the evolution of traditional dance forms in South and Southeast Asia, exploring how they adapt to urban, transnationally mobile, and culturally cosmopolitan audiences in Singapore. She has held various academic and arts management roles, including Lead Instructor and Teaching Assistant at UC Berkeley, and managerial positions at the National Museum of Singapore and the National University of Singapore Centre for the Arts. Her scholarly contributions include peer-reviewed publications in journals like Critical Stages and Performance Research, and a forthcoming book chapter on Bharatanatyam and Buddhist diplomacy.