Jaan R Freeman

🪔 About

Jaan R. Freeman is a dancer, choreographer, and teacher, born and raised in New York City, USA. He initially trained extensively in Western contemporary dance at institutions such as the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance, Mary Anthony Center, New York State School of the Arts, and the Summer Arts Institute of Lehman College. His early career saw him performing with notable companies including the Murray Louis Project, Martha Graham Ensemble, Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company, Humphrey Weidman Tradition, and touring nationally and internationally with the Battery Dance Company. He was also a member of the Alexander's Musical Theatre Touring Company from 1986 to 1990. Freeman's journey into Indian classical dance began in 1995 when he first encountered Bharatanatyam. He commenced his Bharatanatyam studies in New York with Kamala Cesar, a disciple of Balasaraswati. In 1997, he furthered his advanced training in Chennai, India, becoming a disciple of Nandini Ramani and Priyamvada Sankar, both senior disciples of T. Balasaraswati. He had his Bharatanatyam Arangetram in 2005 at the Henry Street Settlement Playhouse Theater in New York. He founded the Freeman Repertory Dance Company in 1989, serving as its artistic director. In 2004, he established Dakshina Palli Inc. in New York City, an educational and cultural organization dedicated to preserving and perpetuating the Bharatanatyam lineage of T. Balasaraswati. Through Dakshina Palli, he conducts classes, workshops, and master classes in the Balasaraswati tradition and also showcases contemporary Bharatanatyam creations. Freeman has performed Bharatanatyam throughout the United States and has taught modern dance in major cities across India since 1997.