Ranee Ramaswamy

🪔 About

Ranee Ramaswamy is a highly renowned contemporary Indian classical dance artist, choreographer, performer, and teacher of Bharatanatyam, the classical dance of South India. Born in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, she began her Bharatanatyam training at the age of seven and continued for ten years. In 1978, at the age of 26, Ramaswamy immigrated to Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota, United States, where she started dancing professionally around the age of 30. A pivotal moment in her artistic journey was in 1983 when she began intensive training under the legendary Bharatanatyam dancer and choreographer Alarmél Valli, traveling to Chennai, India, for four months each year to study. In 1992, Ranee Ramaswamy founded the Ragamala Dance Company in Minneapolis, which she co-directs with her daughter, Aparna Ramaswamy. Her other daughter, Ashwini Ramaswamy, also serves as a principal dancer and choreographic associate. Ramaswamy's creative vision is distinguished by her ability to merge the classical language of Bharatanatyam with a contemporary Western aesthetic, creating timeless pieces that bridge past and present. Her work has been commissioned and presented by prestigious venues nationally and internationally, including the Kennedy Center and Lincoln Center. In recognition of her significant contributions to the arts, President Barack Obama appointed her to the National Council on the Arts in 2011. Through her company and the Ragamala Training Center, she has educated hundreds of students in Bharatanatyam in Minneapolis/St. Paul. Awards & Honours: Bogliasco Foundation Fellowship (2020), Guggenheim Fellowship (2018), Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Research Fellowship (2017), Doris Duke Performing Artist Award (2014), United States Artists Fellowship (2012), McKnight Distinguished Artist Award (2011), Artist of the Year (Minneapolis Star Tribune) (2011), Joyce Award (2008), Bush Fellowship for Choreography, McKnight Artist Fellowships for Choreography and Interdisciplinary Art, NEA Individual Artist Fellowship.