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"...if you can dance like that, you don't need anything else in your
life!!"
SSB
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"Jaysi and her musician-friends have created a fine sushi,
and yet, selling it like an ordinary fish. I do not think anybody who has
not seen the show really understands the positioning and meaning of the show.
It is far beyond JAC (just another concert) in a SUH (small unknown hall).
This is a pathway to involve our kids in OUR culture--No overtone of Eastern
or Western culture, just OUR culture. A fine mix of poetic interpretation
and full of positive energy. Pragya was so impressed watching the show.
She wants to calls several of her friends to the proposed show. We want
our friends to watch it too. Life is too short to plan such thing in a formal
way, let this expression happen in the South Bay on an asap-basis. This
is what I feel, and speak my heart out loud. "
Sanjay Mathur
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"... 'Lamps on Lilypads' - and it was AMAZING!!! This is the second
time I've made it out all semester and once again it is to see a dear friend
perform, and it was worth the outing. Jaysi is SOOO talented! With heart and
soul, experimenting bringing Indian classical dance and storytelling, and
romancing it with themes of success and self, challenging these notions, speaking
to social justice, to love and a tribute to all the great teachers that have
come before. Choreographing dance to her poetry, to Mexican and Indian influences
and to EE Cummings. Jaysi is a student of Chitresh Das, Ali Akbar Khan and
Swapan Choudhri. She plays tabla, dances Kathak, sings and plays laughter,
brings laughter. I'm going to skip a class to see the performance again!"
VERY INSPIRING!!!!!!
Simmi
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"I was just remembering a conversation I once had with an Indian friend
of mine who was telling me about how Indian actors and actresses necessarily
were also singers and dancers. I was just thinking about that conversation
because seeing you perform helped me to begin to understand that intriguing
concept. Here you were praying, dancing, singing, reading poetry, creating
laughter and tears, acting yet living, storytelling, playing tabla, and
more, integrating the body within itself and without itself, encompassing
the audience, meshing the fabric of tradition with the essence of the modern
moment, all in the transcending name of Love. It's very amazing what the
human being can do, and there you were showing just all that. What a feat!
Congratulations!"
AT
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"I just wanted to congratulate you on the most awesome performance ever
by a single individual that I’ve ever seen. I was really in awe, and
it was just so beautiful...I thought you were just fantastic! It should
be taken on a worldwide tour."
Masae Kawamura
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"Lamps on Lilypads is a conscientious and dedicated effort by a group
of extremely talented performing artists, expressing their spirit of love,
compassion and humility. For one of the artists, it is the joyous liberation
of soul."
Raju Nadimpalli
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"a unique fusion of traditional indian classical dance forms with poetry,
and song, this peformance will invoke deep emotions in you, and leave you
with feelings of contentment, peace, and unbounded love. The performance
is dramatic, fast-paced, engaging, and will touch your heart, mind, and
soul alike no matter who you are, from what background, and what orientation."
Vinay Chaudhri
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"Namaste, Salaam and all the other greetings of the universe. I want
to thank and congratulate you on a most delightful and magnificent performance
on Sunday evening. Frankly, your performance with the message of
peace, love, true success really uplifted my spirits and gave me a sense
of joy. Also, for the first time I really understood something about
kathak dance. Please continue to manifest the great treasure of your
spirit and heart through your performances I believe you have a great mission
in this regard. I will attend your next performance in the Bay Area.
I remain your fan..."
Virender Goswami
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"Your performance was so beautiful. I found the times you sang particularly
moving and by the end... I had tears streaming down my cheeks. Never stop
dancing."
Sue Rintoul
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"I was at the Chatauqua performance at OAEC and enjoyed your performance
very much. It spoke to me on many levels - such a unique combination
of varied forms and styles, with your bright spirit integrating it all
into one beautiful show and carrying it straight to the heart!....As a
dancer and musician, I'm curious too, about the dance form. Something like
tap dancing, but seeming more eastern, using such nicely syncopated steps...Mainly,
I would like to know if you are performing Lamps on Lilypads anywhere right
now, because I would like to introduce some of my friends to your work."
Jean Redus, Dancer and Musician Graton, California
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"I want to thank you for sharing your beautiful spirit, vision and
precision with the world this weekend. Your performance was simply mind
blowing! Thank you for working so hard to share your collaboration with
such talents as Wallace, Ben and that phenomenal tabla player. I felt honored
to be there...
With love and gratitude,"
Avesa
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"Any artist must break through bonds of convention and oppression.....(and)
the world loved it. You should have heard everyone raving about you."
AT
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"excellent show! i enjoyed it very much. i'm sure everyone's told you
this already, but i'll say it again anyway... you are an amazing dancer
and performer, you engaged the audiences so well. i felt that every part
of you are communicating and active and alive. together with the live music,
and it's been a truly wonderful experience. i'm so glad that i went. hope
to see you dance again soon..."
-rengie chan
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"We absolutely loved your show yesterday!!! It was such an excellent
performance. We were all so moved."
Geeta
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"...your performance was so moving, you are a supernatural being that
i am in awe of. How lucky am I to know you. That it was you
up there being super girl with a wide open heart for all living beings just
made it such a special night...I loved your show.
It was totally amazing.
I have nothing but superlatives for you."
Chris Fink
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"It was so so SO great to see you perform last night. It would have
been great to just see you, but to see you in your element and doing what
you love, WOW. It was very inspiring. You are one multi-talented lady.
I have always found you beautiful in the most comprehensive of sense, and
yet last night, you were the most beautiful I have ever seen you.
Man, it really was a pure delight...it really was super great to watch you
and learn from you last night.
With much love,"
Claudette
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"I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed the performance.
I think you could do for Indian dance what River Dance did for the Irish
Celtic type of dancing. You were radiant and the good vibes were felt
by everyone attending."
Jo Floyd
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"Your show was absolutely fantastic. I really enjoyed it.
It really surpassed my expectations. I’m really glad you did a wonderful
show."
Jaime Law
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"I really want to congratulate you on your show and tell you what an
absolute delight it was to see it. It was really joyful and uplifting.
Even the serious parts were uplifting in their own beautiful way."
Adrienne Kane
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"...I do find your are a great dancer and singer and artist...I thought
you were first of all a tabla player and were dancing as a hobby so I was
surprised to see how beuatifully you danced...And your songs haunted me
for days, Really It was beautiful.... I really had not felt that happy and
inspired for a long time. You were radiant, graceful and powerful at
the same time, blessing us with something beyound words, something coming
from your deep heart, I was really moved and Mansur also. I must say
I did not think you were such an accomplished dancer and writer and singer,
you were just what an artist has to be, a true artist, giving words and reality
to our feelings, creating this community of hearts and letting our emotions
flow through your body and words. I loved every part of it, it was
like a dream. Thanks Jaysi for this courageous undertaking. I can imagine
how much work it has been. I can't wait to see you another time. A
lillipad ( ?, this big white flower that was on your temple) flowered in
my garden, reminded me of you.
Lots of love."
sabrina
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"Your dancing is incredible. I would
very much like to see your next performance, perhaps with my daughter
Nola, and would even consider travelling to do so. "
Bruce Barrett
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"I just wanted to let you know how great the performance was and how
good it was to see you so happy in Minnesota. I knew the performance
would be great, but I didn't know how great. I'm so impressed with how
reflective it was of who you are, what you believe in, what you've been through,
and what you hope for others. It was so full of optimism, compassion,
humor, fun, and love. I loved it (and the costumes)."
Joan Griffin
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"Jaysi, thank you for the performance. You seem limitless - dancing,
poetry, speaking insight... I concur with Gil - you're amazing.
I also enjoyed your musicians. One of my favorite parts was your
vocal duet with Tim... "
Debbie Davis
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"Thank you so much for your performance tonight. It was BEAUTIFUL, and
inspiring. I was completely awed by what you do and am so glad Kathryn could
see it too. It is something she will remember."
Judy Anderson
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"It's been nearly a month and a half since you graced us with your peformance
of Lamps on Lilypads here in Madison (WI). And yet the inspiration continues..."thank-you
for the inspiration". Your Art has affected me ... and others too.
Please do continue ;~)
Shanti,"
Andrew Wilke
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"Wonderful performance ... gotta say. Clever, inventive in a very
personal way. One of the most intriguing moves or poses was when your
back was to us -arched, articulated in a very expressive way. Never
seen anything quite like it. Nice.
Hope you will revive the show elsewhere and/or in the future.
Cheers,"
Jerome
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"Please thank Ben, Wallace and Tim once again for your wonderful performance
here last night. It is always my pleasure to bring performers to
our small town that can bridge the gap to the rest of the world.
I'm especially pleased that so many families brought their young children
who were all so attentive to what was undoubtedly a new and very different
art form for them. It is always good for people to open the door to
something new but I think it is especially powerful for young children.
As I danced to Zakir Hussein playing tabla and tar on the Mondo Head album
by Kodo, I thought of all of you playing and dancing love and understanding
into our midwestern hearts. Travel in peace and joy.
Light and Life, Love and Laughter,"
Eric Norton
Head of Children's Services
McMillan Memorial Library
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"I wanted to share with you how much I enjoyed Lamps on Lily Pads Saturday
at Bhaskar's. I was so glad you were able to travel to Folsom to
share your incredible art with us. I wanted to tell you this after
the show, but I was feeling shy and I am never sure whether artists want
to be bombarded by "fans" post-show.
I was deeply moved and inspired by the progression of the music and
dance - especially ending with "love". The rest of the day, I felt
so uplifted from my personal burdens - and I am grateful for having a moment
of inner peace without all of the "daily" stuff clouding my vision.
Anyway, I hope you understand how you touch people's lives by being the
beautiful people you are - your talents are a catalyst for your audiences
in ways you may not ever "see".
I truly appreciate the fusion aspect of the show: the contemporary piece
(forgot the song! - by the Bengals? uh, no I don't think that was it..),
the Spanish song- and the poetry in addition to the already phenomenal
Classical Indian music and dance. This is what I found so RICH about
the show - the versatility to incorporate different sounds and dances from
other cultures - and it melted in so well. Brilliant!
I appreciated that you took the time to explain what is happening in
the music (the framework of music/speech ..end on sum, for instance..) -
I find I enjoy performance more when when everything isn't a complete mystery.
This was the first time I have seen Kathak dance (I study Bharat Natyam
and Odissi with Meena) and I LO-OVE it! Oh how beautiful and alive
the music, dance, song/story were together. Since I hadn't been seen
a Kathak performance, I wasn't sure what was appropriate behavior from the
audience. I wanted to laugh out loud, cheer/clap, and cry - but felt
unsure whether I was supposed to be quiet.. so I was silent. I hope
you had a good time - again, thank you for sharing this beautiful show!!
Have a wonderful day.
With love and joy,"
Shawna
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"Last nite's performance was fabulous. You are a special performer--your
joy and love are contagious--there's probably a better word--that sounds
like a diagnosis instead of flattery. Anyway as you've probably seen
I sent a "review"... to my email lists.
'Lindy and I saw it last night for the second time and Jaysi is extraordinary.
I hope it doesn't sound like a lot of new agey-ness to say that she filled
old Open Secret with energy, emotion, devotion, and love. I am totally
impressed...Lindy and I saw her perform about 6 months ago and it was one
of the most moving, spirited bits of performance I've ever seen'"
Victor
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"What a fascinating program it was! I went to the Indian music and dance
performance in Madison on Saturday which was incredibly inspiring and enriching.
The music and dance performances were extraordinary and the atmosphere
was wonderful. There was so much talent in such a friendly, personal and
warm setting and such an amazing diversity in the program. I am so
glad you told me about the performance and I hope Hans and Theron had a
chance to see it.
Thanks again and many good wishes"
Heidi
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"I see skies of blue, And clouds of white. The bright blessed day ,
and the dark sacred night--And I think to myself: What a wonderful world.
I don't know the name of the dancer/singer/actress who was with the Indian
group(Jaisi?...). Anyway, show was wonderful. Earthy, dramatic, sometimes
really powerful. She sang the above song at the end of the program--and
of all things, I ran across it in a book I'm reading! We both really
enjoyed the program. Marni can certainly be proud of her...Ben was
very very good...Jaisi did a fine Spanish bit too--she was truly
fine. Maybe it was that she BELIEVED in what she was doing?
love,"
Theron
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“Dear Jaysi, Thank
you for sharing what you endured after the dance production.
I support you 100%, what you created has helped in
raising awareness of the depth, spirituality, and beauty of classical Indian
dance and music. You did a
magnificent job! the musicians were amazing too, really all aspects of
production were very professional and thorough.”
Robin Sukhadia
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“I haven’t told you
how much I enjoyed it, how original, fresh, and beautiful I think it is.
“
Vidhu Singh
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“Thanks for dancing
for us, when you put that show on, everybody left there with something...a
really good feeling. The girl next to me wept.
I had a lump in my throat...Everyone left with something.
It was a really good message and it was really good...You
got into a little trouble but you gave us all something.
It was cool.”
Ted Kanstein
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