"...Ahmed was a captivating presence..."
Richard Dyer, Boston Globe
"...truly one of the best pre-show talks we have had..."
David Henry, Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston
"...a stunning performance, in appearance, lecture, dance and overall knowledge."
Diane Hoffman, Director of Member Services, Orchard Cove Senior Life, Canton
Tara is an arts educator with a great love for dance, music and teaching; she takes great satisfaction in working with different age groups from little ones to elders. For two decades, she worked as a dancer, primarily in classical Indian dance techniques. She has performed and given dance/lecture demonstrations and workshops in schools, museums, and cultural institutions in Brazil, Colombia, India, Turkey, and the U.S.
Tara has collaborated with artists across disciplines and has performed the title role in a Bank of America Celebrity Series production. Her television appearances include WGBH's DanceFest and Greater Boston Arts. Tara founded and directed Lasandhi Dance Theater, which performed throughout New England, including Jacob's Pillow.
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Tara piloted her Movement Together class for families this year. This class is a culmination of her work in different movement forms and her work in education with children and families. She hopes you will join her to dance, play with your kids, and forge new connections -- kinetically and community-wise.
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Photo by Sarai Warsoff
Tara studied classical Indian dance with Neena Gulati at the Triveni School of Dance in Brookline (where she subsequently taught for 15 years), and with Anuradha Jonnalagadda in Hyderabad, India. She also studied West African dance in Boston and did a year-long apprenticeship with Ballet Sangomar in Dakar, Senegal. Tara completed an apprenticeship in Japanese (taiko) drumming with Odaiko New England (O.N.E.), and subsequently performed with them for five years. She currently performs in school lecture/demonstrations with O.N.E.
Tara studied Modern Dance at Harvard and received a cum laude Bachelor's Degree in Dance Anthropology from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She has worked in arts administration at the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and in Early Childhood Education with the Cambridge Public Schools.
Photo by Jen Barrows
Photo by Suzy Drurey
Photo by Channing Johnson
Photo by Celia Ivanov
Tara does community outreach as a teaching artist and in 2023 she worked for the Boch Center in their Interactive Stories program, and at the American Repertory Theater for their puppetry outreach program.