BY SONAM MIRPURI
LOS ANGELES,CA-Actress, dancer, choreographer, Amrapali Ambegaokar recently added another distinction to her resume by judging the dance performance of the inaugural event of the 2015 Special Olympics held here. The 47th annual Special Olympics was held at the University of Southern California (USC) here.
LOS ANGELES,CA-Actress, dancer, choreographer, Amrapali Ambegaokar recently added another distinction to her resume by judging the dance performance of the inaugural event of the 2015 Special Olympics held here. The 47th annual Special Olympics was held at the University of Southern California (USC) here.
The Special Olympics are the world’s largest sports organization for individuals of all ages with intellectual disabilities.
Invited by Nigel Lythgoe, one of the many judges from the hit television show ‘So You Think You Can Dance’, Ambegaokar felt honored and quickly accepted the offer to join others to judge the opening ceremony. This was the first-ever dance competition of its kind and was produced by Lythgoe.
The other judges whom Ambegaokar judged alongside were Paula Abdul, previous co-judge on ‘American Idol;’ Nicole Scherzinger, lead singer from the Pussycat Dolls; Travis Wall, previous participant of ‘So You Think You Can Dance;’ Stephen Boss, mentor from ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ who recently acted in Magic Mike XXL; Miriam Larici, an Argentinean tango choreographer, and Louis Van Amstel, one of the professional dancers from ‘Dancing with the Stars.’ Ambegaokar’s previous experiences have given her the credibility necessary to judge an event of this kind. From childhood, Ambegaokar studied Kathak from her Guru. Anjani Ambegaokar,who is her mother as well. Amrapali attained her degree from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in World Arts and Cultures and Dance. During her time at UCLA she learned various dance styles, Flamenco, Modern, and Hip Hop to name a few.
These styles were merged to create a performance known as ‘Oceane-Goddess of Water’ with the infamously known group Cirque de Soleil on Dralion for more than two years and performing nearly a thousand shows. Additionally, Amrapali represented Cirque De Soleil in an interview and performance on ‘The Tonight Show’ with Jay Leno as well as ‘The Today Show’ with Katie Couric.
Presently, Amrapali is an Associate Artistic Director and Choreographer in Anjani’s Kathak Dance of India Company. She has presented at multiple highly respected locations such as the Hollywood Bowl, The Cerritos Center of the Performing Arts, the World Music Institute (New York), and many more venues around the world.
In addition to dancing, Ambegaokar has acted in previous and current popular television shows. She starred in ‘Desperate Housewives’, ‘Outsourced’, ‘Hart of Dixie’, ‘Boston Legal’, ‘Scandal’, as well as having a recurring role in ‘Grey’s Anatomy’. She has also acted lead in Ram Gopal Varma’s ‘Naach’, Meena Nanji’s ‘Living in Color’, and Darrin Henson’s ‘The Hotel.’ Amrapali has also played a supporting role in Dennis Cooper’s ‘Alternative Medicine’ and Dan Trevise’s ‘Outsource.’
Having a variety of credits to her name, Ambegaokar is living up to her dreams by doing everything she envisioned she would as a child. She is doing what every child hopes to do in their future, bringing their dreams into reality.
Invited by Nigel Lythgoe, one of the many judges from the hit television show ‘So You Think You Can Dance’, Ambegaokar felt honored and quickly accepted the offer to join others to judge the opening ceremony. This was the first-ever dance competition of its kind and was produced by Lythgoe.
The other judges whom Ambegaokar judged alongside were Paula Abdul, previous co-judge on ‘American Idol;’ Nicole Scherzinger, lead singer from the Pussycat Dolls; Travis Wall, previous participant of ‘So You Think You Can Dance;’ Stephen Boss, mentor from ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ who recently acted in Magic Mike XXL; Miriam Larici, an Argentinean tango choreographer, and Louis Van Amstel, one of the professional dancers from ‘Dancing with the Stars.’ Ambegaokar’s previous experiences have given her the credibility necessary to judge an event of this kind. From childhood, Ambegaokar studied Kathak from her Guru. Anjani Ambegaokar,who is her mother as well. Amrapali attained her degree from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in World Arts and Cultures and Dance. During her time at UCLA she learned various dance styles, Flamenco, Modern, and Hip Hop to name a few.
These styles were merged to create a performance known as ‘Oceane-Goddess of Water’ with the infamously known group Cirque de Soleil on Dralion for more than two years and performing nearly a thousand shows. Additionally, Amrapali represented Cirque De Soleil in an interview and performance on ‘The Tonight Show’ with Jay Leno as well as ‘The Today Show’ with Katie Couric.
Presently, Amrapali is an Associate Artistic Director and Choreographer in Anjani’s Kathak Dance of India Company. She has presented at multiple highly respected locations such as the Hollywood Bowl, The Cerritos Center of the Performing Arts, the World Music Institute (New York), and many more venues around the world.
In addition to dancing, Ambegaokar has acted in previous and current popular television shows. She starred in ‘Desperate Housewives’, ‘Outsourced’, ‘Hart of Dixie’, ‘Boston Legal’, ‘Scandal’, as well as having a recurring role in ‘Grey’s Anatomy’. She has also acted lead in Ram Gopal Varma’s ‘Naach’, Meena Nanji’s ‘Living in Color’, and Darrin Henson’s ‘The Hotel.’ Amrapali has also played a supporting role in Dennis Cooper’s ‘Alternative Medicine’ and Dan Trevise’s ‘Outsource.’
Having a variety of credits to her name, Ambegaokar is living up to her dreams by doing everything she envisioned she would as a child. She is doing what every child hopes to do in their future, bringing their dreams into reality.
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