Directors

Keerthana Sidhaye is the current Co-Director of Kalamandapam. She has studied classical dance from the age of four from her mother, Mrs. Sadananda and later was a disciple of Dr. Vempati Chinna Satyam, having spent nearly every summer of her school age years in Chennai. She will always be indebted to the Nambiar family for taking her in as a daughter. Although, she had been in Chicago for several years, she continued to participate in almost every major production of Kalamandapam. Aside from performances around the world, she has had several lead roles in our productions and she enjoys being able to play a variety of roles from male deities, to damsels in distress, and even a fortune-teller performing a folk dance. Keerthana is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, MD.

Kavitha Cheedalla began her Kuchipudi journey in 1999 at Kalamandapam, under the guidance of Guru Smt. Mrinalini Sadananda. Pursuing a childhood dream with the support of her husband, Ravinder Cheedalla, she learned dance alongside her daughters, Sruti and Amani.

She has also trained with several renowned Kuchipudi gurus, including Madhavapeddi Murthy, Sathyapriya Ramana, Pasumarthy Vithal, and Bhagavathula Srinivasa Sarma.

Kavitha has performed key roles in notable dance dramas such as Ramayanam, Andal Kalyanam, and Bhudham Sharanam Gachami. She was part of the Guinness World Record at the 1st International Kuchipudi Convention in 2008 and has performed at prestigious venues like the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. and Hylton Performing Arts Center in Manassas, VA.

In recent years, she has served as a judge for competitions including Tu Bhi Nachle, SiliconAndhra Annamayya festival, KAGW, and Chak De C’Ville at UVA.

Currently, Kavitha is the co-director of Kalamandapam, where she teaches and helps promote her passion for dance. She also works as a Kindergarten assistant teacher with Manassas City Public Schools. As a dance instructor, she is dedicated to nurturing her students’ confidence, growth, and love for the art.