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Rendezvous
with Tradition and Beyond
Dance was at the centre of Kala Bharati's participation in the Journées de la Culture on Sunday, 30th September 2007, held at the LADMMI studio with discussions and demonstrations on Tradition and Beyond in which well known dancers and teachers demonstrated how they have pushed the frontiers of the dance forms they practise.
At the very outset, Bhava Thamotharan, who ably emceed the event, introduced the two segments that were to follow. Kyra Lober, of Body, Being and Heart, who trained and performed as a Contemporary dancer and Eva von Gencsy, founder of The Ballet Jazz in Montreal, who needs no introduction, presented the first part of the event, in which they spoke on how they both have extended their use of dance to generate a state of well being. Kyra Lober introduced her approach to dance involving not only physical movements, but also the fundamental unity between the inner self and the heart. At her invitation several members of the audience got up spontaneously and joined her to demonstrate. Kyra's words were no longer theoretical concepts but became alive and practical.
In the second segment, Mamata Niyogi-Nakra, Artistic Director of Kala Bharati, Bharata Natya Centre in Montreal, and Shakuntala, a Bharata Natya dancer from France, took us through a different trajectory in which we got glimpses of how the frontiers of the traditional art of Bharata Natya have been pushed through their explorations in its practice.
Michel
Laverdière is a Montreal based producer of music records and is
well known in the city’s cultural scene. He has been associated with Kala
Bharati for over 25 years as consultant.
Note:
Kala Bharati plans to bring out a publication
on this topic presenting the views expressed by the five artists who participated
in this event. If you have any ideas or comments please send them to nakrabm@istar.ca
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From
the very beginning, one could feel electricity in the air as the audience
entered the hall and soon extra chairs had to be added. First sign of excitement:
a gathering larger than expected is always a good omen!
Eva
von Gencsy picked up the theme of well being through dance using rhythms
and movements. She took the participants through a routine setting the
pace for an invigorating workout in which dance translated into pure energy.
Such is the force of Eva’s boundless energy that even those sitting and
watching felt they were dancing in their chairs.
Mamata
took us through a choreographic landscape traversing a wide spectrum of
her works: from the much acclaimed Seasonscape, which premiered at Tangente,
Montreal, and was recorded by Doordarshan, the Indian national TV channel,
to Shishu Sadhana, a child-friendly Bharata Natya repertoire, a path breaking
work in the area of Dance and the Child. The extract from "Dans jazz-ku",
in which haiku poems have been interpreted through Bharata Natya movements
to the accompaniment of Jazz music, illustrated how it is possible to bring
three different art forms together while each remaining rooted in its own
tradition. It was a memorable retrospective for all of us who have seen
La Troupe Kala Bharati's performances.
Shakuntala
performed a traditional item on Lord Nataraja to situate her practice of
Bharata Natya. Using this item as a point of reference she went on to demonstrate
how it was conventionally done in temple settings with limited space, thus
showing the transition of Bharata Natya presentations from the temple to
the theatre. Shakuntala has a very intense approach to her art and she
really brought a new dimension to dance performance by mixing dance movements
and poetry, close to mime and storytelling, which allowed us to witness
such a touching and unforgettable demonstration.
It
was truly one of a kind and dance historian Vincent Warren's comments to
sum up the three-hour rendezvous with Tradition and Beyond echoed the joy
and excitement experienced by a captivated audience. Renu Chitra
closed the formal part of the proceedings with a vote of thanks on behalf
of Nrityajyoti, but many stayed on longer to gather around the speakers
and artists to share their feelings and grateful comments. A memorable
Journée de la Culture - of the body and soul!