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 "When the Gods Manifest" (Singapore's IPAC 2023 Performances at the Esplanade) - Ramaa Bharadvaj e-mail: ramaabharadvaj@gmail.com Photos courtesy: IPAC July 16, 2023 If Singapore's IPAC (Indian Performing Arts Convention), now in its 12th year, has become a much-awaited annual event, it is because of the thoughtful and balanced curation of Aravinth Kumarasamy. He brings together exceptional teachers, scholars, and performers to create a holistic dance experience that nourishes the body, mind, and aesthetic spirit. This year, I was invited to join the IPAC team with my lec-dems, talks, workshops, classes, and folk performance "Tarkka Paattu". For a full week, the convention kept both the students and faculty on our toes, with our days packed with technique classes, specially curated talks, lecture-demonstrations, (many of them premiering at IPAC for the first time), plus film screenings and book releases. Among the highlights of the IPAC experience was the evening showcase performances presented in collaboration with the Esplanade Theaters on the Bay. This year, there were three concerts that acted like three crowning 'kalasams' to the IPAC temple tower. June 23, 2023: MAHISHASURAVADHAM  Mahishasuravadham  Kapila Venu The first day of IPAC's Showcase performance at Esplanade began with the booming sounds of mizhavu and edakka drums bringing not only 'God's own Country' to Singapore, but the goddess herself. Petite in form but massive in energy was Kapila Venu as she presented the slaying of Mahisha in Kerala's Koodiyattam style. The daughter of the legendary exponent G. Venu, Kapila is the ideal torchbearer of her father's legacy. She depicted Mahishasura's fierce encounter with Devi through deliberately controlled and highly stylized gestures, radiating a mesmerizing intensity. Finally, as Devi drinks over and over from the wine goblet and rises in intoxicated ferocity to behead the asura, the audience watched Kapila's fearsome transformation in reverential silence. The Natyashastra speaks of the success or 'siddhi' of a performance as being of multiple kinds. Of these, the 'dhaivi siddhi' or divinely blessed success is said to elicit stunned silence from spectators. Kapila's performance had that effect on the audience, but only briefly; for soon, the entire theater jumped to their feet to acknowledge her marvelous mastery, with a sustained ovation. As for me personally, the effect continued long after I walked out of the theater and joined my colleagues at a restaurant for dinner. How does one walk up to a goddess and tell her that she was spectacular? Finally, when I did tell her how I felt, she laughed sweetly, and we became friends. That's right! I befriended a goddess! June 24, 2023: SKANDA RASAM  Mohanapriyan Thavarajah  Aravinth Kumarasamy When Mohanapriyan Thavarajah chose to devote his solo evening's work to Lord Skanda, that beauteous God must have been pleased, for as it turned out, this second evening of Esplanade showcase fell on the exact day of Sashti, most sacred for Skanda worship, but neither the artistes, nor the organizers had any clue of this divine conjunction until after the event was over. Ahh... the thrill of such blessings! True to its title, the flavors of Skanda could be experienced the moment we entered the Esplanade theater space. Welcoming us was a beauteous stage ornamentation - a large decorative water-filled brass basin, with six lotuses floating at the foot of a majestic 'vel' (Lord Skanda's spear)! The next wonderful addition was having Aravinth Kumarasamy as the storyteller. In a warmly intimate narrative style (that reminded me of the days of nestling up to my father to listen to tales about devas and asuras), Aravinth drew us in, into each dance, with pertinent narratives about festivals, puranic anecdotes, and ritualistic customs relating to Lord Skanda. The visual aesthetics was enhanced by his simple act of floating a tiny flaming light into the brass basin for each of the six dances that he introduced. Mohanapriyan filled the stage with his charming presence through six dances that took us into the Skanda-sphere. Since it is the vehicle that appears before the deity does, Priyan began his presentation with Mayura Alarippu in which his every gait and swirl simulated not only Skanda's mount, the peacock, but its rasa of 'pride' as well. Although an elaborate Varnam and complex Thillana were part of the evening, my favourite dances were 'Skanda Rasam' (a newly created work with lyrics and impactful music by Rajkumar Bharathi), and an effervescent Kavadi Chindhu. The former was an effective essaying of six emotions relating to Skanda's six faces, through six puranic episodes. In the latter, Mohanapriyan brilliantly captured the complete folk essence of the song with some unusual movements that flowed with sinuous grace. Ah! Such a pleasant evening! June 25, 2023: ANAAVARAN  Methil Devika Like a nymph from the heavenly sphere, she entered with a gentle gait - the gorgeously stunning Methil Devika - and from then on, the evening only got better. Her six-part program presented in Kerala's Mohiniattam style, featured intelligently chosen pieces, creating a balanced palette of emotional hues that, to my delight, included humor. Devika is more than a choreographer and performer, she is a scholar and a musician too and these talents made her presentation sparkle - the crispness with which she introduced each piece, the clarity in her use of gestures to depict concepts and ideas, and the attention to effective musical orchestration for each dance. Among my favourites was her interpretation of the popular "Yaaro Ivar Yaro", an Arunachala Kavirayar composition about the first meeting of Rama and Sita. Very cleverly, she introduced the characteristic 'Pandattam' of Mohiniattam into the opening of this dance, and her conclusion to this piece showing Rama recognizing Sita even at first glance as Lakshmi, gave this song a dimensional depth that connected the past, present and future. For me, it was a horripilation-moment. Her 'Eshal' portraying a conversation between a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had everyone giggling with glee. The 'Shambu Natanam' with which Devika concluded the evening was a fitting finale to the elegant strength that she portrayed throughout the evening. However, this piece composed by saint Patanjali has a fascinating story about how it came into being. Knowing this story is essential to avoid a pronunciation error that most singers make in the use of one word in the final refrain line. Unfortunately, this program too had that error. Special mention must be made of the lighting designer Niranjan Gokhale from Bengaluru. For all three evenings, he lit each dancer with delicately nuanced sensibility thus enhancing the visual effect tremendously. The two programs featuring artists from Kerala were supported by Mudra Cultural Society of Singapore. And with that concluded Singapore's IPAC 2023... PACked with learning, PACked with discoveries, PACked with excellence, and most importantly PACked with new friendships that are for keeps. Thank you, Aravinth Kumarasamy!  Ramaa Bharadvaj is a celebrated dancer, choreographer, storyteller, humorist, educator, and writer. During the 31 years that she lived and worked in the US, Ramaa received multiple Lester Horton Awards for her choreographies, and served as arts-advisor for state and national arts agencies. Ramaa returned to India in 2009, and currently lives in Bengaluru. She conducts workshops, writes and speaks on the Arts for diverse groups, and creates stories for the world. |
