JOIN USA unique programme that sought to explore the meeting points of different forms of classical dance was staged recently at Alliance Francaise as part of the ongoing ‘Dance DISCourse’. During the recital, four dancers performed their own unique traditions on stage together, creating a wonderful display that left the audience mesmerised.
The occasion began with a short film, which set the perfect note for the rest of the programme. The video, which was directed by Sharmishta Mukherjee, explored different aspects of classical dance, such as the guru-shishya relationship and how it is changing in modern times and the important of exercise and massage in different fields of dance. Over the course of the film, various noted personalities in the field were brought into the discussion, such as Yog Sunder, Astad Deboo, Birju Maharaj and Daksha Seth.
Once this was over, the stage was set for the artistes. In the context of ‘Dance DISCourse’, Chiranjeevi Singh, the president of Alliance Francaise de Bangalore, says, “To have come this far without the support of the government or the corporate world is indeed an achievement.” He also discussed the intent behind the programme, which is to showcase classical dance in its purest forms.
In the first act of the programme, two varied styles — kathak and bharatanatyam — were performed in unison by Somasekhar and Parshwanath Upadhye respectively. The first piece they performed to was a Gajavardhana, which was composed by a UK-based troupe and superimposed by the texts and structures of bharatanatyam and kathak. The interplay of the two styles was fascinating.
When the artistes performed together, the similarities in terms of the fluidity of their movements were evident. They also performed solo for a few minutes each and Somasekhar’s, in particularly, was so visibly appealing that the audience burst into impromptu applause before his segment had ended. They also performed a Ram bhajan, to the delight of the crowd.
In the second segment of the show, the two dance forms which took centre stage were bharatanatyam, performed by Anuradha Vikranth and kuchipudi, performed by Shama Krishna. They presented a ‘jugalbandi’ called Nrityamilana.
Here, too, it was intriguing to see the similarities and differences in terms of the complex footwork and dynamic postures of both forms.
Anuradha says, “To highlight the similarities between the two styles, we have adopted the chari (footwork) and karana (sculpturistic postures) from the root of all classic dances, natyashastra. We retained out individual steps but tried to coordinate them at the same time.”
For those who had gathered at the show, the end result was a visual treat. Anjuna, a member of the audience, says, “I’m not a trained dancer myself but even I could see the precision and dedication of the artistes. It’s interesting to see how dances that have evolved in different parts of the country are similar.”