'Dance has helped me find myself'

Denny Paul took his first steps on the dance floor at the Attakkalari Centre for Movement Arts, where he now works as an associate performing artiste.

A part of the first batch of dancers who graduated from the Centre, he attributes his creative calling and eagerness to explore dance as an art form to his initial training here.

Denny has created a unique dance presentation which will be staged at the graduation performance by the diploma programme students, to be held on August 14.

In an interview with Nina C George, Denny talks about his latest creation and his journey as a dancer.

What form of dance do you enjoy teaching and performing?
I teach contemporary dance techniques. I also try to blend martial arts with various dance forms. I focus on creating intense movements and infusing energetic steps into my performances. I try to find a new language through dance and always encourage the dancers to push the boundaries of creativity.

What is your latest project?
We have, for the first time, created a dance video project with 36 dancers. The project is called ‘Blank’ because it draws its inspiration from a blank state of
mind. The dancers are encouraged to give their own interpretation to the theme and create movement around the word ‘blank.’

Tell us more about ‘Blank’?
I have picked ten seconds from everybody’s movement material and created a
video. This is the first time that we are trying something like this. We have gathered different dance movements and tried to connect them to a central character and have knit the emotions around that character. There is a portion in the piece which has a lost kind of feeling and it swiftly moves to sadness and frustration and concludes with a feeling of hope.

Is it easy to come up with original works?
It’s very tough. The way of thinking, chorography and interpretation keeps changing with time and space.

What does dance mean to you?
Dance has helped me find myself. My journey as a dancer has been enriched, thanks to the many experiences that I have had so far. Dance has also helped me get a
better clarity and understanding of the techniques.

What do you hope to achieve through your performances?
I want to my performances to strike a connection with the audience. I have noticed in some performances that there is a lack of connection between the material and audience. I want to be able to reach out to people through my work.