Ananya - Justin McCarthy - 22 October 2010 (Friday)
Justin McCarthy began studies in Bharatanatyam at the Way of the Dance School in Berkeley, California. He, later, studied in Chennai under Subbarayan Pillai before settling in Delhi, where he learnt for a full decade from Leela Samson at the Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra. For the past twelve years, McCarthy has led the Bharatanatyam group of the Kendra. This group performs exclusively McCarthy’s original choreography. As a musician, he also composes the music for his choreographies.
Presentation
Incorporating Chhau, Kathak and Bharatanatyam, Lokaalokam tells of a mythical mountain that divides the visible and invisible worlds. This ensemble dance work explores the multiple but overlapping visualizations of the physical as well as the spiritual in ancient Indian thought. Beginning with the notion of sound as the origin of the universe, the dance traverses the nether regions with its demons, the earth with its creatures and the skies with their lofty beings, and finally, reaches a realm of peaceful equilibrium. With the text providing the conceptual base, the music to the lyrics in Sanskrit is directly inspired by the folk traditions of various regions, including of Orissa and Tamil Nadu.
Ananya - Justin McCarthy - 22 October 2010 (Friday)
Justin McCarthy began studies in Bharatanatyam at the Way of the Dance School in Berkeley, California. He, later, studied in Chennai under Subbarayan Pillai before settling in Delhi, where he learnt for a full decade from Leela Samson at the Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra. For the past twelve years, McCarthy has led the Bharatanatyam group of the Kendra. This group performs exclusively McCarthy’s original choreography. As a musician, he also composes the music for his choreographies.
Presentation
Incorporating Chhau, Kathak and Bharatanatyam, Lokaalokam tells of a mythical mountain that divides the visible and invisible worlds. This ensemble dance work explores the multiple but overlapping visualizations of the physical as well as the spiritual in ancient Indian thought. Beginning with the notion of sound as the origin of the universe, the dance traverses the nether regions with its demons, the earth with its creatures and the skies with their lofty beings, and finally, reaches a realm of peaceful equilibrium. With the text providing the conceptual base, the music to the lyrics in Sanskrit is directly inspired by the folk traditions of various regions, including of Orissa and Tamil Nadu.