Chennai Margazhi Season 2017: A look at new dance trends and presentations
There are artistes who balance tradition and trend through their works. A look at some of the contemporary expressions presented recently
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How long can you keep watching the same trope — pining Nayika constantly waiting for her lord and his love — in this day and age, questions one faction of the audience watching dance performances. Contemporary dance is the route that a few dancers take to camouflage their bad dancing skills and poor technique, says another group. Both these viewpoints have been expressed for some time now and there is some truth in both. But it cannot be generalised. Whichever path is chosen, it is the artiste’s calibre, commitment and conviction to their concepts that determines their reach.
Interestingly, the two dance conferences that unfolded in Chennai during the Season more or less focused on these two diverse angles of tradition and its relevance today.
Natyadarshan, the dance conference, hosted by Kartik Fine Arts and curated by Krithika Subramanian with the title, ‘Now or Never ‘sought to focus on the traditional finding a voice in a contemporary milieu, initiating a dialogue among the performers, audience and connoisseurs.
“In today’s world, art forms need to be competitive without diluting their identity and this is the real challenge I had taken on as convener.
Besides the lectures and discussions, there were performances that were examples of genres pushing the boundaries set by conservative thinking,” says Krithika.
Read more at: http://www.thehindu.com/entertainmen...le22367024.ece
There are artistes who balance tradition and trend through their works. A look at some of the contemporary expressions presented recently
How long can you keep watching the same trope — pining Nayika constantly waiting for her lord and his love — in this day and age, questions one faction of the audience watching dance performances. Contemporary dance is the route that a few dancers take to camouflage their bad dancing skills and poor technique, says another group. Both these viewpoints have been expressed for some time now and there is some truth in both. But it cannot be generalised. Whichever path is chosen, it is the artiste’s calibre, commitment and conviction to their concepts that determines their reach.
Interestingly, the two dance conferences that unfolded in Chennai during the Season more or less focused on these two diverse angles of tradition and its relevance today.
Natyadarshan, the dance conference, hosted by Kartik Fine Arts and curated by Krithika Subramanian with the title, ‘Now or Never ‘sought to focus on the traditional finding a voice in a contemporary milieu, initiating a dialogue among the performers, audience and connoisseurs.
“In today’s world, art forms need to be competitive without diluting their identity and this is the real challenge I had taken on as convener.
Besides the lectures and discussions, there were performances that were examples of genres pushing the boundaries set by conservative thinking,” says Krithika.
Read more at: http://www.thehindu.com/entertainmen...le22367024.ece