Bharathanatyam performances like none other

I am not a Bharatanatyam expert.  My review here is from a pure entertainment view only.  Experts can leave your comments below. After attending about 7 performs during the last 2 months, this event really stood out.  I would recommend this for the entertainment and educational value.

Gopikas and Shree Krishna in a elated and playful mood

I recently attend a unique dance performance called Prapathi Marg by a team of senior dancers- Roja Kannan, Priya Murle, Srikanth and Ashwathy Srikanth.  The show was at the Bharat Kalachar, which is in the PSBB School campus in Thirumalai Pillai Road.  This was not the traditional dance sequence of Jathiswaram, Thillana and Mangalam.  The entertainers told a story through the dance.  The performance was more focused on education and entertainment, as opposed to the technicalities of Bharatanatyam. Without letting out too much of the storyline, the storyline was based on the Vaishnava theme of total submission to the God.  The lectures by Srikanth were entertaining and were distributed throughout the performance.  His language combined "suddha" tamil and colloquial "bashai". The audience were truly spell-bound, including my four year-old daughter. There was no plastic oohs and aahs.     

Shree Krishna

What made this presentation unique was the combination of music, song selection, dance sequences, costumes, and the thematic rendering. The performers used the complete stage by introducing mood lighting, temple bells, playful action and an ongoing narration of the main theme.  The lighting, temple bells and the diction based on the onstage action were very well-done.  This reminded me of the RS Manohar dramas of a past era. 

Musical Accompaniments

The two singer- Srikanth (different from the dancer) and Saranya were captivating.  Saranya's facial expression captured the moods of the theme on stage was a nice draw!  The combination of Tamil, Sanskrit and Hindi songs made it universally applicable.  The flutist really brought out Shree Krishna, though he was hidden from public view until the end of the show.

Each dancer in the group focused on a different phase of Krishna's life.  There was love, emotion, devotion and color as the different themes.  The story was simple for my four year-old to ask questions and wanting the understand the details of each story.  She said the best part was Draupadi (Roja Kannan) going round-and-round, depicting the de-robing by Dushasana. 

Roja Kannan as Draupadi

The role of Meera (played by Priya Murle) seemed to bring MS into the eyes of the senior generation. 

Priya Murle as Meera

Srikanth as Krishna did a awesome job and his small role a Rajput prince made it quite realistic. 

A similar theme is being played out by the PARASAH group at other locations during the Margazhi Season.

Vilasini Dance and Chandra Mandala

Chandra Mandala, 1, Elliots Beach Road, Besant Nagar, Chennai, 600 090.

Chandra Mandala is this beautiful set of performance stages in the former house of the late Chandralekha.  I had never heard of this lady.  Since that time, I google'd her and found a lot of interesting information.  Here is a nice link about her.

Chandra Mandala is an eclectic location.  It is across the from the beach at the quieter edge. The place has a nice forest atmosphere.  The buildings are in Kerala style with sloping tiled construction.  There are three stages.  One is a atrium with an open space all around.  The second is a fort-like enclosure with huge stage.  The third is a sunken hall.  All three have been built with openness to allow the cool (Ok, it is December in Chennai) beach air to flow through.

I had never heard of Vilasini Natyam dance form either.  So, this was a great introduction.  Vilasini is a temple, court and theatrical dance traditions of the Telugu Devadasis.  In olden days, this performing tradition was referred to as Bharatam, Karnatakam or Tsaduru.  The emphasis is on abhinaya (facial expression), the hand gestures simply allow the flow of the story through.  Unlike Bharathanatyam, there is not a lot of movement around the stage.  This form has recently been resurrected by a dancer called Swapnasundari. She is also credited with renaming it Vilasini Natyam.  It is still a very niche form and there is no Wiki page on it.  The dancer wears wooden hand crafted jewellery called ‘Ganiyam’.  A main feature is a seated performance, where the dancer sits on a pedestal or thinnai.  The hand guestures and facial expressions are all that are needed to tell the story.  There are minimal instrument accompaniments.

Chandra Mandala is a dance school and conducts regular shows.  It is worth visiting, just to take in the art energy.  It has a lot of resembles to Cholamandal Artist Village in the layout.  it will great to hear from others that know more about this dance form.  Leave your comments.