The temperature is cooling down, but for Chicago dancers the Fall season is where things really start to heat up! Kicking off their Fall season with a bang is Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts, who are presenting two series of works this September: four free public performances of “Through Fish Eyes,” choreographed by Kasi Aysola and featuring Maryland-based Prakriti Dance; and “She’s Auspicious,” a work by Mythili Prakash exploring the interchange between goddess worship and the treatment of women in society.
Prakriti Dance at Jacob's Pillow; Photo by Jamie Kraus Photography
Prakriti Dance's “Through Fish Eyes” (2018), running Sept. 8-9 and 11-13 at various locations, aims to evoke appreciation for the essential role water plays in everyone’s life. Aysola and Madhvi Venkatesh, Co-Founders/Co-Artistic Directors of Prakriti Dance, received a grant to conduct a diving expedition of the Great Barrier Reef to witness firsthand the damage done by human activity; this experience inspired the work, which blends storytelling through the Indian dance forms Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi with a modern, free-flowing style, performed by dancers from both Prakriti and Kalapriya. The piece will be presented at four venues throughout Chicago that were specifically chosen for their proximity to water to not only provide the perfect visual aesthetic but also to evoke a nearness to nature and increase the impact of the work's message.
“The first half will feel more traditional, using established motifs to show how we view nature through a Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi lens,” says Kalapriya dancer Harini Nilakantan in an interview. Representations of marine wildlife abound—gliding angler fish, long-winged birds, luminescent jellyfish and whales engaging in play with dolphins. In a sample presentation, four dancers embody life in the ocean, with syrupy arms mimicking the tide’s ebb and flow and lifting vapor to the sky to form clouds. They move by rolling through their feet and akles, like they are traversing a stream running over rocks. Barefoot stamps echo waves slapping against the face of a cliff. Aysola's deliquescent choreography and fast-paced staging, combined with the dancers' expressiveness, create an immersive image of an aquatic wonderland full of frolicking sea creatures.
Prakriti Dance at Jacob's Pillow; Photo by Jamie Kraus Photography
The second half of the performance takes a dark turn by depicting the effect of pollution on the symbiosis of nature. “It goes back to how man was once in harmony with nature and the ocean,” says Prakriti dancer Archana Raja, “but slowly, the piece reveals how mankind has taken nature for granted and contributed significantly to the depletion of ecosystems.” In a vignette titled “Synthetic Polymer,” two dancers symbolize a human’s relationship with water, initially pleasant as the water gently guides the individual, but turning hostile as the water becomes polluted and foul, leading to a chain reaction where the water transforms into a cage of plastic, strangling and drowning the unfortunate soul. Other scenes in the second half highlight the danger of oceanic deterioration, like a mother whale mourning the loss of her calf. These dire scenerios are meant to call to attention to the life-or-death urgency of action—after all, once the plants and animals are gone and the water is no longer potable... WE'RE NEXT!
On Sept. 26 & 27, Kalapriya presents Mythili Prakash’s “She’s Auspicious” at The Dance Center at Columbia College, featuring an all-female cast of dancers and musicians, with vocals by Ananya Ashok and Susha Rangarajan and percussion by Aswini Srinivasan. A former principal dancer with the Akram Kahn Company led by Bangladeshi dancer and choreographer Akram Khan, Prakash breaks away from traditional Bharatanatyam to explore contemporary movement in innovative ways, and she has toured her solo productions throughout Europe, Asia and North & Central America.
“She’s Auspicious,” with Mythili Prakash at The Dance Center Columbia College Chicago
“She’s Auspicious” intertwines the concepts of Goddess and Woman to investigate how goddess worship intersects with the societal treatment of women, and it reveals and dissects socio-cultural myths, narratives and principles that are tied to entrenched power dynamics and systemic oppression. The work challenges the mythology of the “Indian goddess,” addressing the deification of women and how the imposition of impossible standards negatively affects girls and women, particularly in South Asian communities.
“She’s Auspicious” is unfortunately very timely,” says Executive Director Kiran Rajagopalan, “as it addresses the extreme levels of rape and violence against women prevalent in India.” Rajagopalan, who lived in India from 2007-2014, witnessed a wave of protests in response to high rates of violent sexual assaults. “In the past few weeks alone, there have been several violent murders involving rape! Awareness is increasingly important, especially among South Asian communities, to address extreme domestic violence and its origins. This production explores these issues on a visceral level.”
Polluted waterways and domestic violence are somber topics, but they underscore Kalapriya’s mission to raise awareness about important issues through storytelling and dance, inspiring change in people’s hearts and minds. “Through Fish Eyes” and “She’s Auspicious” offer audiences a chance to engage in artistic activism while experiencing cutting-edge representations of contemporary Indian dance—a perfect way to warm your heart as cold weather approaches.
"Through Fish Eyes" performs at various locations: Sept. 8 at Clark (Richard) Park, 3400 N Rockwell St, at 2pm; Sept. 9 at Eleanor Boathouse, 2828 S Eleanor St, at 5:30pm; Sept. 11 at South Shore Cultural Center, 7059 S South Shore Dr, at 5:30pm; Sept. 13 at Berger (Albert) Park, 6205 N Sheridan Rd, at 5:30pm. All events are FREE and open to the public. For more information, click the event link below.
"She's Auspicious" runs Sept. 26-27 at The Dance Center Columbia College Chicago, 1306 S. Michigan Ave, at 7:30pm. Tickets are $30 General Admission, $20 Students & Seniors (show ID at the door). Discount tickets are available for dance industry professionals for the Sept. 26 performance. For more information, click the event link below.
