| Screen star Shobana in exclusive
Southland dance performance
Irvine – Popular film actress
and National Award winner Shobana will perform in ‘Sampradaaya – from
myths to modernity’, a dance ballet at the William Bristol Civic auditorium
on Sunday October 26th at 6pm. Shobana, known for her realistic
portrayal of an Indian mother in a culturally challenged situation in the
film ‘Mitr’, is a trained classical dancer and has been performing for
over 20 years. ‘I'm now on my own voyage, a new lease of creative life’,
she says in a recent article explaining her sabbatical from films and her
upcoming world dance tour. This production features her latest foray into
choreography with the young crop of dancers from her school, Kalarpana
in Chennai, India. Accompanied by an ensemble of musicians from India,
this exclusive southland performance is sponsored by the Irvine based Ektaa
Center, the recently renamed Arpana Foundation.
Way before she did her first
film, Shobana trained in Bharata Natyam with the popular performer and
guru Chitra Visweswaran. Even at the peak of her film career, her passion
for the art led her to teaching and establishing Kalarpana. ‘I felt
that there is a whole world of youngsters out there who probably feel like
me, who want to learn and experience the joy of doing something creative
and establish an identity as an artist’ she says explaining her motivation
to set out on her own ‘voyage’. Niece of the famous Travancore sisters,
Lalitha, Padmini and Ragini, well known movie stars of the 60’s and 70’s,
she admits she got the breaks in dance because of her ‘film’ connection.
Nonetheless, she had to work very hard to have audiences and critics take
her dancing seriously. Often she had to ward off requests for her to perform
‘film’ dances which are a whole different genre she explains.
‘Ms. Shobana proved especially
fluid and infinitely feminine’, quoted Margaraet Putnam of the Dallas
Morning News of her recent performance, perhaps the hallmark of her dancing
that has attracted audiences the world over. Although, it is really her
ability to portray innumerable emotions without inhibition that she has
brought to bear in her recent choreography and presentations. In ‘Samradaaya’
she explores the Indian folklore and works of ancient poets and more recent
literature from India through her vocabulary of dance that blends the traditional
with the contemporary. Explanations of the items performed will be presented
to the audiences, so they can understand and appreciate the dances.
Shobana has established herself
as a pre-eminent exponent of Bharata Natyam, performing in a wide range
of traditional and contemporary platforms. Shobana has also performed along
with artists of stature such as Ustad Zakir Hussain, Vikku Vinayak Ram,
Sonal Mansingh, and Padma Subramanyam. It is this experience
and over 2000 stage appearances that help her communicate with audiences.
‘My performance is only at the level of communication to my audiences
and essentially, I don’t play to the gallery’ says Shobana making no
apologies for her sometimes controversial performing style. Making no bones
about her desire NOT to be the ‘carrier of a glorious tradition’ her restless
personality is constantly on the lookout to doing something creative or
to construct ‘ a framework for one to inquire, question and even challenge’.
Irvine based Ektaa Center
is committed to create an awareness and understanding of the traditional
arts and culture from India through diverse medium such as dance, music
or theater and related arts. In the last 13 years, they have presented
over 30 visiting artistes such as Birju Maharaj, Kelucharan Mohapatra
and Prof. C.V. Chandrashekar at popular venues such as the Barclay
in Irvine and the Torrance Cultural Arts Center. With grants from Arts
OC, California Arts Council and the Fund for Folk Culture, the Ektaa
Center will continue to strive for interesting art presentations and dialogues.
For tickets please call (949) 552-7407, go online at www.sulekha.com
or email harish@ektaacenter.org.
General admission tickets for this performance are $20. A limited number
of reserved seating is available for special sponsors. For information
call (949) 552-7407 or go online to www.sulekha.com.
MasterCard, VISA, American Express, and Discover are accepted. The theatre
is located at 16600 Civic Center Drive in the city of Bellflower.
|
