The teasing jingle of a pair of salangais and the firm ‘ thaam , thalaangu ,’ from the swan-like nattuvanar brings the dance studio alive. In the other corner, a dancer laces up her ballet shoes. Her eyebrows furrowed in concentration, she ties the final bow and glances up. Their eyes meet and they rise in unison. They move towards each other slowly and then, they dance.
It’s a meeting of different kinds of languages, cultures, dancers. At least, that’s how dancer-turned-choreographer Cecile Loyer describes her project, Histoires Vraies , which will be gracing the stage at Phoenix MarketCity next week.
Creative encounters
A contemporary dancer herself, Loyer is no stranger to on-stage innovations that continue to awe audiences worldwide. She was introduced to Bharatanatyam only three years ago, when the National Theatre of Orleans (France) approached her with a project that she couldn’t refuse. “They simply asked me to prepare a dance project in India, so I felt it would be interesting to make a performance with traditional Indian dancers as well as contemporary artists.”
Rehearsing in the auditorium of Alliance Francaise, Loyer began planning the upcoming exhibition. A chance meeting with Bharatanatyam dancers, Renjith Babu and Vijna Vasudevan, led to a three-hour practice, culminating in the formation of a quartet performance with contemporary artists Mai Ishiwata and Steven Hervouet. Together, the four will be bringing Loyer’s story to life for audiences.
“The piece is about the story of our meeting and how we are able to invent a dance, a language together, how we are able to speak about love together and how we are able, each of us, to bring our own history in our dance,” Loyer says.
A confluence of Bharatanatyam and contemporary forms of dance, the show is one that she hopes will showcase each dancer’s true potential.
Blending harmonies
With music by French composer Sylvian Chauveau, the performance brings elements of both the rock groove and classical flourishes, incorporating melodies traditional to both art forms. Loyer says it was a concerted effort, consciously establishing a balance of her style along with those of Chauveau’s and the four dancers that will be illustrating the story.
Chennai is still new territory for her. And yet, the evolution of her seed of an idea has inspired a new challenge. “The task is to see whether every dancer has found his place on stage. And yet, that’s also the goal: to showcase the best of the artist and who he is as a person for the world to see.”
Histoires Vraies will take place on June 27 at Phoenix MarketCity at 7.30 pm. Entry is free. 66513007
