Stills of Swan Lake
Performers of Guangzhou Ballet in Rehearsal
On a cold winter evening Delhiites came in large numbers to the Siri Fort Audi torium to see the Guangzhou Ballet perform. This was part of the “Today China”Arts Week. I arrived half an hour before the performance thinking I would be amongst the first. To my great surprise the hall was almost full. It is rare that we Indian audiences get to see Chinese dance companies perform here. There was a sense of expectation in the hall and it kept building up until the curtain went up.
Beautiful dancers graced the stage for the first piece of Swan Lake Act 2. They charmed the audience with their poise and skilfulness. But what also grabbed my attention, maybe because I am a choreographer and dancer, is that there was no dance carpet to cover the wooden stage floor! Therefore I was doubly impressed with the dancers, their professionalism, their technique their mastery in doing without it. A grand pas de deux followed by Chinese ballet Natural Melody and jazz ballet Moody Moves, gave the audience a taste of the artistry and the multiplicity of dance styles the company is capable of. For me the pièce de résistance was the Chinese symphony ballet Butterfly Lovers. Not only was it a moving love story, but it also gave the Indian audience a glimpse of classical Chinese dance, with its powerful style and emotions. The accompanying music enhanced the experience. Many in the audience probably felt the same way because the applause after this piece was thunderous.
This takes me back to the Beijing Dance Academy and its classical Chinese dance training program. I witnessed this style for half a day last November at the Academy, the day they presented their last-year students to the public. The day started with body training required to perform this dance form and little by little the program showcased the different choreographic possibilities of this dance style. I was mesmerized not just by the dancers and their training, but also by the fantastic impressions that this dance style evoked in me. I felt that day that, “Nriita”, pure dance movements, “Nritya”, sentiments and moods, and “Natya”, the way in which a story is told, all came together very harmoniously in this form. I would very much like Chinese classical dance to be taught in India because I think our dancers could hugely enrich their own styles if they were given this body training.
Talking about dance collaborations, here I would like to mention Shiv Yin, the performance that brought contemporary Chinese dance and Indian classical dance together on the same stage last November in Beijing. Shiv Yin is a simple yet touching love story where the protagonists, 10 in all, 3 female Indian classical dancers and 7 male Chinese contemporary dancers, take us on a journey exploring the different facets of desire, passion, jealousy, anger, love and finally ultimate union. These two ancient civilizations have a lot in common and these commonalities are brought to the forefront in this performance. It is a quest for the universal in Man. Both these civilizations in their own ways have always been searching for balance and harmony and these aspects are a leitmotif of Shiv Yin.
Since its première in Beijing it has been performed to receptive and appreciative audiences in both China and India. This has been a wonderful gift and experience for me, Mr TENG Aimin and the China Dancers Association, the artistic directors, co-coreographers and producers of Shiv Yin. Mr Shuangbai Feng, Mr Bin Luo and Ms Qiulong Zhang from the CDA not only believed in this project from the word go, but were instrumental in making it happen by being very present during the whole creative process and by positively reinforcing all the strengths of this collaboration.
I saw the Beijing City Contemporary Dance Company perform in Delhi in November 2016 and I was intuitively and immediately convinced that together we could create something wonderfulThe CDA and Mr. TENG Aimin both reacted very positively to my proposition of doing a collaborative work, as soon as I mentioned it to them that same evening after the performance. The idea was also very well received in India by the Shri Ram Center for Performing Arts, Delhi, and therefore Shiv Yin was born.
We all met up a few times during the year 2016/2017 to work on the artistic and practical aspects of putting this complex production together. There were many brainstorming sessionsThen in November 2017 we brought all the Chinese and Indian dancers together in Beijing for five weeks to make our dream become reality.
Of course, there were differences in our approach to the work at different times during the creative process. Mr. TENG Aimin and come from very different backgrounds artistically and mentallyBut our profound desire of truly coming together and creating something meaningful for audiences around the world, made us see our differences in a more balanced manner and made us emphasize our common strengths. It has been a great learning experience for me.
I hope many more people-to-people projects happen in the near future so that our understanding and respect for each other increases and that this in turn creates a more harmonious environment for us to live in, a great necessity for our times.
