Samavesha FLYER

Dansense

     Dansense~Nrtyabodha, a 501(c)3 charitable organization that promotes Indian classical dance arts and culture through lessons, workshops and performances.  Dansense aims to engage the community in a conversation of discovery and understanding.  To this end, Dansense is proud to present SAMAVESHA, master dancing duo Srikanth and Aswathy’s latest production.  This is FREE to the community and made possible with support from friends of Dansense and a small number of sponsors.

Samavesha

    SAMAVESHA is a unique dance presentation of 2 stories from the Indian epic, Mahabharata.  Following the dance performance in the beautiful and intimate space of the ASU Kerr Cultural Center, we invite audience participation.  This will be facilitated through Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process to help grow the conversation.

Dancers

     Aswathy is proficient in three dance forms—Bharata Natyam, Mohiniattam and Kuchipudi.  Her artistic depth is supported by her post-graduate degree in English Language and Literature and training in Carnatic music and is marked by a sophisticated intuition.  In Samavesha, Aswathy uses the idiom of Mohiniattam to embody the complex character of Amba, the princess of Kashi.  Amba gives up her life to be reborn as Shikhandi, the eunuch, in order to avenge herself against the warrior Bhishma.

     Srikanth is a Bharata Natyam dancer.  His exceptional command over expression, rhythm, and Tamil literature gives him an unparalleled artistic vision.   In the all-male Bhagavata Mela theatre tradition, he specializes in performing female roles, such as Sita and the pregnant Devaki.  In Samavesha, Srikanth embodies Brihannala, the accomplished female dancer, in whose guise the warrior Arjuna must spend his final year of exile transformed to live as tritiya-prakriti, the third gender.