ST. LOUIS: Two dance dramas were performed at Edison Theater, Washington University three days in a row in St. Louis last week. Over thousand Indians and Americans attending the event termed it fabulous.
The dance dramas had great dancing, good story telling, great humor, wonderful pacing and a dramatic build-up of the climatic scene. The little girl who played Prahalada in the first dance drama "Narasimha" was completely in character - quite imperturbable.
The dancers in the drama were very professional and brought a lot of verve, humor and drama to their roles. The way the two guards (Prahalada's friends) grew emboldened and aggressive with each successive scene was impressive and they really helped to heighten the drama.
The drama reflected meticulous attention to all aspects of every role - whether major or minor - and that, in part, explained why the show was so successful. The second drama, a contemporary piece, "An Incantation of Incarnation - The Ten Wondrous Lives of Vishnu" was amazing having such entirely different dance styles blend together so cohesively.
The girl who played Narada was completely convincing both as the wise and spirited sage and then as the dreaming romantic enchantress, Mohini. The way the ballet, tap, flamenco and modern dance seamlessly and gracefully illustrated the story was captivating.
The intermittent narration present in both dance dramas, was lovely and helpful to the audience. The dancers performed with great grace, sinuosity and suppleness and it was fascinating to learn about all the different incarnations of Vishnu.
Each dancer conjured an incarnation in a vivid and imaginative way so as to both capture the qualities of the incarnation and convey the individual style of the dancer.
The dance moved inexorably towards a suspenseful scene that climaxed with the appearance, first of Buddha, and then of Kalki. The dance seemed to mirror the central theme that "joy" is important and must be sought out and that the wonder, beauty and variety of life must be celebrated even in the midst of great suffering and tragedy.
The guest artists were very impressive and their dance styles were outstanding. The production involving over 50 dancers was superbly choreographed and reflected tremendous artistry, fine aesthetic judgment and painstaking attention to millions of details.
The production was flawless and every aspect of it, the dancing, music, narration, lighting, sound effects and stage sets, was captivating
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