CHICAGO: Soham Dance Project’s premiere performance of Pay No Mind drew full house attendance at Links Hall in Chicago for three days beginning Friday September 19 thru 21,2014.
Anjal Chande, the Artistic Director, took thoughts and emotions from her own philosophical musings on life, set them to self-composed “Indo-folk-jazz music,” and created a dance experience that was a feast for the soul.
Chande is a revolutionary in her field; she is pushing the boundaries of Bharatanatyam choreography without changing its basic essence, and composing original music at the same time. Because all creative elements were created by Director Chande herself, the theme, prose, music, expressions, and body motions all coincided precisely and harmoniously.
The original score was inspired by Chande’s own melodies and choreography, rather than customizing the dance to suit existing music. This seemingly small gesture is in fact a radical reversal of the current Bharatanatyam tradition, and a testament to Chande’s innovative vision for her art form.
The music is collaboration between lead composer Anjal Chande, guitarist Jesse Hunter, and percussionist Karl Olson. For these musicians developing music for a choreographer-driven work was venturing into a new and fulfilling realm.
In response to an audience comment about seeing elements of other dance forms in the show, Chande clarified “it was only one style, Bharatanatyam”. “When you break down the ‘words’ and typical patterns in Bharatanatyam, you have more ‘letters’ to play with and can make more combinations,” she explained.
Pay No Mind is a true testament to her mastery of art of Bharatanatyam dance, that she can break down these seemingly set-in-stone patterns and reinvent the movement into something familiar but fresh. This was not a fusion work, but an innovative creation that pushes Bharatanatyam forward through Chande’s personal interpretation of the classical vocabulary.
Along with dancers Savitha Chelladurai and Rasika Ranganathan, Chande performed what she called “themes that would come up in conversations with friends over coffee.” Together, they told a story about the mind interfacing with the world and the subsequent experiences of curiosity, apprehension, judgment, anger, fear, dejection, joy, and so much more as they moved flawlessly from formation to formation.
As the scenes changed, for about 30 seconds the room was pitch black, allowing the audience to reflect on what they just experienced. The questions raised during the post-show Q/A proved that the people were left soul searching.
The show’s protagonist suggests that no matter what thoughts come bursting in or what surprises await in the outside world, she’ll just “Pay No Mind”. The audience was basking in the beauty of what they had just witnessed. They had experienced something very special, “a reflection of their own lives”!
Seema Kamath
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