anyway.. instead of starting with my regular "oh no"s, "oh my"s and "not again's... let me write something which can be relevant to this blog...
I was participating in a large production recently and the experience was mind-blowing! i was really enthralled with the magnitude of the production! there were 80 dancers dancing their parts - contemporary, mohiniattam, puppet/doll dance, dollu kunitha, kamsale, aerial dances, rope dance all in one dance production. The production lasted 20 minutes.. and yes it was just fabulous.
The stage setting was massive, it was 24 feet wide stage and two walls constructed, one as a side exit and one as a back drop. The entire stage seemed like a entrance to the heaven!
The song was a poem by Mr. Harivansh Rai Bachchan named 'Madhushala". select 10 verses were danced to a melodious tune.
The stage setting had windows on these walls, and each dancer was given a window to dance.. and vertically parallel to the wall was a ladder and the doll dancers would climb to the top most and dance their steps! now... the audience is in a fix, as to what to watch, where to which. On the stairs are the Mohiniattam dancers. and guess what, the heights of this, everybody is doing the very same step and in such great co-ordination!! this was a treat for the eyes!!!
every level there was a dancer, every nook and corner the dancer dances and every dancer becomes so vitally important on this stage, because every eye can see you.
The general presumption of dancers in the front dominate does not work on this stage!
The production was a high budget, high profile and damn beautiful.... it was one heck of a production , God!
