The Urdu word silsilah, translated literally, means “a chain”. Referring to the perpetuation of north Indian arts by their transmission to the next generation, the word encapsulates the process through which new, enduring links are forged in traditional arts, which are envisioned as beginning in mythic times and extending into the future. The busy-ness of contemporary life challenges this process, which depends on mutual responsibility in the teacher-student relationship. Not only must the teacher teach, but the student must learn.In no other art is the concept of silsilah more clearly reflected than in Kathak. Its demanding technique is only the entry point to an art in which abstract movement, hand gestures, poetry, music, fast footwork, lightning pirouettes, stylized walks, facial gestures and body language serve the greater goal of telling a story. Technique and repertoire are inextricably connected as the teacher coaches the student toward full mastery. But only through performance – the magical interaction between dancer and audience – actor and witness – does the student become a new link in the chain of tradition, fully participating in the transference and transformation of the art of Kathak.The production SILSILAH consisted of four performances:
Click on each performance to view photos
Summer in the Square
Produced by the Union Square Partnership,
Courtney Maloney, Manager
July 12, 2006, 12:30pm – Union Square Park Summer Stage at 14th Street and Broadway
Downtown Dance Festival
Produced by Battery Dance Company,
Jonathan Hollander, Artistic Director
August 24, 2006, 12:00 p.m. – Chase Plaza / Wall Street
Downtown Dance Festival
Produced by Battery Dance Company,
Jonathan Hollander, Artistic Director
August 26, 2006 – The Great Lawn in Battery Park
Sundays @ 3
Produced by The 92nd Street Y Harkness Dance Center,
Renata Celichowska, Director
October 22nd, 2006
Musicians: Pandit Ramesh Misra – sarangi, Narendra Budhakar – tabla, Steve Gorn – bansuri, K.V. Mahabala – sitar, Parthasarathi Mukhopadhyay – vocal
Summer Square
L to R – Antara Basu-Zych, Amiya Dingare, Chikako Iwahori, Photographer: Tianna Lewis
RAAS – Roopakshi Mathur, Maithili Raut, Sumita Sheth, Saritha Vuppala with Sanjana Sekhar, Krishna, Photographer: Tianna Lewis
