© Zani Casadio
A Passage to India
Shobana Jeyasingh Dance
Material Men redux
choreography Shobana Jeyasingh
music Elena Kats-Chernin
played live by The Smith Quartet
violins Ian Humphries, Rick Koster
viola Nic Pendlebury
cello Deirdre Cooper
set and costume design Simon Daw
lighting designer Floriaan Ganzevoort
sound design Leafcutter John
interpreters Shailesh Bahoran, Sooraj Subramaniam
Italian premiere
The double-sided art of Sororaj Subramaniam and Shailesh Bahoran – a virtuoso of the Bharatanatyam style and an amazing hiphop dancer – is showcased in Shobana Jeyasingh’s Material Men. Shobana, Indian-born but based in London, has always explored her British-Asian roots creating visionary synergies between the Indian tradition and contemporary underground dance. Material Men is a new step in her path: specifically created for her dancers in 2015, it now becomes a full-length virtuoso piece featuring a score by Elena Kats-Chernin and a strong message, inspired by the history of Indian colonial exploitation. Namely, (gorgeous) dance is here (also) a political act.
