It was wonderful to have so many of you with us for our virtual production Maya: the Illusionist, produced with generous support from the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County. Through this program, our intention was to introduce viewers to an ancient South Asian perspective on the idea of worldly illusion, and to share both the traditional vocabulary and the contemporary narrative potential of the Odissi dance form. Starting with the idea of illusion, or Maya, as it is conceptualized in Hindu scripture, we wanted to show how reality is obscured in stories from other literary and cultural traditions, serving as both a plot device and a metaphor for a major aspect of the human experience.
The show premiered via Zoom on December 5th, 2021, but if you missed it, don’t worry! You can still watch it until January 5th, 2022 by completing this short registration formafter which you’ll see a link in the completion message to view it on our Youtube channel. If you would like to share feedback after viewing the show, please look for a link to our short feedback form in the description box below the video. We will be donating $1 to a Wheaton area charitable organization for every survey response we receive.
Thanks again to everyone who joined us as we tried out some new things, and especially to those who participated in our talkback or shared their feedback with us in other ways – we are so grateful to you!
Over the summer, Mayur students participated in the RagaLabs fellowship under IndianRaga. This piece is set to “Bojre Tomar Bansi” (or Flute in theThunder), written by Rabindranath Tagore and rendered here by Swagatalakshmi Dasgupta; the piece was choreographed for this workshop by Mayur’s Artistic Director Sukanya Mukherji.
Students worked hard to get this piece together in pandemic conditions, wearing masks and rehearsing outdoors in the summer heat. We’re very grateful to their families for initiating and supporting this project, following the pandemic safety protocols. Mayur is very proud to present the result of these efforts, and we thank IndianRaga for the opportunity!
Please enjoy, and look out for more pieces in this series – especially an item that was choreographed by the students themselves.
We hope you all are doing well in quarantine. While it doesn’t look like we are going to go back to normal any time soon, I am happy to bring to you an informative article about two unique Odissi poses.
Darpan is a sculpturesque pose from the walls of ancient Orissa temples. Vaguely put, this pose shows a woman looking at her own reflection in a mirror (see picture on the left). With a modern peripheral lens, one might see narcissism. But if one goes a bit deeper, it all unravels. First, she looks at her beauty astonishingly. Then, she recognizes the potential inside of her. Thirdly, she takes pleasure and pride in that experience. To me, this pose is about self-love. Every time I hold this pose, a natural smile appears on my face. In the middle of dancing in front of a big crowd, I can take a deep breath during this pose, and enjoy the moment.
Odissi is characterized by various Bhangas (stances). The first example that comes to any Odissi dancer’s mind is Tribhanga, because it is one of the most common poses that act as a base for Odissi. Tribhanga means a pose in three parts. A dancer’s body has three bends in this pose: neck, waist and knee. The waist and the neck are curved oppositely looking like the shape of the English alphabet ‘S.’ The emphasis on this pose sets Odissi apart from other Indian classical dances, giving rise to movements that highlight the range of motion in the torso. This pose is often seen in traditional Indian sculptures, a common example being the deity of Lord Krishna playing the flute (see picture on the right).
