BY DEVIKA C. MEHTA
NORTH HOLLYWOOD, CA -` Aaja- A Tale of Karmic Destiny,’ of love, fantasy, seduction, sacrifice, redemption, and self realization, was sketched thoroughly in the minds of audiences by the Karmagraphy group at El Portal theatre here with performances from August 25 to 27. The group that is quite popular in the LA area,
NORTH HOLLYWOOD, CA -` Aaja- A Tale of Karmic Destiny,’ of love, fantasy, seduction, sacrifice, redemption, and self realization, was sketched thoroughly in the minds of audiences by the Karmagraphy group at El Portal theatre here with performances from August 25 to 27. The group that is quite popular in the LA area,
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this time came together to debut `Bollycirque’- a new dance genre, which is the brainchild of Kavita Rao, Director of Karmagraphy Entertainment and the producer, choreographer and director of the 90-minute live-entertainment show.
The show, which was set in a surreal Bollywood theme, was inspired by Hindu mythology as well as `Alice in Wonderland’ and showed the protagonist, a young woman, encountering mythical characters—aerial goddesses, stilt walkers, fire-eaters, mysterious ballerinas- while growing from the experiences. The spectacle first began with a prelude by Aravind Reddy and BhaVa network, then the ‘Third Siren’ dance, `Snake Charmer’ and other acts mesmerized the crowd. While watching the show one easily got a feel of the famous ‘Cirque du Soleil’ as it had its share of Western styles like ballet, Jazz, contemporary and modern. But one thing that made it different and stand out from others was the Bollywood music. Performances on songs like ‘Radha Nachegi,’ `San Sana San,’ Malang Malang,’ `Choli Ke Peeche’ and `Bachna Ae Haseeno’created a high energy environment. The musical ‘Tum Hi Ho’ was etched deeply into the hearts with people literally singing along with the performance.
Among the dancers Kavita Rao, Autumn Crocket Cooper (Radha) and David Contreras (Krishna) were glorious on stage.
`Aaja’ was divided into multiple acts, the music for which included popular Indian beats and some tracks composed especially for the show by renowned musicians Aravind Reddy and the BhaVa Network. Reddy works with EDM and Carnatic fusion music while the sibling-duo, Basanth and Varshini Muralikrishnan, like to work with primordial sounds.
As per Kavita Rao, “The concept of creating a true synergy of the styles came around because our clientele and audiences loved our incorporation of Bollywood elements in cirque. The response was great. So we decided to take it to the next level.”
“Karmagraphy was created to inspire a bridge between cultures through the art of dance. I believe my karmic destiny is to use my voice as an artist to tell stories to connect us as human beings,” she further stated.
The show, which was set in a surreal Bollywood theme, was inspired by Hindu mythology as well as `Alice in Wonderland’ and showed the protagonist, a young woman, encountering mythical characters—aerial goddesses, stilt walkers, fire-eaters, mysterious ballerinas- while growing from the experiences. The spectacle first began with a prelude by Aravind Reddy and BhaVa network, then the ‘Third Siren’ dance, `Snake Charmer’ and other acts mesmerized the crowd. While watching the show one easily got a feel of the famous ‘Cirque du Soleil’ as it had its share of Western styles like ballet, Jazz, contemporary and modern. But one thing that made it different and stand out from others was the Bollywood music. Performances on songs like ‘Radha Nachegi,’ `San Sana San,’ Malang Malang,’ `Choli Ke Peeche’ and `Bachna Ae Haseeno’created a high energy environment. The musical ‘Tum Hi Ho’ was etched deeply into the hearts with people literally singing along with the performance.
Among the dancers Kavita Rao, Autumn Crocket Cooper (Radha) and David Contreras (Krishna) were glorious on stage.
`Aaja’ was divided into multiple acts, the music for which included popular Indian beats and some tracks composed especially for the show by renowned musicians Aravind Reddy and the BhaVa Network. Reddy works with EDM and Carnatic fusion music while the sibling-duo, Basanth and Varshini Muralikrishnan, like to work with primordial sounds.
As per Kavita Rao, “The concept of creating a true synergy of the styles came around because our clientele and audiences loved our incorporation of Bollywood elements in cirque. The response was great. So we decided to take it to the next level.”
“Karmagraphy was created to inspire a bridge between cultures through the art of dance. I believe my karmic destiny is to use my voice as an artist to tell stories to connect us as human beings,” she further stated.
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