Svapnagata, a unique two week festival of Indian music and dance begins today at Sadlers Wells. Curated by two multi award-winning artists - dancer and choreographer Akram Khan and composer Nitin Sawhney, the Svapnagata festival (the word means dreamingin Sanskrit) offers a dazzling array of performances from some of the finest Indian musicians, dancers and choreographers.
Khan and Sawhney will each present an evening of work on the 16 and the 17 November respectively to get this exotic and vibrant event underway and will come together for its closing in the world premiere of Confluence - another exciting collaboration between the pair (think back to Kaash, Zero Degrees) and one that explores the idea of the artist as a medium of universal consciousness.
Accompanied by a traditional live orchestra, dancer Shantala Shivalingappa whose performances are world-renowned for their expression of devotion, divine beauty and grace, wows with an evening of Kuchipudi classical dance entitled Shiva Ganga on 23 Nov. Shantala also joins Flemish-Moroccan choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui in work-in-progress Play on 24 and 25 November.
The 24th also sees sitar goddess Anoushka Shankar, daughter of Maestro Ravi and half sister of Norah Jones, exploring music's ability to tell stories, emulating the moods and colours of Indian epics such as the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, along with Mythili Prakash and Cirque du Soleil aerial artist Asa Kubiak.
And don't forget Riz MC resident in the Lilian Baylis Theatre on 27 and 28th and a free pre-show talk 28 November at 4.30pm exploring themes arising from Svapnagata with a panel of guests including Khan and Sawhney and chaired by award-winning cultural journalist Maya Jaggi.
Svapnagata runs 16-28 Nov at Sadlers Wells
