AAKASH ODEDRA COMPANY
Samsara
Feb-Mar 2022/ summer festivals 21 & 22
Inspired by Journey to the West, a major text of China created during the Ming Dynasty, SAMSARA tells the story of how Buddhist philosophy was sought by a monk’s arduous journey through India and finally brought to China.
Sharing cultures and the search for knowledge are age-old and suggest the human need for interdependence for its own advancement. This is as relevant today as it has ever been.
ON AAKASH ODEDRA
- ‘“Rising” reveals an exceptionally agile dancer who, it appears, has no trouble slipping between styles, effortlessly multilingual.’ New York Times
- ‘Aakash Odedra transfixes and transports his audience, receiving a deservedly rapturous response.’ Sydney Morning Herald
ON HU SHENYUAN
- ‘Hu Shenyuan is outstanding… He moves with an eerie suppleness, the delicate, voluptuous coils of his body evoking a rare hot-house beauty.’ The Guardian
- “ (Hu Shenyuan) moves almost like a ballerina, with beautifully pointed feet and lyrical contortions.” New York Times
Aakash and Hu are regarded as the finest examples of their specific forms of dance in their native cultures, UK/India and China respectively. Aakash has garnered worldwide attention for his impeccable and virtuosic Kathak performances and Hu has been described by Chinese Dance icon Yang Liping as ‘A gifted Soft Body’.
They have found that despite not sharing a common spoken language, their bodies yearn to share movement, stories and to explore these ineffable frontiers between themselves.
Composer, Nicki Wells is blessed with an unparalleled memory for melody and vocal technique from virtually any culture. She is able to easily leap from folk, French hip-hop, deep gospel, jazz or choral vocals to Indian classical or Arabic inflections as if all were emanating directly from her soul.
She has performed around the world as lead vocalist with award-winning composer Nitin Sawhney
Production Credits
Artistic Director: Aakash Odedra
Choreographers and Dance Artists: Aakash Odedra and Hu Shenyuan
Dramaturg: Lou Cope
Composer: Nicki Wells
Lighting Design: Yaron Abulafia
Set: Tina Tzoka
Producer: Anand Bhatt
Numbers on the road: 10
On Stage: 5 (2 dancers/3 musicians)
Rehearsal Director: 1
Sound Technician: 1
LX Technician: 1
Stage/Scenery:1
Company Manager: 1
2 from Shanghai/8 from Europe
Tech Demands: 1 day before get-in, strike on same evening after the show, Detailed tech Spec available in early 2020, indicative tech spec available from Oct 2019
Freight: Up to one large container
More information will be confirmed through 2019 and early 2020
5-7th March 2020 – Asia TOPA, Melbourne, Australia (World Premiere)
Where to see Samsara on tour:
Postponed…
5-7th March 2020 – Asia TOPA, Melbourne, Australia (World Premiere)
13-15th March 2020 – International Dance Center, Shanghai, China
12th June 2020 – Birmingham Hippodrome, UK
23-24th June 2020 – The Lowry, Salford Quays, UK
8-10th October 2020 – Dance Umbrella/Royal Opera House, London, UK
27th-28th October 2020 – Curve Theatre, Leicester, UK
4th-7th November 2020 – Chaillot National Centre De Danse, Paris, France