sommerszene blog

Tishani arrived in Salzburg from India, and says she didn’t really
have anything specific in mind about what to expect: „I expected it to
be pretty and like a toyland, and I think it is very beautiful in a
postcard kind of way.“

Asked about the most striking contrast between Austria and India, she
laughed: „I walked on the bicycle path today by mistake! Here, I think
everything is very organized. In India there is understood chaos. For
people who don’t understand this, when they visit India, they question
how anything is ever accomplished. Here, when you do something wrong,
people point it out to you.“

About the performances taking place Thursday and Friday at Republic,
Tishani says she is very much looking forward to these shows because
they are a kind of tribute to the choreographer, Chandralekha, who
passed away last year. Tomorrow night marks the first time the group
has performed without its charismatic founder and director.

„Chandralekha used to say that when people watch the performance, she
did not want them to sit back in their seats, but rather to engage
their spines and lean towards the performers. This is not like
watching television or a movie. The performance asks for you to sit
more forward. It is not supposed to be a comfortable experience – it’s
a heightened experience. Chandralekha used to talk about spectators
using their own spines to engage with the work. She has created her
own language and because she has an incredible vision, it creates a
holistic effect, which is very difficult to come by in contemporary
performance: it is rare to come to something so deep. Her work is not
narrative like traditional Indian dance – bharata natyam, kathak,
kathakali – Chandralekha’s work is abstract but draws from yoga and
martial arts. It is incredibly physical. And for me it is quite
emotional but I think for the audience, I’d ask that they suspend any
preconceived ideas about Indian dance. Be prepared to see a work that
is meditative… someone once said „it is like falling in love.“ I don’t
think it is possible to walk out unaffected. The music is truly
stunning, and performed with us. We do not practice with the musicians
beforehand.“

This show is live, in every sense of the word.