Patrons of performance art, rejoice!
This year, welcome your September in style with The Park’s New Festival. Bringing together well-known artistes under one roof, the cultural festival is set to be a visual treat for theatre, music and dance lovers. This celebration of culture will pan out in six major cities – Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai and Delhi and has us eagerly waiting for it too.
Here are some of the artistes to look out for at this event:
1. Surjit Nongmeikapam
Born in Manipur, Surjit is a maestro in many Indian dance forms like Kathak, Kalaripayattu and the martial art form Thang-Ta and is hailed for his dance routines in the performing arts circle. Popularly known as Bonbon, he is currently working on an interdisciplinary experimental piece with physical and emotional works. The work that he will be showcasing at the festival, titled Nerves, explores the expressions of the voiceless people from his home state. He eloquently states, “The dance movements are raw and strong in nature, and all my performers are first-timers in contemporary dance. Nerves therefore, is a challenge for me as a choreographer.”
Image source: Vogue
2. Lelo Nika
Descendant of a family known for its gypsy music traditions, it is hardly shocking that little Nika started playing the accordion at the tender age of five. The Serbian virtuoso has studied music and culture across countries in northern and eastern Europe and is has been declared as the ‘Accordion World Champion’ twice. He climbed his way up from being a violinist of a folklore orchestra to learning how to play as a soloist, the orchestral structure and the history of the music. Preserving and developing musical traditions, as well as composing new music, remains Nika’s prime focus.
Image source: Womex
3. George Mihalache
Mihalache (in picture) was born in a family of talented musicians while Andersson is a cellist, educator, composer for rhythmic and classical ensembles, and arranger for orchestras and soloists. The two are set to add spunk to this culture-rich gathering by bringing the Hungarian instrument cimbalom and Swedish jazz bass to the stage as part of the LeloNika Trio.
Image source: Vogue
4. Thommy Andersson
The festival is going to be an aural treat for music connoisseurs. Be ready to get your senses assaulted by the performance of Nika, Mihalache and Andersson (in picture) with Shashank Subramanyam who will be presenting a Romanian harmony with south Indian melodies. Expect Swedish folklore with a touch of European jazz rhythms, bound together with east European and Indian style of improvisations.
Image source: Vogue
5. Shashank Subramanyam
A wizard in the field of music, Shashak Subramanyam is a world- renowned flautist with many accolades to his name. The Grammy- nominated prodigy started performing in public by the age of six and has been trained by his father and other vocal geniuses. His focus is on the primal tones to produce complex music through the organic and ancient, bamboo flute. With his work, Subramanyam has elevated the woodwind instrument to an enviable position, thanks to his playing techniques of the multi-flute transposed fingering technique and the dual octave production. In his career, he has performed all across the globe and extensively collaborates with legendary musicians like guitarist John McLaughlin, tabla maestro Zakir Hussain, and Ustad Sultan Khan.
Image source: Mid-day
6. Yuki Ellias
Yuki Ellias has achieved many feats in her still thriving career. A Jack of all Trades, this young artist is a performer, director and a corporate coach, along with being a recipient of many awards at film fests internationally. She brings her solo theatre performance Elephant in the Room to the festival which chronicles whimsical adventures of a young boy in a forest, in search of his missing head. It’s a coming of age story, with eccentric characters whose destinies intertwine. Ellias has trained at the prestigious Jacques Lecoq International School of Theatre in Paris and is currently an instructor at Drama School Mumbai.
Image source: Nyoooz
You cannot afford to miss this cornucopia of talent and inspiration!
The Park’s New Festival begins September 2, 2016, in Chennai before moving to other cities. For the schedule, click here. Entry is by invitation only.
