MaMa By Cosmic Dance Will Tour Across Scotland This Summer
In MaMa Kirsten and Oxana integrate dance with lighting, and a soundscape featuring originally composed music.
By: Stephi Wild Jun. 07, 2022
MaMa is a new dance/multi-media production exploring the journey of pregnancy, birth and early motherhood, through Bharatanatyam dance, immersive visuals, and a blend of Celtic-Carnatic music. MaMa was developed by directors/choreographers, Kirsten Newell and Oxana Banshikova and was inspired by their own experiences of motherhood as well as conversations with women from local community groups and health professionals.
"As mothers we know that during pregnancy women can experience anxiety, fear and uncertainty as well as happiness and excitement. The challenges of motherhood have been exacerbated during the Covid crisis, with mothers feeling even more vulnerable and isolated. In MaMa we portray this range of emotions through Bharatanatyam" explains Kirsten Newell.
Bharatanatyam is one of the oldest forms of classical Indian dance, with dancers communicating using a wide repertoire of hand gestures, dance steps and an elaborate range of eye, neck and head movements and facial expressions.
Kirsten and Oxana both trained in Bharatanatyam at the renowned Kalakshetra Foundation in Chennai. More recently their artistic practice has focussed on the contemporisation of the dance form.
In MaMa Kirsten and Oxana integrate dance with lighting, and a soundscape featuring originally composed music by Ankna Arockiam, Jennifer Austin, Cameron Newell and Cormac Byrne, a contemporary fusion collective that weaves together Celtic and Carnatic sounds. The production evokes the natural world highlighting the close connection between nature and motherhood.
As part of the MaMa project the performers are inviting parents and their babies & toddlers to join in a South Asian Dance based workshop. In this they will teach different elements of South Asian dance vocabulary, for example Mudras (hand movements) and storytelling, as well as simple Bharatanatyam rhythms and clapping/tapping. The workshop will provide mothers with inspiration for new ways to interact and play with their babies.
The MaMa tour has been made possible through support from Creative Scotland Touring Fund for Theatre and Dance. The production has been produced by Vision Mechanics.
CAST AND CREATIVE TEAM
Kirsten Newell - Performer/Director
Oxana Banshikova - Performer/Director
Subathra Subramanian - Mentor, (Artistic Director, Akademi)
Alison Brown - Costume Designer
Michaella Fee - Lighting Designer
Jennifer Austin - Co-Composer, Musician
Cameron Newell -Co-Composer, Musician
Cormac Byrne - Composer/Musician (Bodhran)
Anka Arockiam - Vocals (Indian)
Brian Hartley - Workshop Consultant (Arts)
Dr Jenny Patterson - Workshop Consultant (Wellbeing)
Sandy Butler - Videographer, Photographer
David Jack - Audio Engineer
TOUR DATES
Monday 13 June, 1pm WHALE Arts Agency, Edinburgh whalearts.co.uk
Wednesday 15 June, 2pm Edinburgh College, Granton Campus northedinburgharts.co.uk
Saturday 18 June, 2pm Platform Arts, Glasgow platform-online.co.uk
Monday 20 June, 7.30pm Universal Hall, Findhorn universalhall.co.uk
Saturday 25 June, 2.30pm St Bridget's Church Hall, Stonehaven neatshows.co.uk
Sunday 26 June, 4pm Phoenix Centre, Newton Dee neatshows.co.uk
Monday 27 June, 7.30pm The Acorn, Inverurie neatshows.co.uk
Tuesday 28 June, 6pm The Byre Theatre, St Andrews byretheatre.com
Wednesday 29 June, 2pm* and 7pm The Lemon Tree, Aberdeen aberdeenperformingarts.com *2pm Babes-in-arms performance
Thursday 30 June, 7.30pm Scottish Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh scottishstorytellingcentre.com
Friday 1 July, 4pm Eastgate Theatre, Peebles eastgatearts.com
Tuesday 5 July, 7.30pm CatStrand, New Galloway dgartsfestival.org.uk
Wednesday 6 July, 7.30pm The Gaiety Theatre, Ayr thegaiety.co.uk
Thursday 7 July, 7.30pm Moffat Town Hall dgartsfestival.org.uk
Friday 8 July, 8pm Beacon Arts Centre, Greenock beaconartscentre.co.uk
WORKSHOPS
Monday 13 June, 10am WHALE Arts Agency, Edinburgh whalearts.co.uk
Tuesday 14 June, 2pm Scottish Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh scottishstorytellingcentre.com
Wednesday 15 June, 11am Edinburgh College, Granton Campus northedinburgharts.co.uk
Monday 20 June, 11am Universal Hall, Findhorn universalhall.co.uk
Saturday 25 June, 11am St Bridget's Church Hall, Stonehaven neatshows.co.uk
Tuesday 28 June, 2pm The Byre Theatre, St Andrews byretheatre.com
Tuesday 5 July, 2pm CatStrand, Dumfries & Galloway dgartsfestival.org.uk/events
Thursday 7 July, 2pm Moffat Town Hall, Dumfries & Galloway dgartsfestival.org.uk/events
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