"Badassery, conviction, excellence" - Nova Bhattacharya
Our writer-in-residence, Shivani Joshi, shares Arthami's, Karthika's and her own experience of performing for the Mayor's Gala on November 13th, 2023 and being thrown into the Deep End at Nova Dance:
Sitting together in a circle, we go around the room, introducing ourselves, sharing our repetition for the day, what it means to us, and experiences that brought us into the room. Halfway through the rehearsal, Nova asks us all to sit together and share introductions once again. This time, we offer each other’s stories instead of our own.
Karthika shares that this icebreaker activity sets the tone for the four-hour rehearsal before the Mayor’s Gala on November 13th. In putting everyone together on the same level, in asking us to learn and observe each other, Nova creates a culture of solidarity in her artistry. Taking the stage alongside Mayor Olivia Chow, the presence of our cultural histories and the echoes of our recitation from a diverse ensemble exude pride and intention.
“It felt like a rebellion....I felt like myself, but also like a diva.”
Wearing an array of black leather skirts, edgy silver jewelry, and combat boots, dancers embody new narratives. “It felt like a rebellion”, shares Arrthami, expressing how we were asked to command the space. Breaking stereotypical images of a soft, timid woman with ownership, and conviction felt like something mischievous, she adds. It felt like going against the very classical, technical form; but in tastefully taking away elements of Bharatanatyam technique, her honesty and truth could shine through. “I felt like myself, but also like a diva”, Arrthami says.
Inviting new dancers into this piece was a way of creating new pathways for dancers to enter the space. Before the rehearsal, Karthika mentions that Nova emailed her, encouraging her to “try, and there’s always a second chance”. Dance tells the stories of our times, and the performers exemplify what this story is, Nova says.
“It is about creating new narratives, what is the story we want the audience to see; Badassery, conviction, excellence”
“It is creatively engaging to have Svāhā! and then re-configure it, it’s not a static piece”, Nova shares. Finding ways to play with it, and composing this excerpt can have renewed intention and purpose. “It is about creating new narratives, what is the story we want the audience to see; Badassery, conviction, excellence”, says Nova. Working with a small group of 11 from a cast of 22, creating a configuration that dancers were breaking away from and returning to keeps the iconic motifs and structural elements of the piece. For the new dancers, being still whilst creating a sense of focus prompted Nova’s instruction: radiate anticipation. Simple isn’t easy, as Nova says, and from a form that has tremendous layers and complexity, tapping into the essential elements, or ‘elementals’, allows dancers to break their years of technique into a primal vocabulary.
Nova finds ways to disrupt the performer persona within the body with boots that instantly change our posture, invoking our pedestrian, citizen-self to perform, and refusing to hide. We repeat this until it becomes our strength.