On stage, rise of the ‘fallen'
CHENNAI: During the Covid-19 lockdown, Chennai-based Bharatnatyam dancer Anjana Anand stumbled upon 'Magdalana Mariam', a Malayalam poem by Vallathol Narayana Menon. The text presented her a radically different image of Mary Magdalene, not as a penitent prostitute, but as a woman of devotion whose spiritual side was buried in centuries of misrepresentation.
'Here was a woman, considered a sinner, who had the courage to overcome her struggles and find new purpose. Her significance as a true devotee was overshadowed,' says Anjana, who premiered her solo 'Magdalena Mariam' in Chennai earlier this year and plans a second one at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan on June 20. 'That the Catholic Church has recognised her as an 'Apostle to the Apostles' is a testament to the importance of women in the Christian faith.
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Like Anjana, a few of the city's classical dancers are bringing not just the chaste heroine, the pining lover, or the divineconsort to stage but the flawed and marginalised as well.
Lucrezia Maniscotti, an Italian Bharatnatyam dancer based in Chennai is turning the spotlight on German playwright Bertolt Brecht's 'The good person of Szechwan', about a sex worker by circumstance, whom gods sent to earth discover as the last good soul.
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Moved by her kindness, they gift her money to start a new life. She opens a small business, but her honesty makes her vulnerable, and others take advantage of her. 'The piece questions whether goodness can survive in a world that rewards manipulation.
There's also a subtle reference to how only the male voice is believed,' says Lucrezia.
Her Bharatnatyam-theatre piece premiered at Chennai's Goethe-Institut on March 7, with another show coming up in Chennai later this year.
'This felt right for the times, a story of how to live, and remain good in a world that constantly challenges our ideals,' says Lucrezia.
Both dancers say Bharatnatyam is a language that can depict any story. 'The creativity doesn't come from just searching for new themes,' says Anjana. 'Those are just cosmetic changes. Whether we choose mythology or something more contemporary, what we want to say with the story is what matters. And that's when we find that we are communicating a human experience which is universal, one that connects us all.'
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