The creative diversity of Balbir Singh Dance Company
The work of Balbir Singh Dance Company is both highly original and innovative in its choice of subject, whose variety is matched only by the range of settings in which it is performed. Wherever it is seen, the work leaves audiences inspired, moved, and in many instances opened up for the first time to the richness of highly sophisticated – yet extremely accessible – work by a choreographer whose mastery of culturally diverse forms of dance has won critical acclaim. The company has also attracted international attention through high profile work such as the Cultural Olympiad commission Synchronised during the 2012 London Olympics, which wowed audiences and critics alike. Yet despite this capacity for delivering large scale work, Balbir Singh’s choreography retains at its heart an intimate and humane style which is most at home in smaller settings.
The work in this booklet includes many pieces ideally suited to the kinds of spaces typically available in rural communities. Some of the work, such as BSDC’s programme involving Pratap Pawar, Balbir’s guru and mentor, have a particular affinity with the rural, as Kathak is itself rooted in rural Indian traditions. The contemporary pieces too, such as A Solo Duet, bring a level of conceptual insight that is more often found in larger metropolitan venues. Much of the work is designed to be performed with live music, and this, together with Balbir Singh’s reputation for attention to detail, ensure a rural audience will be treated to an emotionally engaging artistic experience of the highest quality that will linger long in the memory.
dhe ki ta: Classical Solo
dhe ki ta: Decreasing Infinity
A full length programme in which the audience is taken on a journey through the form of the Classical Indian solo presentation, with solos from three different Classical Indian dance styles – Odissi, Bharata Natyam and Kathak.
A dynamic male duet accompanied by live musicians (tabla and beatbox), who improvise a driving soundtrack around an intensely rhythmic structure, combining the traditional with the contemporary in a highly innovative way. The mutual attraction of two distinct dance forms brings them to a collision in which both cease to exist; rather, something new is formed. Clear and sharp with mesmerising physical articulation. Decreasing Infinity performed to sell out audiences at Dublin Dance Festival and at Dance Base during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, as well as having performed at Internationale Tanzmesse nrw.
Classical Solo 60 minutes 1 dancer
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Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
Decreasing Infinity 20 minutes 2 dancers, 2 musicians
Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
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dhe ki ta: Play of Percentages
Solos and Duets
Play of Percentages is the result of nine months of research into the impact of Kathak training on the contemporary dancer.
Solos and Duets is a programme of two halves, featuring four Classical Indian dance solos, followed by a musical interlude between tabla player and beatboxer, and duet Decreasing Infinity.
The music is integral to the work, not just as a performance medium, but as an active ingredient in the creative process. Audiences sense this unfold throughout the performance as the work challenges dancers to explore their musicality as well as their physicality.
Play of Percentages 25 minutes 4 dancers, 3 musicians
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Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
Solos and Duets 90 minutes 2 dancers, 1 musician, 1 human beatboxer
Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
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Taming the Kung Fu Dragon
A Solo Duet
This exciting new work references the martial arts tradition including Kalaripayattu, which originated as a style from Kerala in India.
A Solo Duet oscillates and shimmers before the audience. Literally it is a solo, yet at times we have an almost tangible sense of witnessing a duet.
Taming the Kung Fu Dragon takes the audience on a journey with two rival martial arts experts at the point of their final battle. It traces the learning, spirituality, dedication and discipline behind what it takes to become a great fighter whilst also exploring their paths towards peace.
The solo is performed three times. Each time an extra dancer is added, helping to blur the boundary between the real and the imagined. This work can be featured in a double bill with Decreasing Infinity. Suffused with echoes and surrounded by ghosts of the non existent, A Solo Duet asks us to consider: who are we, that are here? And who, among those that do not exist, are joining with us in our own duet?
Drawing upon the Japanese concept of Bushido, meaning the ‘way of the warrior’ this work will appeal to a wide range of martial art fans both new and old through an interesting synthesis of ancient martial arts tradition and contemporary dance.
Taming the Kung Fu Dragon 60 minutes 3 dancers, 3 musicians
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Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
A Solo Duet 60 minutes 3 dancers, 3 musicians
“We are going to die, and that makes us the lucky ones. Most people are never going to die because they are never going to be born. The potential people who could have been here in my place but who will in fact never see the light of day outnumber the sand grains of Sahara. Certainly those unborn ghosts include greater poets than Keats, scientists greater than Newton. We know this because the set of possible people allowed by our DNA so massively outnumbers the set of actual people. In the teeth of these stupefying odds it is you and I, in our ordinariness, that are here.” Richard Dawkins Unweaving The Rainbow
Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
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Classical Indian Dance and Music Programme
A Night with Jesse Bannister
A programme of two halves featuring Classical Indian music followed by Classical Indian dance solos.
A musical event presented by leading Anglo-Indian saxophonist Jesse Bannister and selected guests. A truly global artist, Jesse Bannister is a unique musician who is respected as the leading Indian saxophonist in Europe and has received international acclaim for his work. This exclusive and intimate musical event will see Jesse perform with selected guests featuring original compositions and much more. Jesse has worked with the Halle Orchestra, The Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra with Indian artists and Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty with Priti Paintal at the Purcell Rooms, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Kathak dance duo Sonia Sabri in Holland, Mercury Prize winner Talvin Singh and Grammy Award winner Sukhwinder Singh.
Classical Indian Dance and Music 90 minutes 2 dancers, 3 musicians
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Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
A Night with Jesse Bannister 90 minutes 4 musicians
Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
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An Audience with Padmashri Guru Pratap Pawar
House Concerts
In a glittering career, spanning more than five decades, Guru Padmashri Pratap Pawar – India’s Divine Dancer – has beguiled and astonished audiences throughout the world. His disarmingly modest style belies an expertise that has enabled Pratap Pawar to bring Kathak to international prominence.
A social occasion offering close-up performances of Indian dance, music and storytelling, interspersed by explanations and the opportunity to discuss the work.
Yet his mastery of this most traditional of Indian dance forms is nothing if not innovative. Fusing Kathak with diverse cultural forms such as Flamenco, Pratap Pawar has been tireless in his lifelong quest to put Kathak in the service of fostering greater cross cultural understanding. A true ‘Kathakar’ (storyteller), an evening with Pratap Pawar is as entertaining as it is enlightening. Whether as a solo performance or with his own Triveni Dance Company, Padmashri Pratap Pawar will take audiences on a journey to the heart and soul of Kathak.
An Audience with Padmashri Guru Pratap Pawar 90 minutes 2 dancers, 2 musicians
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Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
House Concerts Duration and number of performers varies
Theatre spaces Alternative spaces – homes Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
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Painting the Gods
Rhythms of the Gods
Painting the Gods is a stunning visual and aural depiction of a panoply of Indian Gods, their stories, representations and incarnations invoked by a storyteller and artist painting live on stage.
Rhythms of the Gods is a musical piece featuring a mix of Classical Indian and Western instrument based musicians, depicting various Indian Gods including Shiva, Krishna and Ganesh in conversation and at play through percussion. In this fascinating piece, the audience will witness the performers become the embodiment of the Gods, as the musicians express their thoughts and interactions through gesture, music and rhythmicality.
Painting the Gods 60 minutes 3 dancers, 2 musicians, 1 storyteller 1 visual artist
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Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
Rhythms of the Gods 60 minutes 4 musicians
Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
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two wheel trilogy: Dancing Bicycles
two wheel trilogy: Champion of the Flatlands
In Dancing Bicycles artists and athletes interchange in a non-stop, amazing performance for outdoor and festival settings.
Champion of the Flatlands is a thrilling combination of performance art and urban culture, featuring UK and Euro Champion ‘flatland’ BMX rider Keelan Phillips.
Dancing bicycles 30 minutes 3 dancers, 2 musicians, 1 storyteller
Champion of the the Flatlands 60 minutes 3 dancers, 1 storyteller/mc
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Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
Floor space to be clean and even for the cycle.
Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
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two wheel trilogy: Bicycle Days
Hopscotch
Bicycle Days is a heartwarming tale suitable for all theatre-goers, recreating carefree times through childhood memories of cycling to freedom.
A Hopscotch board A sign saying No Hopscotch Allowed A musician sentry patrolling the area Enter the dancers... From this starting point the piece explores the many facets of Hopscotch through dance and storytelling. How to play the game without playing the game. How do we relate to the game as adults and what would happen if we were playing with a younger version of ourselves? The piece draws on the storytelling, rhythmic and counting aspects which are central to the Classical Indian dance form of Kathak. A fast-paced and playful piece performed by dancers, actors and musician, with audience participation at its heart.
Bicycle Days 60 minutes Small scale: 4 dancers Large scale: 4 dancers + community performers
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Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
Hopscotch Outdoor version: 30 minutes Indoor version: 60 minutes 3 dancers, 1 musician
Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
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Full Contact
The Strategists
Full Contact is a blend of story, music and dance, specially commissioned by Leeds Inspired to celebrate the Rugby League World Cup back in 2013.
The Strategists is a fast paced mix of storytelling, movement and live music celebrating the rise and rise of women’s rugby.
Working with members of the Rugby League and dance communities, Balbir Singh Dance Company explores the rich and often little known history that helped make the game what it is today.
“In the men’s game it’s about taking down the opponent. Our game is faster, more tactical... with women it’s more to do with thinking two steps ahead, to get the ball where in needs to be.”
Tough, passionate, moving, at times strange and even hilarious, the story of Rugby League is awash with incredible incidents that live on in the memories of fans and players alike. Full Contact celebrates this shared history and brings the worlds of Rugby League and contemporary dance theatre into full, explosive contact.
Full Contact 60 minutes Small scale: 2 dancers, 1 storyteller, recorded music Large scale: 10-20 dancers, 1 storyteller, 4 musicians + brass band
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Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
The Strategists 60 minutes 3 dancers, 2 musicians,1 storyteller
Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
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Food Fest
Venetian Ballroom
Food Fest – without a sense of taste and smell, an elderly couple look back on their life together, marked by incidents of food, whilst a meal is prepared live on stage; could take place in a restaurant
Rooted firmly within the setting of the Venetian Ballroom and gaining inspiration from the High Renaissance through artists such as Michelangelo, this groundbreaking work aims to develop new audiences through integration and invitation. This piece allows viewers to be fully immersed within the performance, following a prior workshop featuring period dress. The Community dancing traditions such as a barn dance and ceilidh remain popular within rural settings; this work makes contemporary dance accessible to audiences by providing an all-important bridge through storytelling.
Food Fest 60 minutes 3 dancers, 2 musicians, 1 storyteller
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Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
Venetian Ballroom 60 minutes 3 dancers, 2 musicians, 1 storyteller
Theatre spaces Alternative spaces Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
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Synchronised
Synchronised was commissioned as part of the cultural programme for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Merging sport and art in an unforgettable celebration of culture in the UK’s Olympic year, Synchronised paid homage to Busby Berkeley’s ‘water musicals’ of the 40s and 50s. The show is a myriad of cultural fireworks which appeals to audiences of all ages. Synchronised takes the audience’s imaginations away from seeing a swimming pool into the world of different rivers, from the Ganges to the Nile, from the Mississippi to the Amazon, seen through the eyes of a young girl and her adventures with a sea serpent.
Synchronised 60 minutes 25 meter pool, 30 performers with some live music
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Theatre spaces Alternative spaces – pools Outdoor festivals General audiences Sports audiences Children and adults
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Contact us
We can be very flexible with the the number of performers in each piece: all the work featured in this booklet can be adapted to suit your local situation and audience needs. Work may include live or recorded music as circumstances or opportunities dictate. For all enquiries, email: alphie.bsdc@yahoo.co.uk Telephone: +44 (0) 7749 980 780 Balbir Singh Dance Company Yorkshire Dance 3, St Peter’s Buildings Leeds LS9 8AH United Kingdom
Follow BSDC: twitter.com/balbirdance facebook.com/balbir.singhdance
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BLAIZE opening new doors to the arts
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BSDC is an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation, an Associate Company of the University of Leeds and part of the CidaCo Creative Capital programme. Designed and produced by andrassymedia.co.uk