The Tapasya School of Classical Dance in collaboration with Bulgarian Roses wowed the judges and the audience at the Viva Eclectika 2018 held at Dorothy Winston Centre and were declared champions of the event.
The two groups came together to participate in the fusion dance competition with the idea of two groups representing different cultures and forms of dance and collaborate and dance on one stage, together.
Tapasya School of Classical Dance led by classical dancer Dr Dhanya Sreekanth met the lead from their pair Bulgarian Dance Marieta and started practising together just six weeks before the competition. The pair used every possible opportunity to come and practice and know more about each other’s culture, forms of music, dance etc.
“Since VE aims to bring cultures together, I thought spreading the message of peace and happiness would be a great concept. I came up with 'Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu- May Happiness Prevail in all!” Dr Sreekanth told The Indian Weekender.
“It was an amazing experience, for Tapasya Dance and the Bulgarian Roses learning dance moves of different cultures. Both teams thoroughly enjoyed teaching each other,” Dr Sreekanth added.
Lead dancer of the Bulgarian Roses was fascinated by the Indian classical dance group especially the use of anklets in the dance.
“The hand gestures combined with the feet movements are just beautiful,” Ms Marieta said.
The collaboration resulted in an exchange of knowledge between two cultures. The partnership was an entirely new experience for Indian dancers, learning to hop and tap their feet to the Bulgarian tunes.
“We had two Indian classical dance styles Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam combining with a foreign dance form.”
Traditionally, ethnic dancers present their culture to the community as a showcase of a single culture. The concept of Viva Eclectika was to take this one step further by showcasing fusion performances where dancers from two or more diverse cultures bring together elements of both into a single dance. In doing this, the Viva Eclectika event not only bridged an understanding between ethnic communities and the mainstream but also between individual communities.
The judges of Viva Eclectika 2018 were from different organisations, aces in their own forms of culture and dance. The judges belonged to Folk Dance New Zealand, Auckland Tourism Events and Economic Development (ATEED), and an award-winning belly dancer and 2016 VE winner.
“One of the judges, Tais of Arabella Dance Company, said the winning team ticked all the boxes of judging criteria –Introduction, concept, choreography, costumes, lighting and effects and appropriate use of props within the allowed time frame of six minutes,” Mr Sreekanth Vidyadharan, co-founder of Tapasya School added.
The Tapasya School of Classical Dance has performed on several regional and national platforms such as Auckland Diwali, Onam –the biggest festival of the Malayali community.
The winners of Viva Eclectika were presented with a trophy and $3000 prize.
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