Indian Dancer Shantala Shivalingappa February 4, 2010

San Francisco Performances is pleased to present the San Francisco debut of Shantala Shivalingappa, a master of the ancient Indian dance form Kuchipudi. Muse of the late, legendary Pina Bausch, Shivalingappa will perform the evening-length "Gamaka," a six-part work choreographed by the artist herself. Accompanying her on stage will be four musicians providing vocals, percussion and flute.

"All of creation is vibration," says Shivalingappa of the piece. "In dance, the elements of movement, rhythm, sound, melody and poetry come together as vibrations that resonate, calling each other, playing, escaping, mingling, deviating, forming patterns of great beauty and harmony."

Shivalingappa danced in Bausch's ambitious 2008 work, "Bamboo Blues," which was inspired by Indian culture. She also impressed New York audiences at the 2007 Fall for Dance Festival, performing a Kuchipudi solo that inspired New York Times dance critic Alastair Macaulay to praise her "witty charm." She also appeared in Peter Brooks' very Western production of "Hamlet" in Paris.

Born in Madras and raised in Paris, Shivalingappa grew up in world filled with music and dance, initiated by her mother, dancer Savitry Nair. After mastering Kuchipudi, she was determined to bring it to Western audiences, and has performed in important festivals and theaters worldwide.

Kuchipudi is a classical dance form that originated around the 15th century, named after the small village of Kuchipudi in Southern India where it began. Like all Indian classical dance forms, its technique is rooted in the Natya Shastra, a 2,000 year-old treatise that defines a very precise and highly developed codification of dance, music and theater. But Kuchipudi was also influenced by popular folk dance and music traditions, resulting in a style that is both structured, but also vibrant and lively. The facial expressions are stylized so as to convey a wide range of complex and subtle emotions.

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