An acclaimed performer of Northern Indian Classical, Kathak and Odissi folk dance, Priya Pawar has pioneered "Kathak-Flamenco" and presents this unusual yet vibrant combination. The amazing spectacle commences with each dancer establishing their individual Indian and Spanish dance forms, eventually merging together unto fluid movements and uplifting beats.

Priya Pawar originally began exploring the relationships between Indian classical dance Kathak and Flamenco with the dance company Triveni. She began her solo career in the 1990s and started performing with Flamenco artists such as Rosindra Doling, Juani Garcia and Joaquin Ruiz.

Research suggests that Flamenco is related to the North Indian dance Kathak. It is believed that the gypsies who migrated to the Andalucian region of Spain during the 14th century originally came from India and absorbed various cultural influences along the way. The gypsies adapted their own dance forms with those prevalent in the region and absorbed influences from Arabic, Jewish and Moorish groups. The synthesis of these styles came to be known as Flamenco. Although both styles have since evolved independently, in certain categories of Flamenco, the arm, hand and foot movements are similar to those in Kathak.

Kathak Meets Flamenco and Chitrangada

'Chitrangada' culminates in a unique dance drama based upon work composed by the Indian poet Nobel Laureote Rabinderanth Tagore.

A unique workshop for those interested in learning these dance styles will be held prior to the performance. Please contact venue for further details.

Musicians
Tabla: Yousuf Mahmoud
Sitar: Baluji Srivastava
Vocal: Obaid Juenda
Sarangi: Surjeet Singh

Flamenco
Dancer Rosandra Doling
Guitar: Angus Ckuikshank
Vocal: Fernando Reyes

UK DATES

For futher information Telephone: 020 8568 0916.

ABOUT THE PUHSPLATA DANCE COMPANY

Priya Pawar, Indian classical dancer and founder of the Pushpalata Dance Company, began studying dance at the age of four. She is versed in two schools of Indian classical dance, Kathak and Odissi. Kathak, derived from the word Katha or story, originated as a form of story-telling in Northern India and later flourished as two separate schools under the patronage of Mughal and Rajput kings. Odissi, the traditional dance of the state of Orissa, is mainly a form of devotional dance.

Throughout her career, Priya has studied under India's leading teachers and exponents of Kathak and Odissi. Born and raised in Lucknow, India, Priya Pawar began training in Kathak at the age of four at the Bhatkande Maris Music College. She gained her degree or Nritya Vishard in 1957 and continued studying Kathak individually from the renowned dancer Shombu Maharaj. When she was seventeen, she received a Government of India scholarship to continue training in Kathak for three years at the Bharatiya Kala Kendra in New Delhi where she obtained her Nritya Varidhi, or Masters Degree in 1967. During this period, she studied under Guru Sundar Prasad and Kundanlal Gangani in the Jaipur Gharana style of Kathak, which grew out of the courts of the Rajput Kings. When already fluent in Kathak in her early twenties, Pawar became interested in Odissi, a dance of graceful and sculptural postures. She began intensive training for a year and a half with Guru Hare Krishna Behara and later with Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra, one of Orissa's foremost Odissi teachers and dancers.

In 1969 Priya Pawar travelled and performed with her former husband, Kathak dancer Pratap Pawar, throughout the USA, South America, Europe, and Asia. She went on a solo tour of East and West Africa a year later.

Priya Pawar moved to England in 1980 and became co-director of the dance company Triveni along with Pratap Pawar. Based in the UK, the company was known for its pioneering exploration of the relationship between classical Indian dance and other dance forms, in particular Kathak and Flamenco and Afro-Caribbean dance.

Priya Pawar launched her solo career in 1992 by forming the Pushpalata Dance Company in London. The company is the first of its kind to provide a platform for dancers who have trained in Britain and most of her students specialise in Kathak, Odissi and various folk idioms. Their performances have ranged from adaptations of Indian epics such as the Ramayana and Mahabharata to other poems and collaborative projects. Their inaugural performance, Chandalika - the Outcaste, was a dance drama written by the Indian Nobel Laureate, Rabindranath Tagore in 1938. The company has performed extensively in England at venues such as the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Watermans Arts Centre, The Place in London and The Bull in Barnet.

As a solo performer, Pawar's expression of Indian classical dance has taken shape in many innovative ways. She has worked on collaborative projects with western contemporary dance companies such as Axis and explored modern art forms such as Eurythmy, which emphasises movement, speech and song. Some of her own works are experimental such as the performance Life Cycle. The piece, choreographed to Bach's Jesu, Joy of Man, focuses on a woman reflecting on her marriage and youth. Her particular strength lies in showcasing Kathak alongside Flamenco artists such as Rosindra Doling and, more recently, Joaquin Ruiz in musical exchanges which highlight the similarities between the two dance forms. She has toured widely in India, the UK, USA, Germany, Norway, Spain, Italy, Thailand, Indonesia and South America and performs in India annually during December and January.

In addition to performing, Priya Pawar is also an established teacher of Indian dance and is the first teacher in the UK to arrange a Manch Pravesh or debut performance as a showcase of her students' work. She also opened two dance schools, the Pushpalata Dance Academy in Faridabad, India, in 1992 and the Pushpalata Asociación para la Difusión del Arte de India in Madrid in 1998. Pawar currently resides in London.