Choreography

Choreographic works

Nayana's choreographic research treads the borderline between the physical and the meta-physical. Having her roots in the Indian classical dance philosophies, Nayana relentlessly works at finding a middle ground between her classical and contemporary realities. Her choreographic works examine and de-construct the structural and spiritual essence of classical dance styles, while dealing with the questions of identity and culture. She takes a deep interest in the study of consciousness and matter, and uses her artistic works as an experimental laboratory for this study.

"Thin Ice" Description: We try to co-exist in the system in an orderly fashion and yet we walk the thin ice that will, at any random point, break; and we drop into what can only be termed as a loss of a recognisable pattern... Until a new system crystallises and emerges, to replace the old. And breaks again, relentlessly continuing the cycle into infinite. We walk the thin ice when we try to break out of the system, while being the system itself. And we walk the thin ice when we crave to belong, while choosing to be who we are, that is, different. Dancers: Allison Barlog, Britt Kamper, Kendra Hamann, Mzamo Jama Nondlwana Photo courtesy: Berta Baliu Franquesa

„On the way to the Perfect Place" Description: An object stays in its state of stillness or motion unless an external force acts upon it.“ – Principle of Inertia, Newton’s First Law of Motion. So what moves us human bodies from point A to point B? From one state of mind to another? What happens in this transit? Can we really define A and B as A and B? Or are they merging seamlessly into each other and more? The constant search is to find the Perfect Place, the ever-elusive absolute. Dancers: Andrea Gunnlaugsdottir, Berta Baliu Franquesa, Carla Morera, Katarina Barbara Kavcic Maayan Reiter, Sara Piljek, Theano Vasilaki.

"I will be your mirror" Description: Yearning to reach, seeking to connect; trying to find pretty reflections of yourself in the other; trying to fill the vast, inevitable emptiness of life with eating, drinking, dancing, working, meeting people, making plans, speculating, having opinions, being happy and being sad; and ultimately being sent back to originally where you came from – your inescapable Self. Dancers: Chris Sta Maria, Louise Everarts de Velp, Nayana Bhat

"Amsterdam Improvisation Weekends" Description: Several improvisation compositions were created and performed as a part of the Summer Improvisation Intensiv with Magpie Umbrella. Photo courtesy: Huib van Wersch

"A Duet. Ein Solo", a collaborative work between Nayana and light designer Robert Herbe, co-produced by ARGEkultur, premiered at the Open Mind Festival, 2015, Salzburg. Photo courtesy: © Bernhard Müller