About the Work, A Note from Choreographer Ankita Sharma

aavaaz/Noise/, is a new work commissioned by Mare Nostrum Elements' Emerging Choreographer Series 2023, in which Hindu goddess Kali gives birth, and what she gives birth to is taken and co-opted, distorted, and ruined by her devoted followers, transforming what she stands for in the process. Myth and reality blend together at the fringes of reality, letting the epic and human dance together. It’s become an exploration of how group worship distorts what something stands for, but how the ritual of worship can save you. This work is part of munh/Mouth/, a projected evening-length piece that entangles Hindu goddess Kali’s ultimate power and destructive nature with present-day authoritarianism and religious violence.

In this work, I am challenging traditional notions of cultural belonging while aiming to open new means of South Asian storytelling, examining how Hinduism has been co-opted and shaped by the West. I aim to bring the essence and power of Hindu myths to the table by embodying the power structures, emotions, vitality, and character building of myth, while breaking aesthetic limitations and the required gestural literacy that often renders Classical forms of dance inaccessible for broad audiences. By focusing on violence against dark-skinned bodies and Muslims imposed by the Hindu state, I hope to bring a contemporary cultural specificity to the work that brings myth to the modern day.

We hope you will JOIN US for the premiere of aavaaz/Noise/ at LaGuardia Performing Arts Center (LPAC) on March 28th and 29th at 7:30pm and for the studio showing on Sunday, April 2nd at 1pm at Flushing Town Hall. Thank you for considering to support our work for ECS 2023!

What Your Funds Will Support

The funds will be used for ECS 2023, to compensate dancers on top of what they receive from Mare Nostrum Elements, as well as to support design elements, composer fees, administrative fees, and additional production expenses. The breakdown is as follows:

$1700 Additional Compensation for Dancers
$500 Composer Fees
$600 Costumes and Props Design
$400 Additional Administrative Work
$200 Additional Rehearsal Space Rental

About Choreographer Ankita Sharma

Ankita is a bold emerging artist interested in performance where content dictates genre and betrays expectation. They create to think critically about the world and to condition freedom in the body and mind. In aesthetic, their work is grungy, confrontational, and cheeky, a dance-horror, with physical practices rooted in contemporary dance, outdoor adventures, and forms from both the South Asian and African diaspora. They invest in creating environments where sophistication and blasphemy can collide, holding space to sit with and challenge discomfort. Ankita holds a BA in Dance and Anthropology and has had their work performed and commissioned in California, Colorado, and along the East Coast. Outside of the ECS Series, they continue to develop munh as a Performance Project Fellow.

About Dancer Shivani Badgi

Shivani Badgi is a New Jersey/New York based dancer with movement experience in Kathak, Lavani, and Bollywood. She began her training at age five under Guru Padma Khanna then furthered her dance education at Joffrey Ballet School, Mason Gross School, and Broadway Dance Center. She has had the opportunity to perform on reputable stages at Alice Tully Hall, Warwick Castle, Island Gardens, Theatre for the New City in NYC, Philadelphia Museum of Art, and more. She currently teaches Kathak and Semi-Classical at her dance studio, The Gurukul Performing Arts in New Jersey.

About Dancer Blaize Adler Ivanbrook

Blaize is a NY actor and movement-based artist. While his first role ever as a child was a radioactive trash gremlin named Stinky, he has recently played Astrov in Uncle Vanya, M in Duncan Macmillan’s Lungs, Tom in Gary Henderson’s Skin Tight, and choreographed a solo performance called Beneath. Blaize began collaborating with Ankita on a series of immersive horror performances named Drip, and is thrilled to work with her again in the ECS.

About Dancer Issa Hussain

Isa is a Brooklyn-based performance artist and mover. His work is grounded in solidarity and liberation-based practice with a belief in the body, in community, and in love. He is currently an ensemble member of Fresh Lime Soda Productions, where he acts, choreographs, and devises movement and theatre. He has recently been involved in the choreographic works of Ankita Sharma and Heidi Latski, as well as his own choreographic work.

Check out this video excerpt of Ankita's new work!

About Mare Nostrum Elements' Emerging Choreographer Series

The Emerging Choreographer Series is an intensive crash-course in self-producing; offering rehearsal space, dancer and choreographer pay, career development consultations, and professional mentorship to selected choreographers. During the course of the program, choreographers will create, develop, and premiere a new work at CUNY’s LaGuardia Performing Arts Center (LPAC) in Long Island City.

Mare Nostrum Elements, Inc. is a not-for-profit, tax-exempt, 501(c)(3) organization. All contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.

aavaaz/Noise/ by Ankita Sharma

New Excerpt for ECS 2023, part of munh/Mouth/