Dancing through time and space

For someone who was recently in the news for being booed off stage while performing at Singapore, Padmini Chettur did a pretty good job of impressing her audience. Performing at DanSe Dialogues, presented by the French Embassy, in collaboration with Alliance Francaise, Prakriti Foundation and Kalakshetra Foundation, she presented Beautiful Things Two, a solo after nearly a decade. The 41-year-old contemporary dancer used and positioned her body in various forms and angles to pierce through space and time. Through her choreography, she prescribed nine ‘lines’ in space, which she explored with the physicality of her body.  Her research into the human, especially female, body’s geometry and its relationship with space was brought out through her clear-cut, sharp and masculine, yet dainty movements. But for a piece that is supposed to convey much emotion, Padmini maintained an almost expression-less face, resulting in a disconnect with the audience at times. As she twisted and turned her body in unimaginable angles, moving from position to position in lucid, stoic movements, her concentration shone through the tension in her muscular body. Her training in bharathanatyam stood out in the form of strength and precision throughout the hour-long performance. As she walked the full length of the stage to explore yet another ‘line’, the silence bonded with the audience to help them understand the genius of the lighting and sharp music. Very abstract, Padmini’s piece is all about slow, graceful movements, that deal deeply with the concept of space and where the human body, figures in it. It had a lot do with shapes and figures and geometrics, providing meaning to her perception of displacement. Her choice of changing costumes just outside the wings on the stage might have as well been a part of the choreography, adding to the element of tackling with perceptions of the human body but some might say that it was a tad too bold for the Chennai audience.