Samsara is the new production of Aakash Odedra Company that opened at the AsiaTopia Festival in March 2020. A choreographic and performance collaboration between Aakash Odedra (UK/India) and Hu Shenyuan (China). Samsara draws upon their personal spirituality and the vast histories, philosophies and cultures of the ancient neighbouring civilisations of China and India.
Aakash first saw Hu on stage at London’s Sadler’s Wells Theatre in 2016 and was captivated by him. The pair met in Shanghai in March 2017 and have since spent many hours together in the studio. Remarkably, Hu speaks very little English and Aakash speaks no Mandarin. Yet the two have bonded through movement and are infinitely curious about what has brought them together. Hu is a practitioner of Chinese folk dance and Aakash of the classical Indian dance form kathak, contemporary dance is their common movement language. However, they recognise that their traditional forms of dance had a philosophical commonality, both are spiritual and devotional at their core.
By sharing their spiritual beliefs and personal life circumstances, they began to explore their relationship with one another and that of their civilisations. They were inspired by the classic 16th century Chinese novel Journey to the West, the story of a monk who travelled for 18 years looking for original Buddhist scripture, knowledge, and his truth, encountering numerous difficulties on the way. Samsara traces the steps we take, both forward and backward, in search of our need for independence and our own advancement. The harsh landscape of the Himalayas, the physical landscape in which the novel is set, serves as a metaphorical landscape for the themes that Aakash and Hu are exploring. The monk’s journey itself highlights the inter-dependency between civilisations for sharing knowledge and culture is millennia old. Gautam Siddhartha, the founder of Buddhism is depicted as a dark-skinned round-eyed man in India, but in China he is lighter skinned and with more oval shaped eyes. The messenger changed their appearance for the message to be accepted in new lands.
Following the Amnesty International Freedom of Expression award-winning production #JeSuis, Aakash and Hu have worked with a stellar collaborative team: Tina Tzoka (Set Design), Yaron Abulafia (Lighting Design), Nicki Wells (Composer), and Lou Cope (Dramaturg).
Aakash Odedra
Aakash Odedra is a dancer, choreographer and teacher. Born in Birmingham, UK and trained in the classical Indian dance styles of Kathak (Nilima Devi, Leicester and Asha Joglekar, India) and Bharatanatyam (Chitraleka Bolar, Birmingham and Chhaya Kantaveh, India). Aakash formed Aakash Odedra Company in 2011 as a vehicle for commissioning solos and to develop his own choreographic work. His debut full length solo Rising featured new short works created for him by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Akram Khan and Russell Maliphant. As choreographer he was commissioned to create a piece for James Brown: Get on the Good Foot (Apollo Theater, New York) and the Opera God’s Little Soldier (Theater Freiburg), The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations and the closing of the London Cultural Olympiad.
Aakash has received numerous awards and bursaries, including a Dora performance award (Canada), Danza&Danza award (Italy), Audience Award Dance Week 2013 (Croatia), Infant Award 2014 (Serbia), Bessie Award (Best Male Performer, 2014) and a Sky Academy Arts Scholarship.
Hu Shenyuan
Hu Shenyuan is an independent dancer and choreographer. He graduated from the Dance Academy of Central MinZu University before working in Beijing for LDTX Dance Company from 2012 to 2014. As a dancer, he played Yu Ji in Yang Liping’s dance work Under Siegeto great public acclaim. In 2017, Hu became the first young artist supported by Yang Liping Art Foundation, created his work Roving and established his studio Hu-Hu Dance. Hu’s choreographic works include Roving, The Moonlight Rainbow, So Close, With, ID, Ego, and Super-Ego and The Flower of Freedom. Several of his creations have been selected for the exhibition unit of the China Youth Dance Talents Training Program. His many awards include Best Performance Award at the 4th Beijing International Ballet and Choreography Competition; the Silver Award from the 16th Italian Rome International Choreography Competition and the Jury Chairman’s Award at the 15th Seoul International Dance Competition in 2018.
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