Reviews
Life of Pi
Ganesh Vasudeva as Pi, the title role, shook the audience and bonded with them intimately. In addition to being the main dancer, the stage act was his conception. He also did the choreography and nattuvangam for the recorded music. The narration (in English), in the words of Pi, was by Ganesh as well, which made connecting the dialogues with abhinaya seamless.
Manasaa, a Man a Manifest
Ganesh lived up to this expectation, by explaining the why and how behind each presentation. He even "owned" the first, Pancha Nadai Alaripu, since the concept and patterned sollukattu were originals. Many dancers start slow and then pick up steam, others do the opposite; with Ganesh, one has come to expect consistent. He started strong with clean lines and cross-linkages between adavu patterns.
Shivoham Shiveham
Ganesh Vasudeva followed with his very own Ganga Avatharana in Purvi Kalyani-rupaka. There is only one word for it - brilliant. The piece depicted Ganga, Bhagiratha and Shiva. Ganesh’s evocative angika abhinaya left no doubt about which role he was playing. His Ganga was fluid, prideful, and playful; his Shiva was majestic; Bhagiratha was dutiful.
Navarathna, Rare Gems of Tanjore Quartet
The choreography was brilliant; again, it felt as though there was no repetition. It was pure pleasure to watch the pure dance unfold; the dancers were holographic- as in, they seemed to fly through space and tala, making the journey through each line of verse seem both, like a discovery and deliberate thought.