Memories come to life

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This article was published 28/08/2017 (3192 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

By day, the Dakshinamurti sisters live in St. James, but their free time is spent in 16th century India, surrounded by the songs, poems and dances of that era.

Sowmya and Shyamala are part of the Manohar Performing Arts group, and they’re preparing for their second annual rendition of Sunset Moonrise, an opulent full-length performance that features traditional dancing, costumes and language from a pivotal time in India’s history.

SUPPLIED PHOTO / This will be the second year for Manohar’s Sunset Moonrise show, an opulent dance and theatre production based on 16th century Indian history.

“There’s quite a tradition of storytelling but it’s more legendary, mythical,” Sowmya said. “We wanted to do a production that actually was historically based… we found events in history that seemed to support the theme of: what do you have when things are lost?”

Sunset follows the lives of those who were affected by the rule of the British empire in the 16th century, which drastically changed India’s landscape. According to the Dakshinamurtis, traditional dancing and other cultural displays became largely outlawed, and while some individuals continued to pass on those traditions, much of it was only revisited once the bans were lifted.

However, as much as it’s a story set in India, it’s also one that’s familiar to many people and places throughout the world.

“There’s a moment where the world changes and you can feel, coming up to, that nothing will ever be the same again, after this moment,” Shyamala said. “How do you remember the world that you left behind? How do you remember the before once you’ve gotten to the after?
“In North America, colonization, how do Indigenous people remember the before? How do immigrants remember their before?”

“Canada is a place with a lot of befores,” Sowmya added.

SUPPLIED PHOTO / Sunset Moonrise follows the stories of those affected by the oppression of the British empire in 16th century India.

Once they decided on their story, the sisters and their group set out to find the right poems and songs for the show.

“One story that is set in the 16th century, the challenge was that all the lyrics had to be from before that time,” Sowmya said. “If I went back to 1524, what would I hear? It’s almost like trying to set a Shakespearean play the way it would have been at the time.”

But for those unfamiliar with ancient Indian languages, the actors’ lines will be said in English and essential lyrics will be displayed in English as well. Besides that, the Dakshinamurtis — both choreographing and dancing — want the physicality of the show to speak for itself.

“The movements make you feel the words without any more intermediary,” she said.
Sunset Moonrise will be showing at the Pantages Playhouse Theatre (180 Market Ave.) on Sat., Sept. 9 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range from $20 to $50 and can be purchased at universe.com/sunsetmoonrise2017