A Stirring Performance (Sunday People)

First published in New Straits Times
8 June 2008


Masaka Ono


January Low


A stirring performance
Max Koh

THE first night of female dance performances offered four talented danseuses from four countries — January Low from Malaysia, Masaka Ono from Japan, Mitali Devi from Britain, Madhavi Mudgal from India.

They not only captivated the audience at Malaysia Tourism Centre in Kuala Lumpur, but transported us to another world.

What a stirring night it was. Stirring Odissi — International Odissi Festival 2008, organised by Sutra Dance Theatre, is a three-week festival that celebrates the passion of the classical Indian dance form. It brings some of the world’s foremost exponents, visuals artists and scholars to this extensive exposition.

With a hall that is almost filled with audiences, local dancer January Low began the night by performing Surya Staka, a piece that pays homage to Surya, the Sun God as Remover of Darkness and Source of Light.

Wearing a resplendent orange saree, she blew us away with her energy and graceful poise as she interplayed her movements to the music of the band onstage.

Also adept in bharatanatyam, Low is also one of Sutra’s principal dancers and has won the Best Solo Performance (Dance) Award at the Kakiseni BOH Cameronian Wards in 2003 for her bharatanatyam performance in Profound Grace.

With her graceful demeanour and dainty movements, Masako Ono’s performance was a sight to behold. How rare to see a reifujin from Japan performing odissi.

With her poise and precise gestures, Ono came across like a geisha who has mastered the arts of the Indian dance form.

In truth, she has. She started learning odissi at India in 1996, after initially learning hip-hop and modern dance in Tokyo. She trained in Orissa under many gurus including Kelucharan Mohapatra and Ramani Ranjan Jena, and is now based in Bhubaneswar as an odissi dancer and yoga teacher.

Ono is now choreographing her own works which are a blend of tantra, yoga and Indian classical dance. Her first performance of the night was strictly Pallavi, a pure dance that is set to the raag of Kirvani.

With a repetitive motif and movements that flowed throughout the piece, Ono was able to set it apart from the other performances that night.

It was nothing short of spell-binding proving Ono to be one of odissi’s best-kept secrets in the dance world.

A stark contrast from Pallavi, Ono then performed Ashtapadi (Kuru Yadu Nandana) which is a raag raamakari taken from the 12th Century love poem Gita Govinda of Jayadeva.

Making the piece uniquely hers, she began by telling the story through expressive languid movements aided by a voice-over in English.

This is helpful for those not familiar with the language and ancient texts. The piece tells the love of Lord Krishna and Radha who experienced physical separation but are finally united in spirit.

All the way from Manchester came Mitali Devi who performed Mangalacharan (Shanta Karanam) and Ahe Neela Shaila.

The Mangalacharan is an invocation with verse dedicated to Vishnu who is seen as the endless Universe resting on the mighty snake, Sheshanaga.

Mitali’s performance was powerful.

Ahe Neela Shaila is an old Oriya song written by the Sufi mystic poet Salabaga which describes Vishnu as the saviour of the Elephant King, Draupadi and the child Prahlad.

Mitali’s stoic performance deftly conveyed the imagination stirred by the ancient words.

Last but not least came an experienced dancer from New Delhi, India.

Madhavi Mudgal clearly showed her deftness and poise in odissi, having learnt under some of the most respected gurus including Guru Hare Krishna Behera.

Madhavi is recognised internationally for her contribution to the medium and has received prestigious awards such as the Sanskriti Award and the President of India’s Award, among others. She teaches at Gandharva Mahavidhyalaya, one of the oldest music and dance institutions in the world which was founded by her father, Pandit Vinay Chanda Maudgalya.

She blessed the audience that night with a performance to an Oriya song that portrays the anxiety of a heroine who is separated from her elusive lover.

Garbed in a beautiful black and maroon saree, her performance accompanied by musicians on stage was moving.

Madhavi ended the night with Nataraja, an invocation to Shiva-Nataraja, the Lord of Dance which was excellent.

Stretching two-and-a-half hours, the night did not feel long at all with the exquisite performances by all four danseuses.

Sutra’s founder Ramli Ibrahim, after all, promised to give the audience the opportunity to watch the “cream of the crop” in odissi when he came up with the concept of Stirring Odissi. And on that night, he delivered.

* You can catch Janhabi Behera (Bhubaneswar), Ranjana Gauhar (New Delhi), Sharmila Biswas (Kolkata) and Bijayini Satpathy and Surupa Sen (Bangalore) tonight at Malaysia Tourism Centre, 109, Jalan Ampang, KL. Tickets start from RM38. Call 03-92354848 or visit www.mtc.gov.my or www.stirringodissi.com. The festival ends June 14.

Speed Racer review (Gua.com.my)

First published in gua.com.my
20 May 2008


by Max Koh

Title:
Speed Racer

Ratings:
7/10

Cast:
Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci, John Goodman, Susan Sarandon, Matthew Fox, Rain and Paulie Litt

Genre:
Action, Family

Review:
The 1960s anime character (yep, it’s that old!) finally hits the big screen with the Wachowski brothers who lead the pack in this year’s summer movies.

While ‘Iron Man’ continues to wow audience with the stunning iron suit, superb storyline, cool action and Robert Downey Jr, ‘Speed Racer’ seems to fall with a whimper. Then you have ‘Prince Caspian’ of the ‘Narnia’ series, which one can only expect so much from if the first film is of any indication. And will the big green monster ‘Hulk’ fare better this year or get beaten by the ‘Dark Knight’ which is getting an unintended marketing boost with the death of darling Heath Ledger? And of course, Indy’s back!





Oops, before I get too far ahead of myself, let’s get back to ‘Speed Racer’.

“Go, Speed Racer, Go!” If you are expecting some ‘Fast and Furious’ gritty action, look elsewhere. ‘Speed Racer’ is a kiddie show just like the cartoon it is based on. Thanks to the Wachowski brothers (of ‘Matrix’) fame, the graphics are outlandish and the laws of physics are thrown out the window. It is as though Neo woke up in another program designed by the Computer and ‘reality’ operates on a different set of rules. The colours are really bright and the environment is constructed by computer programmers.

Which come to think of it, the film does bear some resemblance to ‘Matrix’. In ‘Speed Racer’, Speed Racer (Hirsch) is the ONE. No one drives as fast and furious as he does. Even after his brother Rex dies in a crash, Speed grows up loyal to the family racing business led by his father, Pops Racer (Goodman), designer of the Mach 5.





When Speed Racer turns down a lucrative offer from Royalton Industries, he also uncovers a terrible secret – that the biggest races are fixed by ruthless tycoons who manipulate drivers to boost sales! With the help of the mysterious Racer X (Fox) and Taejo Togokhan (Korean singer Rain), they form a trinity to challenge the head honchos who rule the racing arena.

And just like Neo, Speed Racer will unwittingly set up a new World Order, only this time it’s the world of motor racing. Cool machines? Check. Babes. Check. Family fun? Check. Pet monkey? Check. That’s right … Speed’s kid brother Sprittle (Litt) and his pet monkey Chim Chim provides some laughs in the film while Goodman seems to enjoy playing Pops Racer.

There is no mistake that Speed Racer is targeted at the kids, but I’m sure it will appeal to audience of all ages.

Eye candy comes in the form of Rain (yes, scream all you K-pop fans), Mathew Fox of ‘Lost’ fame and (surprise, surprise) lead Emile Hirsch who looks like a much younger version of Ewan McGregor. And I must say that he carried the role very well. Guys can squawk at the sight of Christina Ricci who plays Speed’s longtime girlfriend.





With its gamer action, visual wizardry, cartoonish characters and misconstrued reality, ‘Speed Racer’ is built for a fun time at the cinemas. And thankfully it does its job well. For two hours, just sit back and let ‘Speed Racer’ take you for a ride through some mindless fun. I bet you’ll be humming the tune as you leave the cinema.

And probably this is what sets ‘Speed Racer’ apart from Wachowski’s ‘Matrix’ films. They know their target audience and there are no pretensions about it. Kids will love it while adults will enjoy the ride down memory lane. Sing with me again, “Go, Speed Racer, Go!”

In a Joyous Mood (Sunday People)

First published in New Straits Times, Sunday People

2 September 2008

In a joyous mood

MAX KOH 

The Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra is 10 years old. MAX KOH goes to the birthday party 

During the economic crisis in 1998, classical music aficionados must have thanked the heavens for it was on August 17 that year that the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) was born.

Along with the opening of the Dewan Filharmonik Petronas (DFP), classical music was made accessible to all and sundry (as long as they didn’t wear shorts, slippers, jeans or T-shirts for the shows).

Talented sparks from all over the world have since appeared at the hall known for its excellent acoustics. From noted orchestras such as the BBC Symphony and New York Philharmonic to respected soloists such as soprano Kiri Te Kanawa and violinist Sarah Chang and Joshua Bell.

Some of the biggest names in the jazz and world music scenes including James Morrison, the Count Basie Orchestra, The Chieftains and Amjad Ali Khan have played at the DFP.

So the decade was marked with a birthday party, on stage of course. It was a nice, cordial affair with guest conductor George Ellis leading the MPO.

The Australian, known to his fans as Big G, was in a jovial mood and set the party off with a swing with his rousing composition, Celebration Overture.

In the introduction to the next piece, Bizet’s Habanera from Carmen Suite No. 2, Ellis pointed out the importance of dynamics in a song; the varying degrees of loudness and softness in a musical passage.

The Habanera comes from the Carmen opera, where the character Carmen performs a stirring dance to woo the handsome soldier, Don Jose.

“We invite you to pay attention to the orchestra members and join the fun,” Ellis told the audience.

Whenever the musical passage flitted from soft to loud, the members of the orchestra would stand up. Soon enough, the audience joined the orchestra in the movements. It was like a big aerobic class in the balloon-decorated hall.

Now, who said you can’t work out to classical music? Ellis then invited us to clap along as tempo was important in the next piece, Grieg’s In The Hall Of The Mountain King..

A popular tune, most recently used in the film Corpse Bride, it originally tells the story of Peer who sneaked into the Mountain Troll King’s castle. Having insulted the king’s daughters, the angry, evil trolls soon chase Peer.

The three-minute song began eerily with the bassoon, which signified Peer’s careful, slow steps.

The music then soon worked itself up into frenzy as the trolls spotted Peer and gave chase.

As Peer desperately ran out of the cave, the music becames louder and faster; before the crashing cymbals and thumping timpani burst forth to silence the other instruments.

The audience could barely catch their breath as they struggled to keep up with the musical frenzy.

As a restful piece, we then had an old Russian fairy tale — the famous Prokofiev’s Peter And The Wolf.

It tells of the story of Peter who ventures out the garden gates into the countryside and meets a host of characters.

For the orchestra piece, each character was given its own motif played by an instrument. The bird was played by the flute, the cat by the clarinet, and so on.

Eventually, the big bad wolf appeared played by three French horns.

Wonderfully performed by the orchestra, the story was easily conjured to life. Many smiles were lit that evening, both children and adult.

Then came the lovely ballets of Shostakovich, the Polka and the Gallop.

The two movements from the ballet, The Limpid Stream, turned out to be lively romps, with boisterous duets and rattling percussion. They fit the celebratory mood that evening.

Alas, all parties must come to an end. And the MPO gave us a treat with the classic birthday song.

The audience stood up and sang along as a big birthday cake was being wheeled out onstage.

We all got a cupcake each. Aww.

To me, it was way too short a party as it ended in less than an hour. But it was fun, so thank you and best wishes.

Transcendental Performance (Sunday People)

First published in New Straits Times, Sunday People
29 March 2008

Transcendental performance 

MAX KOH 

TFA dancers in the Pallavi

Geetha in Sakti He Keshi Madhana Mudharan

DANSEUSE Geetha Shankaran-Lam was the undoubtedly star in Transcendance, the latest performance by The Temple of Fine Arts, which explores the themes of the sensuous self and the sublime spirit. 

The performance that ran for three nights at Panggung Bandaraya in Kuala Lumpur, also marked the premiere of new and original works by odissi guru Durga Charan Ranbir, disciple of the late great guru Deba Prasad Das and featured music by guru Ramahari Das. 

The new repertoire was a direct outcome from the Odissi Yatra (sacred journey) undertaken by Geetha and her students last December to various parts of India. 

The result of that journey was the dance — Geetha’s offering to the gods, gurus and the audience. 

It offered a repertoire that explored how dance, music, lyrics, rhythm, emotion and drama brought about the psycho-physical condition conducive for such an experience of transcendence. 

Under the artistic direction of Geetha, these works are presented as solo and group pieces in Transcendance. 

The night began with Mangalacaran, the opening dance performed by dancers to invoke the blessings of divinity. In this interpretation, the dancers personified the swan (hamsa) which is regarded as the bird of wisdom and freedom.

The dancers arched their backs and gestured like the bird. Against the resplendent backdrop of giant lotus flowers onstage; they looked absolutely graceful.

Geetha offered Sakhi He Keshi Madhana Mudharan. The work is based on Jeyadeva’s Gita Govinda which is sung daily during worship at the Puri Jagannath temple in Orissa. 

The dance was about the romance between Krishna and Radha, and the twists and turns of the relationship — desire and despair, separation and union, fantasy and reality. It was set with the composer’s obvious purpose of seeking transcendence through his praise. 

Her interpretation of the song showcased her mastery of the abhinay (the expressive form through hand gestures, facial expressions and body movements).

I was mesmerised by her poetic brilliance and lush erotic imaginary. 

Overall, the dancers — comprising mainly students of TFA — were competent in the Pallavi where the melody is elaborated through eye movements, beautiful body postures and intricate footwork. It was based on the Keervani raag, a typical South Indian scale that evokes feeling of elegance and joy. Its basic melody uplifted the mood as the dancers explored the creative possibilities in pure dance (nritta).

But the apex of the night’s show was Geetha’s take on the Pallavi. This time it was original choreography by guru Kelucharan Mohapatra based on the Arabhi raag, and reinterpreted by odissi dancer Parveen Nair and Geetha herself.

She exhibited poise and a grace that could only have come from her years of dance experience. 

For those who missed Transcendance, you can catch it on their Youtube profile in the following link: http://uk.youtube.com/user/TFAvideo