Classical dance,song celebration

A celebration of classical Indian song and dance takes place at the Little Carib Theatre this weekend with Susan Mohip, Mondira Balkaransingh and company, and Sharda Patasar.

Their illustrative kathak and odissi dance styles respectively will tell a story of age-old Indian traditions embedded into TT’s cultural fabric since 1845.

“Baby Susan” Mohip is a leading creative and film dancer. She is co-founder of the Sangeet Mahavidyalaya, director of the Susan Mohip Dance Company, and a classical Indian dance instructor at the Academy for the Performing Arts, University of Trinidad and Tobago.

She has taken her passion for the poetic and rhythmically-rich movements of kathak on extensive tours through the Caribbean, South America, Canada and India and has performed for dignitaries and heads of state.

The concert also honours Nrityanjali Theatre’s Balkaransingh, who found her love for odissi under the dedicated training of masters at India’s Bharatiya Kala Kendra.

Odissi is a classical style, steeped in Hindu mythology, originating from the temples of the eastern coastal state of Odisha in India.

Balkaransingh has travelled all over the world and her artistic work spans more than 40 productions.

The Nrityanjali Theatre has a gold Humming Bird Medal, and Balkaransingh can also be credited for having written the dance curriculum for secondary schools.

Classical sitarist Patasar will complete the bill.

The concert is one of four productions the theatre will put on specially to celebrate its 70 years as an institution for the performing arts.

Showtime is 6 pm on Sunday at White and Robert Streets, Woodbrook.

Tickets cost $150 each and are available at the venue.