Performing Diaspora Archives - Page 10 of 10

1 Jun, 2009

“Bihag”, my choreographic take on the Hip hop Tinikling

2009-06-01T22:15:34-07:00By Dulce Capadocia|Categories: CounterPULSE, Dulce Capadocia, Images, Performing Diaspora|Tags: Performing Diaspora|

This week, I frantically drove to a graffiti exhibit and documentary screening in Downtown Los Angeles of the movie "GraffLife" directed by Randy DeVol. It follows the secret night missions and on the run daytime activities of urban taggers living in my home and city. I thought I was late; this was one of the first events that was going to serve as important sensory information. I rushed to get to the venue to find a noisy bar where everyone

30 May, 2009

Guqin and me

2009-05-30T03:44:28-07:00By Fei|Categories: CounterPULSE, Performing Diaspora, Wang Fei|Tags: Performing Diaspora|

What is guqin? The guqin, a seven-stringed zither, is China’s oldest stringed instrument with a documented history of about 3,000 years. It became part of a tradition cultivated by Chinese scholars and literati and has been associated with philosophers, sages, and emperors since the time of Confucius. Perhaps because of this illustrious history, following the rise to power of the Chinese Communist Party in 1949, the guqin came to be viewed as one of the “Four Evils” and was the

29 May, 2009

Charlotte Moraga for Performing Diaspora: Contemporary Traditional Kathak Dance

2009-05-29T00:06:02-07:00By Charlotte|Categories: Charlotte Moraga, CounterPULSE, Performing Diaspora|Tags: charlotte moraga, choreography, classical indian dance and music, contemporary kathak, ethnic dance, improvisation, Indian diaspora, kathak dance, Mumbai, pandit chitresh das, percussive dance, Performing Diaspora, taal, traditional dance, upaj|

What is kathak? Kathak is a unique dance form which incorporates rhythmic virtuosity, compelling storytelling, poetry, recitation, song, swift and subtle movement, and a rich philosophy whose roots extend thousands of years. In 1992, I enrolled in a Kathak class at SFSU with world-renowned master, Pandit Chitresh Das. Little did I know the vast ocean that lay before me. Enthralled by the immense depth and potential for self-expression, I continued to study in the traditional manner (guru shisya parampara), one

28 May, 2009

dance as sacred

2009-05-28T13:03:15-07:00By Sheena|Categories: CounterPULSE, Performing Diaspora|Tags: CounterPULSE, Performing Diaspora, san francisco, Sheena Johnson|

For me, dancing is both a sacred and spiritual act. I was reminded of that as I sat and listened to the recently selected Performing Diaspora (PD) artists discuss there work during their orientation meeting here at CounterPULSE (CP) a few weeks ago (I am intern at CP for the summer). As I sat there I was overcome with an immense feeling of transcendence. As each person passionately described the motivations behind and the visions for their new

20 May, 2009

Neang Sovann Atmani – Prumsodun Ok for Performing Diaspora

2009-05-20T14:53:07-07:00By Prumsodun|Categories: CounterPULSE, Performing Diaspora, Prumsodun Ok|Tags: Cambodian Classical Dance, Performing Diaspora, Prumsodun Ok|

A Cambodian classical dancer, when practicing her moving meditation developed over a thousand years ago as a ritual prayer, displays a serpentine grace that is hypnotic and sublime. Her form is supple, her gestures fluid, and she floats in curvilinear paths across the stage. This is no coincidence as the serpent – moving like the waters that bring fertility and sustenance to the land, bridge between heaven and earth, the being in which the first “Cambodian” sovereign took form (in one creation story anyways) – was worshiped prevalently throughout what is now Cambodia before the introduction of major religions. And today, after many generations of refinement, the serpent can still be seen in this highly stylized art form: its scales transformed into a costume’s detail and its function assumed by a human dancer.

16 May, 2009

The Myalist – Opal Palmer Adisa

2009-05-16T19:00:54-07:00By Opal|Categories: CounterPULSE, Performing Diaspora|Tags: Add new tag, Opal Palmer Adisa, Performing Diaspora|

While most know of Obeah in Jamaica, few know its counterpoint, Myal. An Entry in Jamaica Talk: Three Hundred years of the English Language in Jamaica by Frederic G. Cassidy ( MacMillian Caribbean, 1961), we get one notation: "Obeah, the Jamaican form of sorcery or `black magic', [sic] was once counterbalanced by myal, or `white magic' a healing cult. Obeah employed its power against people; myal claimed to counter those powers." P. 241 Another entry in the same above text,

Performing Diaspora

“Bihag”, my choreographic take on the Hip hop Tinikling

Guqin and me

Charlotte Moraga for Performing Diaspora: Contemporary Traditional Kathak Dance

dance as sacred

Neang Sovann Atmani – Prumsodun Ok for Performing Diaspora

The Myalist – Opal Palmer Adisa

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