ABHINAYA DANCE COMPANY OF SAN JOSE ANNOUNCES
TRIKAALA THEN NOW BECOMING
A SOLO PERFORMANCE BY RASIKA KUMAR

“one of the Bay Area’s most respected Indian classical dance companies.” - - Los Gatan

Photo of Rasika Kumar; Photo credit: Mukund Ganti

Abhinaya Dance Company, an Indian classical dance company founded by Artistic Director Mythili Kumar announces Trikaala – Then, Now, Becoming, a new solo performance by Abhinaya Principal Artist and Choreographer Rasika Kumar on Saturday, May 9, 4 pm at the Cubberley Theatre in Palo Alto.

Thirty years after her arangetram (the debut, full-length solo performance in Indian classical dance), Rasika Kumar returns to the solo Bharatanatyam (South Indian classical dance) repertoire to ask a question: what does it mean to inherit a tradition and to choose it anew? Using the margam (a structured, traditional repertoire of a Bharatanatyam dance performance) as a timeless framework, this solo performance weaves personal memory, mythology, and spiritual inquiry to explore lineage and the evolving voice of an Indian American artist.

Musicians include: Asha Ramesh (Vocal), Malavika Walia (Nattuvangam), Sruti Sarathy (Violin), Ashwin Krishnakumar (Flute), and Amit Ranganathan (Mridangam).

“I am excited to share my solo performance with the local community,” said Rasika Kumar, soloist and choreographer for Abhinaya Dance Company. “Bharatanatyam is a living form capable of holding contemporary experience. As I begin teaching my own children, the question of lineage and inheritance come into sharp focus for me. This work asks how these inherited images and myths can be made alive again, through personal connection, for ourselves and the next generation.”

Abhinaya Dance Company’s programs are supported in part by a Cultural Affairs grant from the City of San Jose, the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation, SV Creates in partnership with the County of Santa Clara, and individual donations. Past funders include the California Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts.

WHO:               Rasika Kumar of the Abhinaya Dance Company, an Indian classical dance company founded by Artistic Director Mythili Kumar.   

WHAT:             Trikaala – Then, Now, Becoming, a solo performance by Rasika Kumar

WHEN:             Saturday, May 9 at 4 pm       

WHERE:           Cubberley Theatre, 4120 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto

TICKETS:          $25-$35 (Event is free for “Friends of Abhinaya members”)

To purchase tickets, visit: https://tikkl.com/abhinaya/c/trikaala/

About Abhinaya Dance Company of San Jose

The Abhinaya Dance Company of San José was founded by its Artistic Director, Mythili Kumar in 1980, to present innovative and professional quality performances of South Indian classical dance forms. 

Since 1991, Abhinaya has been awarded grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Rockefeller Foundation, California Arts Council, and City of San José, for its collaborations with musicians, Kathak (The Guru-1991 with Chitresh Das Dance Company), Margaret Wingrove – (modern dance company – 1993), Japanese Taiko drummers (In the Spirit with SJ Taiko-1993 and 2010), and a Balinese ensemble (Ramayana – with Gamelan Sekar Jaya- 1997, 2010). 

The company has appeared several times in the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival and in several different Asian Performing Arts Festivals. Abhinaya has been invited to present its acclaimed dance theater production, Gandhi – The Mahatma, at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, and in 2007 to New York and New Jersey. Abhinaya has also won recognition through the Isadora Duncan dance awards committee for its collaboration with SJ Taiko and its 2016 production of Vaanara Leela.

Abhinaya offers ongoing classes for students of all ages in San José and Monte Sereno.

About Rasika Kumar

Rasika Kumar is an accomplished Bharatanatyam performer and choreographer, steeped in tradition but with contemporary sensibilities. She served as the Associate Artistic Director of the Abhinaya Dance Company of San Jose (ADC) and was a featured soloist, principal dancer, and choreographer for all of ADC’s performance seasons from 2005 to 2016. Rasika learned Bharatanatyam from her mother Mythili Kumar, Artistic Director of ADC and continued her training under renowned teachers including Padmabhushan Kalanidhi Narayanan, Prof. C.V. Chandrasekar, Bragha Bessell, and most recently with Mavin Khoo. Her innovative solo, group and collaborative choreography have been featured throughout the SF Bay Area and abroad, earning her an Arts Council of Silicon Valley Performing Arts Fellowship (2008), Isadora Duncan Awards (2011, 2018), and Lakshmi Viswanathan Award (2014) from Sri Krishna Gana Sabha (Chennai, India) for her solo performance.