Surendra Tekale has been performing in theatre for nine years. (Express photo)
Two Indian performers, Surendra Balasaheb Tekale (24) from Pune and his dance partner J Dayanand Akhilesh (26) from Bengaluru, are taking their contemporary duet ‘Chadara’ to the 9th edition of the ‘4×4 TJ Night’ festival of contemporary art in Tijuana, Mexico, which will be held from March 26 to April 2.
“The name of our piece is Chadara, which means square in Kannada. The piece speaks about the balanced and imbalanced situations that are present in our lives. The idea also subtly incorporates the individuality and characteristics of both my partner and I. While he will perform the imbalanced aspect of the dance piece, I will do the balanced half. With the help of sticks as props, we wish to symbolically show how each of these aspects helps in keeping both upright and straight,” said Tekale.
The rules of the dance competition specify that the performance should be maintained within 4 by 4 feet of space until the choreography is finished. It is also expected from the participants that an uninterrupted general ambient light be used for the scenic 4×4 platform.
“It was quite a challenge but very exciting for us to come up with a piece that can be performed on a 4×4 feet platform. You cannot step down from the platform and it is a challenge to incorporate many elements. It took us almost a week to come up with the finalised version of our performance,” Tekale added.
While their duet is a contemporary dance, their costumes and ambience sound will be minimalisic. “We will adorn a simple dhoti and tunic as well as ornaments. For props, we will have the sticks and ghungroo while for music, we have selected an instrumental piece. The idea is that since the performing space is restricted, we do not want to overpower with the costumes and the props…the less on the platform, the better it is,” he added.
Tekale has been performing in theatre since his school years. Three years ago, he came across Attakkalari, a dance institute, where he was introduced to several dance styles. “I studied choreography and created several contemporary pieces in Bengaluru. I have been a theatre artist for the past nine years. This part of my life helped me develop my choreography as I observe people, their movements and expressions, which are now reflected in the dance pieces I come up with,” he said.
The competition finale will be held at the Centro Cultural Tijuana as part of the XXIl Muestra Internacional de Danza and Tijuana Cuerpos en Transito.