Where dance is the only language

Religion and politics may be divisive forces, but dance is a unifying element, realises LEELA VENKATARAMAN as she finds people from various parts of the globe united in their love for dance at the 'Biennale de la Danse' at Lyon, France.

"WE must all aim at the unattainable in order to realise the attainable," said Thomas Mann. Indeed, behind every out-of-the- ordinary achievement, there lies an inveterate dreamer who has the perseverance and passion to translate a substantial part of the dream into reality. In the case of the "Biennale de la Danse", - held once in two years in the city of Lyon, France - the architect who has nursed dreams and fashioned this enormous juggernaut of dance celebration is Guy Darmet.

A lover of dance who, from 1974 to 1979, contributed to the development of a local news magazine which had art promotion as its main aim, Guy Darmet rose to become correspondent for the magazine Danse. In 1980, this ardent defender of the art form doggedly pursued the setting up of "Maison de la Danse", a unique establishment which is concerned only with the promotion of dance and has hosted over 500 choreographers from all over the world in different productions which have been seen and enjoyed by over 1.2 million spectators. Celebrating 20 years of unstinting service to the dance world, "Maison de la Danse" (equipped with formidable technical accoutrements to provide the most ambitious designs in stage decor) has become one of the most coveted venues for dancers and choreographers the world over.

It was in 1984 that Guy Darmet's dream child, the "Biennale de la Danse", had its inception - a comparatively modest beginning with 14 French and foreign groups presenting 66 performances spread over the city of Lyon attended by 39,800 spectators. Over the years, the event has evolved into a mammoth celebration involving choreographers, dancers and journalists, not to speak of dance lovers from all over the world, spread over 17 theatres across the city. It has acquired side attractions like "Defile" (procession) conceived by Guy Darmet in 1996 with the full approval of the Ministry of Culture. In the first year, this event brought together 250 professional and amateur dancers and was joined by thousands of spectators through the streets of Lyon. This year's Biennale - the theme of which was "Silk Roads" in keeping with the city's famous silk industry - had the procession winding its way from the Terreaux to place Bellecour comprising 29 troupes with over 4,500 participants in all. Nearly 200,000 spectators watched the procession. Apart from the main focus on dance, cinema, balls and a range of specially mounted exhibitions are all part of the Biennale attraction. This year's "Au Fil De La Soie" had an exquisite display of fabrics and artefacts from several countries, with pride of place being given, justifiably, to cascades of silk from India, Cambodia, Burma, China and, of course, Lyon.

The statistics compiled for the latest Biennale held from September 8 to October 1 make impressive reading. An audience of 79,000 of which some 71,000 were ticket holders and the others attended the performances. The average occupancy in the theatres was 90 per cent. The "Defile", covered live on television on France 3, was enjoyed by 350,000 viewers. Press coverage included 249 journalists from 26 countries and 19 television channels were on attendance to cover the festival. All these figures do not include the many who attended tai-chi classes and dance demonstrations - and let us not forget in all this that the population of Lyon is not more than a million.

With legitimate pride and no hint of smugness, Guy Darmet says that many have tried to mount a festival like the "Biennale de la Danse", but have not been able to do so.

"What is so special about the Biennale? After all, international dance festivals are hosted all over the world." My query was put to the architect of the festival during an informal lunch at a wayside restaurant - the type France specialises in. The occasion, squeezed out of the hectic schedule of Guy Darmet, is thanks to his gracious invitation to host a quick bite in order to enable a private exchange with him, something that the crowded press conference cannot accommodate.

"First, the Biennale is the only festival with a theme." Indeed, from "Expressionist Dance", "An American Story", "Passion of Espana", "Mama Africa", "Aquarela de Brasil", "Mediterranean" on to "The Silk Roads", the festival would seem to have covered a wide variety of themes.

"This is not an event for the elite alone. It is a popular event - it takes dance to the people - to every person who wants to see. And we have no limitations imposed by geography or culture. This is a festival, which has a place for all kinds of dance - of all cultures, traditional and modern. It is an open minded festival."

I am intrigued by what determines the choice of artistes from all over. "What are the information points tapped to know what the dance scene is like in foreign countries?"

"This festival is not made sitting within the four walls of the office. I travel five months a year to watch dancers in countries, which are going to be featured - according to the theme. I spent 20 intensive days in India watching dancers in Delhi and Chennai among others and then made the decision on which of them to include for the festival. Sometimes, one is not able to see certain dancers. For instance, I could not see Daksha Seth. Her programme did not suit mine and we could not fix any date."

The festival this year featured Madhavi Mudgal and her troupe of dancers with Kelucharan Mahapatra included in the troupe, so as to project three generations of Odissi dancers, and Malavika Sarukkai in her one-woman ballet "Khajuraho". The surprise contemporary dance choice was Narendra Sharma and his troupe doing "Antim Adhyaya" and "Mukote". When viewed against the bewildering variety of contemporary dance activity in the West, one wondered if Sharma's work would not seem passe.

"I appreciated the simplicity and unpretentious nature of the work. I wanted to see how people here would respond."

Guy Darmet maintains that his box office is what sustains the festival every time. Box office, no doubt, provides the drive and enthusiasm. But what really keeps such an ambitious festival going is Guy Darmet's own public relations and phenomenal ability to earn the support of both public and government agencies. His sincere work for dance and his exceptional organisational capacities have been recognised through a host of awards and titles - like "Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres" in 1984 after which he was promoted as "Officier des Arts et des Lettres", and "Chevalier de 1'Ordre National du Merite" awarded in 1992.The magazine Telerama elected him the most important man in the field of culture for 1989 and again in 1999, and the magazine Lyon Capitale elected him Man of the Year 1996. In 1999 he was appointed "Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur".

Says Ella Baff, executive director of the Jacob's Pillow Festival, which involves back-breaking work each time for harnessing funds: "I envy him the kind of support he enjoys." The Biennale is now an established event with steady support.

When asked what he would consider the greatest achievement of the Biennale, Guy Darmet does not hesitate to say that the main success has been in bringing about an awareness of dance in the public of Lyon that, unlike the very compartmentalised tastes of dance audiences in Paris (which prides itself on being the cultural capital of the world), can accommodate and enjoy dance expressions from any part of the world and of any age.

The artistic director does not speak in vain. The cross cultural interactions in the Biennale transcend the barriers of geography and political tension. Guy Darmet proudly says that dancers from Israel and Palestine have friendly exchanges here, and troupes from Iraq and Iran can be seen in convivial conversation. It is not that strong differences of opinion do not surface, but they are based on differing aesthetic criteria and not religion, politics or nationality. As when Julien Jalal Eddine Weiss, during the press conference, with unequivocal candour called the "Nights of Alexandrie", designed and conceived by Gregory Ramos, as nothing but kitsch, with the emphatic statement that only his Al-Kindi Ensemble with singers of the calibre of Mohamad Quadri Dalal and Sabri Moudallal could provide Middle East fare of authentic virtue. He found Egyptian dances and music devoid of the classical character of the art that had historically evolved in these areas. Told politely to focus on what he aimed to show through his troupe instead of passing judgment on others, the artistic director still found that he could not talk about his work, without referring to what he felt was the decadent art of Egypt. While the other side tried to defend itself against some grave provocation, this exchange provided some of the more spicy moments of the Biennale.

Apart from this one instance, the Biennale exulted in informal tete-a-tetes over receptions following premier shows, with critics and artistes meeting one another and interacting. Where else would one have had the opportunity of meeting a high priestess of dance criticism like Anna Kisselgoff from the New York Times; Professor Ou Jian-Ping, China correspondent of the U.S. Dance Magazine who wears a number of hats like adviser to the International Dance Encyclopaedia by the Oxford University Press; Donal Hutera, a writer on dance from London; Nancy Henderek, director of Dance Salad; Dr. Andrea Amort Kultur Ballet and Tanztheater from Austria and many others?

The press conferences were an opportunity for choreographers to explain their productions and their individual approaches to dance. Each choreographer emerged as a personality and one realised that not all that goes on within the artistic imagination and mind can easily be communicated to others by speech, or even understood for that matter.

Saburo Teshigawara, considered one of the most brilliant modern dance stylists, was a typical example of how words cannot always fill the ideational gap. All of 48 years, and looking about 35, with a well-shaped head as smooth and free of hair as a baby's knee, Saburo has a strong presence. "I have no technique for Modern Dance - I wanted to do it after 10 years of ballet ... I am a slow person and it took me a long time to find my own style ... I have ideas to create but no confidence." He talked of "purity" of body, of "being too weak", of being "helped by surroundings" and of "feeling the dynamics".

Then came what seemed to be contradictions as he said, "I dance alone, but I am not alone. I am too strong for me." As one struggled to keep abreast of what the choreographer meant, one understood the gist of what he was trying to say - that a body not weighed down by cultural memory of other techniques was empty and when one managed to shed the ego or "I", the body became pure and empty to be filled by whatever dance the artiste could create.

Even while dancing solo, he drew energy from the space around, and since he inhaled what the air around gave, and exhaled his own breath which mingled with the space, he was not alone but was in continual interaction with the space around him. With a pure body, one could evolve to a stage where one not only felt the body, but could also listen to the body. "I think fresh". Talking of the importance of improvisation, he said, "Do it first time - feel reality." Then there was reference to being "highly tense and then relaxed" - "like water on top of glass". Did he mean dancing on edge when improvising? One did not quite follow what Saburo meant. But that he is thrilling to watch as a performer was clear to one and all - though the visuals he used as introduction to his scenes or as backdrop seemed to provide inspiration to him rather than to the audience, who never fathomed what was intended by the choreographer. His production had a title as enigmatic as the dancer himself, "Absolute Zero".

Quite the opposite was choreographer Christian Blaise whose production "Alerte de la Soie", based on the theme of silk, was described as being designed to evoke the varied flavours of silk. To quote Christian's own poetic prose in the publicity material, "The myth is a perilous one, soft on the surface but dangerous underneath.

"A parching thirst, the eyes of the blind, under the reflection of mousseline, crushed countryside, underneath the fur collars, scratched legs.

"I foresee a silken madness, a furious silk, a poetic adventure ferocious and jubilatory, a heart to heart with the power of the loom which advances, kills and caresses, excites and turns mad.

"Who are we to love this fascination so?

"Silken Silence

"May be there is a pause in which we can denounce this exquisite tyranny."

Lin Hwai-Min, choreographer for Cloud Gate Dance Theatre from Taipei, in his work "Songs of the Wanderers" exemplifies how cultural boundaries are not limiting factors in the world to-day. He calls his work a "Brahmin Pilgrimage" and it is indeed inspired by what he has seen in India - particularly in Bodhgaya where Buddha attained enlightenment. The Indian resonances in the work are astonishing. In his other work "Moon Water", one has the strange coming together of Bach's cello creation providing the musical framework, with dance based on tai-chi and modern dance. The dance and music seem to be made for each other.

Kim Maeja of the Changmu Dance Company of Korea speaks in her own language, as does Kosei Sakamoto of the Monochrome Circus. No matter, for every line is translated into both English and French, often Guy Darmet himself doing the translation from French to English for choreographers.

Another unusual coming together was in what Kader Attou, choreographer of Accrorap, referred to as "Anoka" (anokha), which had hip-hop dancers sharing the stage with Kathak dancers and a Bharatanatyam performer in a production called "The Dance of Gods and Men".

"What we have enjoyed is the respect for other cultures shown by the hip-hop troupe in Accorap," says Vishali Trivedi, the fine Kathak dancer from Kadamb who is part of this cross-cultural endeavour. "We are in this together."

In fact, where politics and religion often divide, dance has provided the cementing force aiding togetherness. Which is what Guy Darmet wants to achieve - a people united by their love for the dance. When he saw me exchanging in conversation with Saburo at a reception, he remarked with joy: "You know this is what I love to see - an Indian talking to a Japanese about dance."

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