“I began to dance naked… I began to dance naked…” says 14th century saint poetess Lal Ded as she danced in complete surrender to the divine consciousness.
Rama Vaidyanathan was absolutely spectacular in her transformations from the naive and joyous Janabai to the mature and radiating Lal Ded. And what a powerful message this production brings to us. Strength in the face of adversity. To fight without actually fighting. To stay true to yourself. To believe in yourself…. These women are true torch bearers to all the men and women out there walking their (sometimes) solitary paths towards their personal truths….Truths that will touch our hearts and help us heal and transform.
Rama Vaidyanathan’s piercing glances, as she walked around the space, looking into our eyes, was an exceptional feeling. We sat there transfixed by her dancing and absolutely arrested by her glance, as if she was looking right into our souls, whilst asking us all to be ‘jeevan mukthas’.
It was indeed a ‘Mad and Divine’ moment – term that was coined by the inimitable Anita R Ratnam who had intitally commissioned this work for a dance festival of the same name in December 2011, Chennai, India. Co Produced by Kartik Fine Arts, Ms Vaidyanathan was granted permission by Dr Ratnam/Arangham Trust to rename her original presentation to the current title ‘MAD AND DIVINE’.
Here are some short clips of Lal Ded and Jana Bai from Tat Tvam Asi‘s showing of Rama Vaidyanathan’s ‘Mad and Divine’ – a very unique and well researched interpretation of the personal journeys of 2 female saint poetesses from 13th and 14th century India.
Watch more Live Video clips from the Austin show on Tat Tvam Asi’s FB page!
Check out more photos and details about Mad and Divine’s Austin show Here.