YOGA THEATRE
YOGA THEATRE
““Think of the body as full of all pathways to enlightenment. The body is all deities… When you contemplate the body as divinity itself, you find liberation””
This work is inspired by the Tantric approach of embodied practice and Rasa (archetypal emotions) theory.
The participants follow the flow of the mythological narrative, to receive an embodied experience of listening and feeling with full-body presence. The movements and sounds follow the flow of ‘Rasas’ (the archetypal emotions) within the story, through mantra and the sacred geometries of yoga postures, mudras, and dance.
Mantras are sung in Sanskrit and are composed of primal, resonant sounds, which have roots in all languages. When repeated these sounds can powerfully evoke the feelings and emotions as they arise through the various phases of the story.
Yoga Theatre is also performed and presented in a more fully immersive experience through workshops and retreats.
‘The goal of performance arts, states Natyashastra is ultimately to let the spectator experience his own consciousness, then evaluate and feel the spiritual values innate in him, and rise to a higher level of consciousness. … to transport the spectator to an aesthetic experience within him to eternal universals, to emancipate him from the mundane to creative freedom within.’ David Meyer
Yoga Theatre is the musical rendition of the mythological stories of India namely from India’s Shakta non-dual tradition. This is a progressive tradition which recognises the interconnection and unity at the heart of all that is manifest. Shakta mythology celebrates the many diverse and radical possibilities of feminine potential. Yoga Theatre gives voice to these stories at a time when re-engagement with the feminine is essential to create balance and a deeper connection to the body and the Earth.
Yoga Theatre is a participatory storytelling experience in which the audience is invited to sing along with Sanskrit Chants and their corresponding movements.
These are part of the body of Yogic myths of the Gods and Goddesses – the elemental archetypal metaphors and processes that reveal our elemental nature, inherent gifts and divinity.
VIDEO: This is a track taken from the Durga Opera album, featuring the children from our sacred arts school in India.
DURGA OPERA
Durga, is a Warrior Goddess of protection and inner strength, as a world protector whose fierceness arises out of her uniquely potent compassion:
“For millennia, humans have called on the divine in times of trouble. And for millennia, the great Mother has always heard our call.”
This is the epic story of the ten-armed warrior goddess Durga, who vanquishes the forces that threaten peace and prosperity, it is a powerful tale of love and redemption. Celebrated twice a year during Navratri, this story represents a beacon of hope for our challenging times.
The story is the amalgamation of 2 stories taken from the text, Devi Mahatmya, to incorporate the themes for the need of balance between the masculine and feminine principles to create a new paradigm created from inner and outer balance. It is a story about the times we live in now and how we need to invoke potent compassion to transform our inner and outer demons which currently threaten the Earth.