True Life

A musical dance performance about death and the celebration of life.

'Because, death is certain for the one who is born, and birth is certain for the one who dies. Therefore, you should not lament over the inevitable.'
– Bhagavad Gita (influential Hindu scripture)

The way in which people observe the inevitable end, varies per culture, country and generation. How people deal with death says something about how they live. In some instances death might be intertwined with their everyday life, in other cases it is a topic that is consciously avoided. In True Life, Kalpanarts examines the relationship between life and its end, and the reverse.

Sources of inspiration are colourful and ancient funeral and memorial rituals such as the Mexican Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos), the New Orleans jazz funerals and the holy cremations on the River Ganges. Furthermore, Hindu verses, the god Shiva and Indian philosophy, provide references for the celebration of life and mitigation of the underlying fear of death. The piece sources the personal experiences and beliefs of the performers with their different cultural backgrounds.

In the space where death defies the living, consoles and challenges, six dancers and a musician, Shishani Vranckx (vocals & guitar), give an expressive performance.

 

 

Unfortunately there are no events planned for now.

choreography
Kalpana Raghuraman

concept
Kalpana Raghuraman & Gysèle ter Berg

managing director & artistic associate
Gysèle ter Berg

dancers
Mitch Essers, Laila Gozzi, Kya Su, Indu Panday, Sooraj Subramaniam, Goda Žukauskaitė

live music
Shishani Vranckx (zang & gitaar)

music composition
Simone Giacomini

costume design
Aziz Bekkaoui

lighting Design & decor
Jeffrey Steenbergen

dramaturgy
Vincent Wijlhuizen