Songs of the Bulbul blends Sufi and Persian storytelling as dancer Akash Odera reveals his true identity as a bird on stage. Told via the medium of kathak, this northern Indian dance style is simultaneously elegant and intense as each time the dancer’s feet delicately slam to the floor it makes you feel like your heartbeat is part of the percussion. The intoxicating whirlwind of a dance swoops you up into its orbit as the world around you fades away for the proceeding hour.
In Akash’s first Perth Festival show in 15 years, it becomes obvious that the name translates to “sky.” There are moments where he is thrown to the floor that evoke a collective breath from the audience as we sympathise with his displacement from his home in the clouds. His artistry summons notions of home as we witness someone at home on the stage, at home in the sky, and at home in the movement of their body. Against a narrative of being caged, this subtle juxtaposition gives the performance layers that the audience is free to unravel. Do not be mistaken, there is much to be enjoyed by simply observing this show, this level of thinking I’m sharing with you is not necessary to enjoy this piece.
The cage-like setting is established with minimal staging to allow Akash’s curation of air to fill the stage. Accompanied by the expansive costuming of Kanika Thakur which seamlessly responds to each movement to blur the lines between where the dancer’s body ends and the air begins. There are moments where this show feels like a conversation between the body, the clothing, and the petals narrated by the air.
Blending Sufi, Persian, and North Indian cultural elements into this performance exposes a rich undercurrent of centuries of trade between the people of this region which have cumulatively inspired this contemporary gift to audiences on Whadjuk Noongar Boojda. We must never take these lavish cultural exchanges for granted.