KL audiences will get a sneak preview of Autumn, a work that RiverGrass Dance Theatre will present at the 3rd Asia Pacific Arts Forum in Taiwan at the invitation of the Taipei National University of the Arts.

Autumn is a new theatrical piece based on RiverGrass Dance Theatre’s renowned dance drama RE: Lady White Snake.

Reflecting on their past and current states as both White Snake/Green Snake and themselves, Autumn is an intimate work that deals with the personal growth of Lee Swee Keong and Mew Chang Tsing since their creation of RE: Lady White Snake in 1996.

Autumn also continues the lengthy collaboration with Bernard Goh as composer and Mac Chan as lighting designer whilst starting a new one with Lau Mun Leng as installation artist.

Date/Time: 18 October 2003 @ 8.30pm

Venue: The Actors Studio Bangsar

FREE ADMISSION (with priority entry to MyDance members)

Call 03 – 2094 0400 / 03 – 2094 1400 to reserve seats.
Seats will be reserved till 8:15pm after which they will be released if uncollected.

Arts Network Asia (ANA) is a group of independent artists and arts activists primarily from Southeast Asia that encourages and supports regional artistic collaboration as well as develops managerial and administrative skills in the Asian creative arts.

ANA is calling for proposal outlines from artists who may have projects that share or extend its philosophy of meaningful, process-oriented collaboration, distinguished by mutual respect, initiated in Asia and carried out primarily by Asian artists in the area of contemporary performance arts.

For further information, contact Marion D’Cruz at:
Tel/fax: +603-7725 4858
Email: fivearts@tm.net.my

Deadline:
20 November 2003

Proposal Outline:
One-page long (in English or language of choice) detailing the content, philosophy and intentions of your project.

Send to:
Marion D’Cruz (Manager, Arts Network Asia)
c/o Five Arts Centre
27 & 27A, Lorong Datuk Sulaiman 7
Taman Tun Dr. Ismail
60000 Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia

————————–

Arts Network Asia (ANA) was initiated by TheatreWorks (Singapore), who hosted and managed it for the first three terms, from September 1999 to January 2004. From 1 February 2004, it will be hosted and managed by Five Arts Centre (Malaysia) for another two terms.

To ensure objectivity, it has always been the intention that the Host Venue of Arts Network Asia changes after every three terms. At the same time, the overlap in the Host Venues will ensure smooth transition and continuity in the management of ANA.

Currently, the ANA panel consists of: Ong Keng Sen (Singapore), Krishen Jit (Malaysia), Teresa Rances (Philippines), Amna Kusumo (Indonesia), Anuradha Kapur (India) and Santi Chitrachinda (Thailand).

ANA is in the process of constituting a new panel, which will include new members from Korea, India, Indonesia, China and Vietnam. While applicants can still go to the respective existing panel members for further information and advice, new applications will be considered by the new panel.

While the emphasis will be on the contemporary performing arts, particularly dance and theatre, ANA will also consider projects in the areas of music, video, film, multi-media and visual arts, in so far as they relate to performing arts.

At the same time, ANA will consider applications for research and study grants, and exchange projects (not limited to collaborations) that foster inter-cultural interaction, exchange and understanding.

Through the fund, ANA hopes to encourage the following:

The development of inter-cultural and cross-national collaborations and exchanges that can take the form of dialogues, workshops, seminars, residencies and productions.

The development of artistic networks that will create links between Southeast Asia and South and East Asia by way of exchange and information sharing.

The development of an arena for challenging and provocative collaborations that face the questions of difference, as well as to explore the tensions between global and local identities.

The development of administrative and management skills through exposure and internship schemes.

Click here for examples of projects

Click here for a list of panel members and their contact details

Organised by the Ministry of Culture Arts and Tourism, this Asean Festival of Arts will showcase the traditional dances and music of the Asean countries and partners such as China, Korea and Japan.

Main performances will be held at Istana Budaya (Kuala Lumpur) while showcase performances will be presented in Taman Budaya (Negeri Sembilan) and Dataran Shah Alam (Selangor).

There will also be a final, open-air performance at Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur on 18 October 2003.

All performances except the final public gala commence at 8.30pm (the latter at 9.00pm) and admission is free!

In addition to performances, there will be three days of dance workshops whereby companies from Thailand, Singapore, Cambodia, Myanmar, Philippines, Japan and Korea will conduct introductory workshops on their individual styles and cultures.

Programme details are given below. For further information, call 03-2696 3262 / 03-2696 3182 or visit www.mocat.gov.my

Programme
Main Performances – Istana Budaya
15 October 2003 – Lao/Philippines/Singapore/Japan
16 October 2003 – Cambodia/Indonesia/Thailand
17 October 2003 – Brunei/Myanmar/Vietnam/Korea

Showcase Performances – Taman Budaya (NS)
15 October 2003 – Brunei/Myanmar/Vietnam/Korea
16 October 2003 – Lao/Philippines/Singapore/Japan
17 October 2003 – Cambodia/Indonesia/Thailand

Showcase Performances – Dataran Shah Alam (SDE)
15 October 2003 – Cambodia/Indonesia/Thailand
16 October 2003 – Brunei/Myanmar/Vietnam/Korea
17 October 2003 –Lao/Philippines/Singapore/Japan

Public Gala Performance – Dataran Merdeka
18 October 2003 @ 9.00pm
Brunei/Cambodia/Indonesia/Japan/Korea/Lao/Malaysia/Myanmar/Philippines/Singapore/Thailand/Vietnam

Dance Workshops
Dates: 14 – 16 October 2003
Time: 8.30 am – 12.30 pm
Venue: Rehearsal studio, Istana Budaya

Wendy Rogers, an eminent choreographer and lecturer from the University of California in Berkeley, is here on an exchange program organised by MACEE and University Science Malaysia.

She will be conducting contemporary dance workshops in Penang and Kuala Lumpur.

Penang
Venue: Panggung Sasaran, USM
13 October 2003 @ 10.00 am to 12.00 nn
15 October 2003 @ 8.00 pm to 10.00 pm
29 October 2003 @ 8.00 pm to 10.00 pm

Kuala Lumpur
Venue: Rehearsal studio, Istana Budaya
22 & 23rd October 2003 @ 9.00 am – 5.00 pm

Entrance is free!

The Akademi Seni Kebangsaan has organised a three-part event that aims to raise the importance and standard of choreography in traditional dance to equal that of contemporary dance.

The festival will comprise:
Evening Performances followed by morning Discussions and afternoon Workshops. Although the workshops are only accessible to invited participants, the performances and discussions are open to the public.

20 groups from all states around the country will participate. Each group comprises a maximum of 6 people including choreographer, dancers and musicians.

The festival will also provide an opportunity for young choreographers (particularly those from outside Kuala Lumpur) to present their work not only on a national platform but also to the local (Kuala Lumpur) audience.

Discussion Sessions 1-5
8-12 October 2003 @ 9.00am-12.30pm
AudioVisual Room, MTC, Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur

Workshops 1-5
7-11 October 2003
Closed to Public

Performances 1-5
7-11 October 2003 @ 8.30pm
Main Auditorium, MTC, Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur

For further information, contact 03-2164 9180 ext 242

————————–

Performance Programme (Tentative)

Tuesday (7 October 2003)
ASK Dance Co, Sri Ganesan, Perbadanan Labuan, Sel & KL Kwang Tung Association, Mohd Kamaludin Mohd Daud

Wednesday (8 October 2003)
Shafirul Azmi Suhaimi, Pejabat Kebudayaan & Kesenian Selangor, Badan Kebudayaan Majlis Bandaraya Melaka, Tandak Dance Theatre

Thursday (9 October 2003)
Kumpulan Selendang Perak, PDRM, Yayasan Warisan Johor, Majlis Perbandaran Petaling Jaya, Petronas Performing Arts Group

Friday (10 October 2003)
Pejabat Kebudayaan & Kesenian Negeri Perlis, Azizi Sulaiman, A Aris A Kadir, Abdul Hamid Chan, Badan Kesenian Negeri Kedah, Lembaga Kebudayaan Sabah

Saturday (11 October 2003)
Performance of 4 selected works, Loke Soh Kim and Istana Budaya

Other invited participants include:
Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur, Yayasan Negeri Sembilan, Yayasan Pahang, Pejabat Kebudayaan & Kesenisan Negeri Terengganu, Pejabat Kebudayaan & Kesenian Negeri Kelantan, Kumpulan Tarian Kampung Budaya Sarawak and Kumpulan Tarian Kementerian Pembangunan Sosial dan Urbanisasi, Sarawak.

October and November are busy months for dance in Singapore. Below is an overview of what is taking place. For further information visit www.sistic.com.sg

Madame Butterfly
Singapore Dance Theatre presents Stanton Welch’s full-length ballet adapted from Puccini’s opera of the same name.

Dates: 15-18 October
Venue: Esplanade Theatre
Tickets: S$79 to S$21

Xposition ‘O’ Contemporary Dance Fiesta
Organised by Odyssey Dance Theatre (ODT), there will 12 days of performances, master classes, dance workshops and fringe events by ODT and companies from Philippines, Korea and USA.

Performances include:
· Trace of a Tree by Dance Forum Myra Beltran (Philippines)
14&15 October @ Singapore Art Museum (SAM) Auditorium

· Korean Contemporary Dance Night by Dance Company Jobac and Seo Dong Hyun & Co
17&18 October @ SAM Auditorium

· The Origins by Odyssey Dance Theatre (Singapore)
22&23 October @ Victoria Theatre

Tickets: S$29

Little Asia 2003
Little Asia is a network of producers devoted to sourcing, promoting and facilitating all forms of theatre including dance.

This year’s performances are:
23-25 October – [inter/action] by Sal Vanilla (Japan)
13-15 November – Melatonin by Daniel K & Co (Singapore)

Venue: Esplanade Theatre Studio
Tickets: S$26

Japanese Dance – Tradition and Creativity
featuring the Kikunokai Dance Troupe

Dates: 27&28 October 2003
Venue: Victoria Theatre
Tickets: S$76 – S$31

Solo 4 Two and Men at Work
by Karl (Kane wung) Libanus and Storm

Date: 1 Nov 2003
Venue: Esplanade Theatre Studio
Tickets: S$26

Dr Mohamed Ghouse Nasuruddin, Wendy Rogers and Mumtaz Begum will conduct a symposium on contemporary dance.

Date: 30 October 2003
Time: 9.30 am to 12.00 nn

Venue:
Balai Bersiban, School Of Arts, USM, Penang

For further information, contact School Of Arts, USM at 04-653 3621 or 04-653 3415.

Admission is free

Sutra Dance Theatre presents the world premiere of Siddharta, an inter-spiritual and inter-lingual contemporary dance drama based on the novel by Hermann Hesse.

Created by the members of Teater Cahaya with artists from Indonesia, Japan and Malaysia, it was conceived, developed and produced by Alex Dea and Richard Emmert in association with Sutra Dance Theatre.

Dea is an avant-garde composer and gamelan-trained musician based in Central Java while Emmert is a Japanese noh theatre performer based in Tokyo. Other collaborators include internationally acclaimed noh actor Akira Matsui, Balinese-trained topeng dancer Tetsuro Koyano from Japan, multi-talented dancer and choreographer Didik Nini Thowok, Balinese arja performer Cok Pring, Balinese shadow-play master and dancer I Nyoman Sumandhi, Javanese gamelan expert Saptono, and Chinese-modern dancer Liangga from Indonesia.

Malaysian artists include makyong primadonna Mek Nab, and well known Malaysian contemporary dancers with strong traditional dance background – Guna, Syed Mustapha Syed Yasin, Zaridah Malik, January Low and Sri Mas Dewi.

Date/Time: 16 – 19 October 2003 @ 8.30pm

Venue: Auditorium Tunku Abdul Rahman
Malaysia Tourism Centre
Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur

16, 17 & 18 Oct – Public performance
Tickets available through AXCESS:
Hotline: 03-7491 9999
Online at: www.axcess.com.my
All authorized AXCESS outlets

19 Oct – Charity Performance
Presented by World Chinese Women Association
Admission by invitation only
For information, call 03-7957 1333 (Catherine)

Sutra Dance Theatre: 03-4022 9669 (10am – 5pm weekdays only)
Address: Sutra Dance Theatre
12 Persiaran Titiwangsa 3, 53200 KL

————————–

Siddhartha
A new collaborative dance-drama piece by Teater Cahaya

Based on the classic of 20th century literature by German novelist Hermann Hesse, ‘Siddhartha’ chronicles the spiritual evolution of a man living in India at the time of the Buddha. The novel is a spiritual journey that has inspired generations of readers of all religious persuasions. The present production based on the novel, is an inter-spiritual and inter-lingual contemporary dance drama featuring traditional performers from Indonesia, Japan and Malaysia who make up the company of Teater Cahaya.

Presented in KL by Sutra Dance Theatre, Teater Cahaya is a cross-national and cross-cultural theatre collective founded in 2001. Its members are traditional performers in their respective countries performing such traditional art forms as arja, topeng, bedoyo and gamelan from Indonesia, noh and shomyo from Japan, and bharata natyam and makyong from Malaysia.

Collaborations of contemporary performance artists throughout Asia have been increasing steadily over the last decade. Teater Cahaya is unique in that it brings together traditionally trained artists to work cooperatively without a director. By each taking turns directing, and each contributing to the overall process of scene-building, the performers have discovered and developed new intuitions and techniques. After five intense workshop-rehearsal sessions, Teater Cahaya’s performers have learned to maintain their own traditional approaches in their use of the body, the voice and the music, while bringing out the nuances and subtleness of emotive and theatrical interactions required by the play. The result is a combination of elements that is uniquely Asian-contemporary.

One of the featured artists of Teater Cahaya and of this world premiere of ‘Siddhartha’ is the well-known KL dancer and choreographer, Ramli Ibrahim. As a teacher and performer of the Indian classical dance forms of bharata natyam and odissi, Ramli has become synonymous with the elevated status of Indian classical dance in Malaysia. His sense of both the contemporary and the traditional as well as his experience in collaborative productions with a cross-section of Malaysian and Asian artists has been an important influence in establishing the style of Teater Cahaya.

Teater Cahaya and this production of ‘Siddhartha’ were conceived and developed by Alex Dea and Richard Emmert. Dea is the music director of the production while Emmert is co-director. Both perform in the production as well. They invited fellow Asian artists to gatherings in Yogya and Bali in February 200l for the first workshops. Since then, three other workshops have insured that through intense collaboration the performers are aware of each other’s traditions and excited by the contemporary echoes these traditions create when joined together.

Sharki Dance Studio & Dancesteps Studio present three new Middle Eastern Belly Dance Workshops by Saliha.

Introduction to Bellydance Workshop (Beginners 1)
Either: Saturdays @ 3.00pm – 4.30pm (4, 18 & 25 October)
Or: Sundays @ 2.00pm – 3.30pm (5, 19 & 26 October)

Foundations of Bellydance (Beginners 2)
Sundays @ 12.30pm – 2.00pm (5, 19 & 26 October)

Exploration of Bellydance (Beginners 3)
Sundays @ 11.00am – 12:30pm (5, 19 & 26 October)

All classes: limited to 18 pax

Cost: RM135 for 3 workshops and get 1 Tabla Drum Choreography Class for only 15RM!

Registration
Registration can be made through mail or at Dancesteps Studio
RM10 late registration fee will be charged for registration after 1 October 2003

For inquiries and reservations, contact:
Dancestep Studio (03-2300 2505), Datin Kim (012-210 5998), Sherlyn (012-311 2277) or email: sharkidance@fastmail.fm

Venue: Dancesteps Studio, 11-2 (2nd lever), Jln 26/70A, Desa Sri Hartamas, 50480 KL

————————–

Saliha, 28, is a teacher with the well-reputed Desert Rhythm in Singapore. Having trained with a variety of teachers including Eva and Shaheena of Australia, Raqia Hassan of Egypt (ex-Reda Troupe), Hossam and Serena Ramzy and Suhaila Salimpour in San Francisco, Saliha has graduated to be a versatile and captivating performer as well as patient teacher.