Kathak; the classical dance of North India; combines virtuosic footwork and dazzling spins with subtle pantomime and soft gestures. As a global practice and one of Indias cultural markers; kathak dance is often presented as heir to an ancient Hindu devotional tradition in which men called Kathakas danced and told stories in temples. The dances repertoire and movement vocabulary; however; tell a different story of syncretic origins and hybrid history - it is a dance that is both Muslim and Hindu; both devotional and entertaining; and both male and female. Kathaks multiple roots can be found in rural theatre; embodied rhythmic repertoire; and courtesan performance practice; and its history is inextricable from the history of empire; colonialism; and independence in India. Through an analysis both broad and deep of primary and secondary sources; ethnography; iconography and current performance practice; Margaret Walker undertakes a critical approach to the history of kathak dance and presents new data about hereditary performing artists; gendered contexts and practices; and postcolonial cultural reclamation. The account that emerges places kathak and the Kathaks firmly into the living context of North Indian performing arts.
2016-04-29 2016-04-29File Name: B01FYC0XNC
Review
