Mythili Prakash She’s Auspicious
Freesheet
She’s Auspicious – Choreographer’s Note
I create you.
According to my standards, likes, and specifications.
You are born of my power, energy, and desire.
I dictate you.
I decide you.
I declare you.
I turn your power into your weakness.
I silence you.
And now, you are worthy of being the goddess whom I worship.
As a child, I always had questions about the “creation of Goddess” myth. According to legend, the demon Mahisha had been granted a boon by which he could not be destroyed by “man.” Hence, the Panel of Male Gods combined their physical attributes, weapons, and energies to create a Goddess who could destroy him. I always wondered – Why weren’t any Goddesses on that Panel? And importantly, why didn’t the Gods call upon one of the several existing Goddesses rather than conjuring one through their energies?
To me, this mythical narrative has become a mirror to our present day reality, connected to questions of femininity, power, control, and agency. This narrative has raised questions in me about my own lived experiences concerning choice, thought and behavior patterns, and complicity in social power structures.
She’s Auspicious began as a reflection on my identity as a woman, a mother, and a Bharatanatyam dancer. By inhabiting the character of this Goddess, I embody and linger in psychological states that sometimes challenge the ideals of “restraint” that characterize femininity in both classical dance and in society. Sharing creative space with other women, each of whom have their own relationship with questions of femininity, agency, and the relationship of these to their art, has turned my personal journey into a collective one.
This work is not a singular narrative, but rather a collection of impressions, images, and emotions, open to experiencing in whatever way you do.
We look forward to sharing this space with you.
About Mythili Prakash
Mythili Prakash’s innovative vision as a choreographer, combined with her powerful conviction as a performer, distinguishes her as one of the most respected young Bharatanatyam artists today. Her work is unique – while rooted in the intricate and nuanced language of Bharatanatyam, it confronts the socio-political global world we live in today. Mythili is incisive in her approach, questioning cultural and social norms, while pushing the boundaries of her practice of the art form, particularly around femininity and aesMthetics. Her creative introspections acknowledge and draw fodder from her experiences as a mother and a first-generation child of immigrants, as well as the complexity of her identity as a dancer of caste-privilege in India, while simultaneously a female artist-of-color in the US.
Mythili has toured her own solo productions throughout the United States, Mexico, Canada, United Kingdom, Europe, India, and Singapore, performing at venues such as Sadler’s Wells (London), Music Academy (India), Jacob’s Pillow (USA), and Esplanade Theatres (Singapore). She was featured on NBC’s Superstars of Dance as a Bharatanatyam soloist, introducing her art form to the world. Mythili also had the honor of working with director Ang Lee in the award-winning film Life of Pi, and was cast as the wife of the titular character.
In 2019, Mythili was nominated by celebrated dancer/choreographer Akram Khan as “Choreographer of the Future” for UK-based Dance Umbrella’s Four by Four Commissions, premiering her solo work HERE and NOW at their festival that year. Mythili is a recipient of the “Creation to Performance” grant from the Irvine Dance Foundation and “Artistic Innovation” grant from the Center for Cultural Innovation. She has received numerous accolades from premiere institutions of dance and music in India as well.
In 2021, Mythili received the National Dance Project touring grant from NEFA for She’s Auspicious, which premiered in Hamburg at the Reflektor Festival, curated by musician Anoushka Shankar. The next year, she subsequently created a trilogy of pieces, beginning with AR | DHA, a commission for the 90th anniversary festival of Jacob’s Pillow. The trilogy concluded with ONE | ALL for the “Festival in Motion,” a first of its kind, site-specific dance festival surrounding the World Cup in Qatar. Mythili was also a principal dancer in Akram Khan Company’s Outwitting the Devil, which toured worldwide from 2019 to 2022. She is currently touring with AKC as a principal dancer and collaborator for two of their latest productions, Gigenis: Generation of the Earth and Thikra: Night of Remembering.
Mythili is also currently touring her own production, She’s Auspicious, across the US, Asia, and the UK, garnering great acclaim from critics and audiences alike for its artistic merit and thought-provoking narrative.
Artistic Team & Credits
Performance Team
Dance/Choreography Mythili Prakash
Vocal/Veena Ananya Ashok
Vocal Roopa Mahadevan
Percussion Aswini Srinivasan
Dance Ensemble Jahnavi Kalyan, Jessica Sitaramya, Malini Taneja, Nikita Rao
Recorded Contributors Sushma Soma (vocal), Aditya Prakash (vocal and percussion), Sumesh Narayanan (mridangam and udukai)
Production Manager Matt Sanford
Sound Engineer Mark Webber
Lighting Designer Jennifer Cashman
Rehearsal Director Uma Kadekodi
Production Team
Sound Design Aditya Prakash, Mythili Prakash, Sushma Soma
Music Production Aditya Prakash
Lighting Design Aideen Malone, Jennifer Cashman
Set Design Mythili Prakash, Kaavya Matatova, Zak Macro
Technical Managers Lars Davidson, Zak Macro
Project Manager Jahnavi Kalyan
Agent Cathy Pruzan
Mentor Akram Khan
Special thanks to Janet Roston and Jyotsna Jagannathan (Rehearsal Direction), Soumik Datta, and M.T. Aditya (additional Sound Editing)
The making of She’s Auspicious was made possible by the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Dance Project, with lead funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the Mellon Foundation.
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Mollika - a dance film by Mythili Prakash
Watch Mythili Prakash perform in dance film Mollika, which explores time, growth and age within dance. Available to watch for free on Digital Stage.