Tara Studio - September 2008
Preview by Lizzie Guilfoyle
TARA Studio’s programme for September 2008 kicks off with The Rape of Lucrece – from Tuesday, September 2 to Sunday, September 7 (post show discussion on Thursday, September 4).
A sinister story of love, passion and betrayal retold in Todor Dimitrov’s new adaptation of Shakespeare’s epic poem with four actors and a cellist.
Directed by Mukul Ahmed, The Rape of Lucrece is performed in English and Bulgarian.
Tickets: £10, £8 concessions, £5 cushions.
Times: Tuesday to Saturday at 7.30pm, Sunday at 4pm.
The Rape of Lucrece is followed by Sunset in the East, an Indian Classical Music recital by Kasturi Pagude – on Friday, September 12 at 7.30pm.
Sunset in the East is made up of key Hindustani classical ragas, which are by tradition sung only in the evening time. Among the ragas sung is Puriya Dhanashree, which is sung just after sunset and in which the two dominant notes ‘Re’ and ‘Dha’ create an atmosphere of longing.
Tickets: £10, £8 concessions, £5 cushions.
Next comes the first of two basement sessions – Kathak with Amina Khayya, Yuko Inoue and guests – on Saturday, September 20.
Presented by zeroculture in association with Tara and Collage Arts, the basement sessions are Indian dance recitals. In the informal intimate space of the studio there’s no escaping the raw emotion, bittersweet despair, sweat and hypnotic rhythms as the core of rasa and sum are explored.
the basement sessions is a project which gives British South Asian artists the opportunity to perform without the pressures of a concert, in informal settings. All performances will be accompanied by live musicians.
Tickets: £8.50, £6.50 concessions, £5 cushions.
Time: 7.30pm.
The second basement session with Kathak and Bharatyanatyam, is on Saturday, October 18.
Next up is Tom McNab’s 1936, presented by Attic Theatre Company and directed by Jenny Lee – on Thursday, September 25.
1936 is a staged radio play about the events prior to the 1936 Olympics when the stakes were high and the game played out on the world stage. Hitler craved power, the German Jews were under threat, America was uneasy, and the Olympic Committee were out of touch. It all rested on the few – and the athletes.
1936, which is for the launch of the Cultural Olympiad in Wandsworth, will be followed by an excerpt from Riefenstahl’s Olympiad and a discussion led by Olympic Coach Tom McNab.
Tickets: £10, £8 concessions, £5 students and cushions.
Time: 7.30pm.
On Saturday, September 27 and Sunday, September 28, Tara is presenting Velua for London’s Open Rehearsal.
This informal rehearsal of an astonishing Bengali/Bangladeshi play will explore cross-cultural theatre techniques. Through music, singing and dance, the performer in this solo play tells the story of many lives in Bengali and English.
Tickets: All £3.
Time: Saturday from 7pm to 8pm, Sunday from 4pm to 5pm.
Also on Saturday, September 27 and Sunday, September 28, paintings of the real, surreal and abstract will be on show at Tara Studio as part of Wandsworth Artists’ Open House – from 11am to 6pm.
Visitors can meet the artists - Lumina Dyer, Christopher Burke and Sharon Howard – who are showing their works at Tara Studio, one of the 88 studios open across the borough. The exhibition is supported by London Borough of Wandsworth.
Admission: free.
A second exhibition will be held on Saturday, October 4 and Sunday, October 5.
Finally, Tara is presenting Commedia dell’ Arte Masterclass led by Laia Garcia – from Monday, September 29 to Wednesday, October 1.
Discover the history of Commedia dell’ Arte from the 16th Century; masks and physical movements of the different commedia characters; Italian comedy – the base of mime, acrobatics, clowning and classical comedy and Improvisation. The workshop will culminate in a short presentation at Tara Studio.
Tickets: £50 for the 3 days, 10 places available.
Times: daily from 10am to 4pm.
Ages: 18+