How does language relate to the vast archive of emotions, memories, and histories carried by a displaced body? What do we express through movement—and what is set in motion when we speak?
Following the successful dance productions nimbus and Pallavi, Maghenta supports Sooraj Subramaniam in a new artistic research project exploring the interaction between language and movement. Together with dancer and choreographer Jamie Lee, he investigates how they can develop tools and skills—rooted in their artistic practices—to interweave movement and text. They aim to create a physical language that responds not only to the linguistic qualities of different tongues, but also to the emotional and poetic charge of self-written texts.
Their research stems from a deeply personal urgency, grounded in their layered identities and shared histories of displacement. Jamie’s roots lie in Malaysia, Canada, and Australia; Sooraj’s in India, Malaysia, and Australia. Their common ground makes them ideal partners to develop new movement languages that enter into dialogue with spoken and written word. This exploration unfolds over the course of three residencies at STUK, c o r s o, and laGeste.