Francis Wacziarg
Francis Wacziarg
faded indian operas searching sure themes western
I'm still searching and I'm sure there are a lot many more Western operas with Indian themes that have faded into history,
ballet elements indian instead western
Instead of having a completely Western ballet, we have a ballet with elements of Indian dance.
blonde deeply describe french indian might opera perceived ridiculous rooted scene seem though
Even though there are so many Indian touches, this opera is very deeply rooted in French operatic traditions. For instance, in one scene I describe Shiva as being a blonde woman. That might seem ridiculous to you and me, but it's how Bizet perceived it back in the 19th century.
bind focus tried
We've always tried to focus on productions that bind two cultures.
ancient cultural environment explore fact forms hindu immense island possibilities sets simply somewhere spine throws whether
The fact that it is set in a phantasmagorical island somewhere in ancient Sri Lanka throws up immense possibilities to explore this cultural hybrid, whether it's through costumes, sets or simply because of the Hindu environment that forms the spine of the story.