Rina Singha

Click here for information on Rina Singha's upcoming show:

Manzilen, A Journey
October 12-13, 8pm
Premiere Dance Theatre

To study a banyan tree, you only must know its main stem in its own soil, but also trace the growth of its greatness in the further soil, for then you can know the true nature of its vitality.

- Rabindranath Tagore

A solo Kathak performer and choreographer, Rina Singha’s extraordinary career spans upwards of four and a half decades and she has earned international acclaim and recognition for the elegant beauty and purity of her technique and the skill and wisdom of her interpretative powers. An innovative artist, she has cut across geographical and historical distances to hold onto what is authentic in her chosen form and shape and shares her art so that it enriches the total Canadian mosaic.

Coming to Canada in 1965 at a time when most non-mainstream dance was seen as ‘quaint’ or ‘exotic’, Singha made it her life’s mission to ensure that the beauty of her art form would be recognized and appreciated both for it’s depth of technique and it’s message.

Two major influences have shaped Singha’s artistic journey: the unique circumstances that enabled her to train under a living legend of Kathak and the fact that the practice of this carefully disciplined art would take place outside the soil that nurtured it.

Before India gained her independence, the classical dances had been virtually outlawed in many parts of India. Through a Government of India initiative for reviving and promoting the classical arts, promising young artists were given state scholarships to train under the great masters. Singha won the competition in 1957, it changed her life completely as she turned her back on a brilliant academic career and entered the world of Kathak.

She chose to study under the legendary guru Shambhu Maharajji, renowned for the beauty of line, lyrical grace and most of all, for his detailed and insightful portrayal of women that are so prominent in Kathak dance. The training was individualized, rigorous and disciplined. Emphasis throughout was on hard work, a pursuit of excellence and an ongoing endeavor to look for and discover the essence of a movement and to place it in a choreographic framework within the limit of the form. These were skills to equip us as we launched out into the world as solo performers.

The research and observation aspect of training becomes a critical element when one considers that all Indian classical dancers throughout the ages have drawn on the exact same stories from mythology. One gains the edge through being able to connect with the audience through the depicting of recognizable life experience.

One of the most difficult adjustments on coming to Canada was finding a virtual lack of understanding of Indian dance. Having been a soloist in India’s national company and with Ramgopal’s company in UK, it was hard to settle for performances in community and social gatherings. So, as early as 1966, she produced her first concert at the Colonade Theatre in Toronto. From then on, it was a matter of saving enough to pay for theatre and technical help for each performance. She has nevertheless continued to produce works regularly throughout her career and along the way developed support from the Arts Council’s as well as an informed and appreciative audience. Recognition has come both for her excellence in her art form, including the Senior Artist Award and the RagaMala Award for Excellence.

On emigrating to Canada, the urgent and ongoing challenge was that of making the beauty of Kathak accessible and meaningful to Canadian audiences without compromising the integrity of form. A life long goal that she has achieved has both critics and audiences declaring her work to hold both integrity and accessibility to the audiences. Globe and Mail calls her work “ancient, subtle art made accessible”.

Singha has gone from performing traditional themes of the Kathak repertoire to choreographing nontraditional themes that expressed her life experiences and emotions as related to her life as an immigrant in Canada. Works include Bharatiya Nari (Indian Woman, 1976), Becoming – A Song from Exile (1994), and Lullaby and Lament – a tribute to women victims of the Gulf War (1991).

Being a member of the minority Indian Christian community, she also began experimenting with biblical themes in 1975. Today she is recognized internationally as a leader in this field and is called upon to perform, teach, and advise around the world. Her Yesu Kathak – Four Women Tell the Story of Jesus has been performed around the world. In January 2006, she won an internationally juried award, The Galilean International Christian Media Award for Excellence in the Performing Arts.

Side by side with presenting themes that audiences could relate to, Singha also designed initiatives that would develop an informed and appreciative audience. Her aim was to bring them out of the box of their stereotypical expectations to a deeper level of aesthetic enjoyment. Because of her own experiences as an immigrant, Singha has reached out to other non-western dancers who shared the same struggles. She has worked hard with the arts council’s at all levels to see that culture specific dances are given their due respect and recognition. She has been an advisor to the Canada Council and the Ontario Arts Council where she coordinated the pilot-funding program and has served on the Toronto Arts Council from 2002-2005 as chair of the Dance committee. She has also been invited to adjudicate outside Ontario.

Rina has also distinguished herself as an educator applying the same passion to training children to value and esteem their own cultures and go beyond the stereotype and look fo the positive, life enriching aspects of other cultures.

Lotte Dempsey of The Toronto Star writes of Ms. Singha: “The Children were dancing gracefully, rhythmically, tracing the patterns of man’s joy of movement in many lands. You would never have known they were deaf…one of the greatest dance teachers of this generation.”

Rina Singha’s dance career as a pioneer and trailblazer in many facets of dance has been recognized with many prestigious awards both nationally and internationally and include the Pioneer Skills for Change duMaurier Award and the William Kilbourne Lifetime Achievement Award.

Now approaching her 70th year, Ms. Singha continues to choreograph, dance, teach and mentor. She is planning to use this occasion to boost the art of Kathak and to model for her students her commitment to excellence and lifelong learning.

“Singha’s art teaches the diversity and unity of human family through time and place…”