DANCE REVIEW: BLUE13 DANCE COMPANY
Bollywood Delicious at Santa Monica's Highways
Archaeologists once discovered 9,000-year-old paintings in India’s Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka. To this day, it is considered one of the earliest forms of storytelling. Before humans resorted to written language as a primary form of communication, paintings such as the ones found in the famed Rock Shelters were how civilizations recorded history. Each painting told a story about daily life in the civilization, including the use of dance as a form of entertainment, lovemaking and mythical storytelling.
Times may have changed, methods of communications are now more advanced and we no longer live in rock shelters, but dance stayed true to its roots of entertaining the masses as a visual form of lovemaking and storytelling. Today, instead of depicting images on a stone-cold wall, Indian dance is expressed through modern mediums such as Bollywood and a variety of on-stage ensembles.
In the Stone Age no longer, one dance company does not need to rely on colorful linear paintings inside a rock shelter in central India to tell its entertaining yet mythical stories of sex, debauchery and social taboo. Half of a world away and light years removed from the stony edifices of central India, Los Angeles-based blue13 dance company remains true to the origins of dance while maintaining a modern edge, pushing the envelope and challenging social norms. They use a little bit of Bollywood, a little bit of on-stage ensemble, a little bit of Hollywood, and a whole lot of soul.
Some of that soul was on display over the Valentine’s Day weekend, when blue13 presented Bollywood Delicious at Highways in Santa Monica. An intimate venue with the last row of seats only an arm’s length away from the front of the stage, the dance troupe dazzled about 100 admirers for three consecutive days with a show that was both risqué and hilarious.
“We wanted to add the satire element and tackle the issues Bollywood considered too taboo to tackle,” Achinta McDaniel, blue13′s founder and director, said. “I knew we wanted it to be a parody and sarcastic but make it a little burlesque. It really came out organically. We weren’t going to tackle each theme differently, but it just came together.”
In a few weeks, things will come together a bit differently, as Bollywood Delicious will make its debut at Santa Monica’s newest performing arts venue, The Edye. Whereas blue13’s performance at Highways was geared for adult audiences, next month’s performance, a few blocks away, will be toned down for a wider audience. Yet, that is exactly what makes the troupe so entertaining to watch — one moment, they are mocking strip dancers for the “mature” folk, while sometime later, the entire crew will sarcastically imitate beauty pageants and poke fun at cultural barriers.
“For me, it’s about graduating from these absolutes and blending everything together,” McDaniel told Buzzine. “It’s interesting creating a new genre, but that’s always the case with a choreographer, who always works on creating a new genre. It’s essentially contemporary dance, and such dance is going to be 
influenced by your roots and the different techniques you learn.”
With one month remaining before its April 26th date with dance lovers at The Edye, McDaniel was recently on the hunt for new dancers to learn those contemporary dance techniques she is so good at creating. Known as “Bollywood Tech,” McDaniel’s unique dance style has defined blue13’s dancers and is not an easy technique to incorporate. As fans admire the highly skilled and beautifully artistic dance moves of contemporary dance group, behind the scenes is hours of hard work and intense practices. With auditions (which recently passed on March 15th) equally demanding, Achinta’s high expectations will surely elicit the best dancers for blue13.
Two dancers who were vetted out through tough auditions were Arun Mathai and Rashi Birla, who both danced for blue13 for several years now and were instrumental in pushing the envelope in Bollywood Delicious. They both remember auditioning for blue13 and the hard work expected of them ever since.
“Achinta reached out to me and asked me to audition for one of her shows in 2004,” Birla told Buzzine in an exclusive interview. The UCLA graduate, who studied both classical and modern Indian dance and has a full-time job while contributing to blue13 in her spare time, said the high expectations are necessary in 
order for the group to remain innovative and entertaining. “It’s a lot of work, but when we are out there performing, we have so much fun. The audience loves us and we have a great following, so it’s ultimately worth it.”
Mathai, who, like Birla, also dances for blue13 part-time while maintaining a day job, echoed similar sentiments. Also an aficionado of classical Indian dance, he is drawn to the diversity and creative freedom of the troupe. “We’re such a dynamic group,” he humbly said. “Some routines are kind of set in advance, but Achinta always lets us make recommendations. If it’s a good idea and we can execute it, we’ll make it happen.”
In fact, one of Mathai’s ideas — a mockery of Indian beauty pageants — came to fruition in Bollywood Delicious, with the chiseled leading man crossing gender lines and playing the self-indulgent, crown-adorning queen.
Of course, such tongue-in-cheek items are a perfect complement to blue13’s style, which covers the entire spectrum of dance techniques. While none of blue13’s dancers ever came forward and proclaimed to be one of the archaeologists who discovered the Rock Shelters of Bhimbekta, the group’s technique stays true to the origins of dance while maintaining the perfect blend of Indian culture and worldly appreciation.
To experience blue13 in person, be sure to find out about its upcoming performances, including the April 26th showing at The Edye. For more information, please visit their website.
