Explore the Intersections of Ancestry and Memory in Ashwini Ramaswamy’s Let the Crows Come at The Cowles Center
Friday, October 22, 2021 at 7:56AMVia an October 21 e-announcement from Artspace:
Ashwini Ramaswamy’s Let the Crows Come features local powerhouse dance talents Ashwini Ramaswamy, Berit Ahlgren, and Alanna Morris-Van Tassel for two in-person and livestream performances from The Cowles Center’s Goodale Stage on November 20 and 21. Tickets range from $20-$25, learn more at thecowlescenter.org/let-the-crows-come.
This is Ramaswamy’s second tour of Let the Crows come after the production reached acclaim in 2019, earning ‘Best of the Year’ recognition in the Star Tribune, Minnpost, and City Pages - who named Ramaswamy one of its Artists of the Year. “The Cowles is so pleased to be presenting this production,” shares Jessi Fett, Co-director at The Cowles Center. “Not only is it stunning in every sense, but we are proud of our deepened relationships with the three dance artists – Ramaswamy, Ahlgren, and Morris-Van Tassel – who we’ve engaged on our stages and through our programs.”
Ashwini Ramaswamy’s Let the Crows Come is a multi-dimensional work that invokes the metaphor of crows as messengers for the living and guides for the departed to channel memory and homeland, guidance and dislocation. The work evolved from a simple idea; when a DJ remixes a song, its essence is maintained while its trajectory is changed; through dance, music, and stunning visuals it explores the ways in which memories are both shared and individual.
Ramaswamy, Ahlgren, and Morris-Van Tassel deconstruct and recontextualize the South Indian dance form of Bharatanatyam against their own movement specialties (Bharatanatyam, Gaga, and contemporary/African Diasporic, respectively) through and with an original recorded score from
dj/rupture aka Jace Clayton, electro-acoustic cellist Brent Arnold, and featuring Carnatic musicians Roopa Mahadevan (vocals); Rohan Krishnamurthy (percussion); and Arun Ramamurthy (violin).
“I could not be more thrilled to bring Let the Crows Come back to Minneapolis, in a format where it can be experienced live around the world,” said Ramaswamy. “I have performed at the Cowles Center since it opened in 2012, and the organization is incredibly supportive of my choreographic vision. I look forward to continuing our relationship well into the future.”
Learn more and purchase in-person and livestream tickets at thecowlescenter.org/let-the-crows-come.
FUNDING CREDITS
Let the Crows Come is commissioned by The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra’s Liquid Music Series and is made possible by the New England Foundation for the Arts' National Dance Project and the MAP Fund (both supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation). The development of Let the Crows Come was made possible in part by residencies at the Baryshnikov Arts Center (New York, NY) and the National Center for Choreography at The University of Akron (NCCAkron).
ABOUT ASHWINI RAMASWAMY
The foundation of Ashwini’s work and aesthetic begins with decades of Bharatanatyam training with her gurus - her mother Ranee Ramaswamy, sister Aparna Ramaswamy (Directors of Ragamala Dance Company) and the legendary Smt. Alarmel Valli of Chennai, India. As a founding member of Ragamala, she has toured extensively, performing throughout the U.S. and in Russia, Taiwan, Indonesia, Japan, the U.K, and India. Ashwini has received commissions from the SPCO’s Liquid Music Series, American Dance Platform, and the Great Northern Festival, residencies at the Baryshnikov Arts Center (NYC), UNC Chapel Hill (North Carolina), and the National Center for Choreography (Akron, OH), and support from the National Dance Project, the MAP Fund, US Artists International, the Minnesota State Arts Board, Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, South Asian Arts Resiliency Fund, a Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship and McKnight Foundation Artist Fellowships for Dance and Choreography. She is currently a Visiting Professor at Macalester College and will bring Let the Crows Come to several national venues in the 2021-22 season. www.ashwiniramaswamy.com
ABOUT THE COWLES CENTER
The Cowles Center is a dance and performing arts hub that promotes movement and growth for artists through supportive programs and spaces; engages audiences through dynamic performances; and educates learners of all ages through robust and inclusive education initiatives. The Cowles Center is owned and operated by Artspace.
