Going to the end of everything

By Shiromi Pinto

On a low lit stage he crouches, then gradually stands, his hands tumbling one over the other as if unravelling a gigantic scroll. His movements are contained within a radius the length of his body, and are led by the pulse of a Vietnamese Buddhist chant.

Isira Makuloluwe proves that dance lives in the soul. He may have taken a degree in molecular biology, and come to the profession comparatively late-he was in his early twenties-but none of these things have prevented him from becoming a successful, international performer.

Chance led him to study ballet with Manola Asensio in Spain: Manola's husband, Eduardo Balanovski, was Isira's A-Level physics teacher, as well as the catalyst behind his pupil's change of career.

From Spain, Isira went on to study Graham based modern dance with the late William Louther, and completed his training at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Centre in New York.

These days he's performing in the French musical, Notre Dame de Paris. Performed to serious acclaim in Paris, the show is headed for Canada and London's West End where its success will determine whether or not it continues to Broadway.

Prior to becoming involved in Notre Dame, Isira was-and still is-trying to concentrate on his choreography. Though his work may most readily be identified as Western Contemporary, he has infused his choreography with Asian-at times Sri Lankan-dance techniques to create a distinctly hybrid effect. This is readily demonstrated by his solo, Alternative Arrangement (described above), choreographed and performed by him in London last summer. But he is quick to note that this kind of appropriation goes far beyond the superficial.

"I do not incorporate specific movements from traditional Kandyan dance. I have studied with teachers in Sri Lanka, students of my uncle, the late W.B. Makuloluwe who taught me the use of the torso, hands and feet in this style. In my own work these movements are exacted in as much as they define my origins. For now I choose to go no further and remain sincere to my roots because I feel that only with further, rigorous training can I manifest more Kandyan without it being tokenistic. Several choreographers... [from the sub-continent] are doing this at present and their lack of honesty and knowledge is evident on stage. I prefer not to "go there!"

"My dance education has been in the West, primarily classical ballet and contemporary dance. I am attempting at all times in the choreographic process to develop a style, fluid in nature, that passes through the variety of idioms that I know, without stopping at one or two. Continuity is the essence of my research and I try to stay true to this."

"If dance is a form of inner expression, then it is also a mode of communication, a medium through which issues of identity are raised. And necessarily, the individual's interpretation of his or her own identity shapes that person's choreography."

"I consider myself an Asian or Sri Lankan European and this informs my work, on all levels. I find that the idea of self-categorisation is uninteresting, and is the domain of the critics, who are always desperate to put you in a box, especially if you originate from any of the ethnic Diaspora and perform your work in the West. I prefer to leave it to them and to be as true to my cultural and technical origins without fear of diversifying my dance language in other directions."

"Those who have seen my creations so far–general public, critics and funding assessors alike-have commented on the undefinable Asian-ness and contemporary nature of my choreography. So far I feel I have succeeded but there is a long way to go in my personal and artistic evolution."

A significant part of this evolution has been the creation of Isira's own, multi-ethnic dance company. 'Vivid Dance Theatre, London was launched in January 1998 after my return from the Far East as a freelance choreographer and teacher. I found that as much as you give of yourself in the freelance world, you have to adapt to the brief given to you, like any designer. This could be the dancer's, the ideas of the artistic director who invites [you], among other criteria.

"Therefore I started Vivid as a more personal project to hone my ideas and research more fully my choreography."

"The company was launched in "These TwoBrown Feet', a festival for South Asian choreographers designed by Hardial Rai, from Waterman's Arts Centre in Brentford [UK]. His guidance was essential in the formation of my company, including the invitation to perform in 'his' festival, whereas other programmers chose to avoid me! Also my manager, Tim Tubbs, of the UK Dance Foundation has led the company through all the difficulties of establishment without any funding."

So does a science degree have a part to play in any of this?

"My background as a molecular biologist has allowed me to observe the genetic aspects of rhythm. This includes timing, expression and interpretation. One cannot avoid seeing the beauty of the diversity of the human race in the dance. We are all the same and yet so different.

"This is the basis of 'Vivid Dance Theatre,' London: no limits, no one look-just a celebration of life in its best and harshest moments. Therefore the human condition is the dramatic basis of my work; I specialise in ballets that vary in subject matter from human rights violation to commentaries on the influence of the media on immigrant/second generation evolution —which was the subject of 'On Deaf Ears', the company's last creation."

With what looks like another two years to go with Notre Dame, Isira admits that he finds it a bit difficult to concentrate on independent choreography. Nevertheless, he intends to take advantage of his time in Canada to stage a new piece with a few local dancers.

Eventually he hopes to bring a creation to Sri Lanka via the British Council or the Alliance Francaise. The probability of this seems quite high considering Isira's current successes, and his will to-as his parents often advised him— 'Go to the end of everything.'

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