The dance unfolds
Ann Marie Chandy
The Star
Publication Date: 22-08-2008




After dancing for almost a quarter of a century, Kuala Lumpur-born international dancer Mavin Khoo says he has become a bit of a “preacher”.
“I’m always trying to get people to see bharatanatyam beyond its community, cultural root,” explained the famous 32-year-old bharatanatyam-ballet exponent and son of historian Prof Dr Khoo Kay Kim. “I’m not interested in just reliving the past. I say understand your history and then go forward.”
No doubt his father’s penchant for history and culture has rubbed off more than a little on the junior Khoo, who immersed himself in research the last five years for his latest dance offering entitled 'Devi: In Absolution', which begins its two-day run at the Petaling Jaya Civic Centre tomorrow (Aug 23) night.
In a recent interview smack in the middle of his busy schedule of rehearsals and film work, Khoo said: “Bharatanatyam has such a grandeur and majesty that it sits in the realm of any great art we see in the world today, but sometimes it is so placed within a specific cultural context that people don’t see its potential beyond that.”
This is not a new subject of interest for Khoo. For the last five years or so, he has spoken about the same issue and endeavoured to explore new ways to showcase the traditional art form to which he has devoted a large portion of his life.
Khoo laments that many people aren’t willing to take bharatanatyam out of its cultural setting.
“I’m not saying one ignores that cultural context, of course that’s the main point of reference,” he explained.
“But sometimes I find there’s such a sense of urgency in terms of maintaining the past that you don’t take it anywhere else. I think anything that comes with tradition--even ballet--people find very hard to let it breathe.
“It is important for me to understand its possibilities and not feel confined by the idea of tradition. I think it has so much more to offer artistically.”

The idea of exploring new avenues of dance does not intimidate Khoo; rather, it inspires in him a drive and thirst. He makes it a regular practice to visit India for reality checks.
“I always dance in Chennai,” he said. “It is the best testing ground to see if I’m acknowledged in a positive way. And (touch wood) so far I have been.”
The female concept
In his solo production which will be unveiled tomorrow, Khoo will present a single dance which is completely bharatanatyam based ... but not in the format of a traditional repertoire.
“What’s interesting is that Malaysian audiences have always seen my traditional repertoire--you know, five by five pieces, very much in a traditional context,” Khoo said. This time round, he will be offering something a little different, explaining that although the show has a very specific theme and is based on literature, he has tried to make it as abstract as possible.
“Usually, bharatanatyam work based on a theme becomes very literal--what I call a dance drama. And I’m not interested in doing that. I’m trying to make a work that is an abstraction of all these ideas that I have embraced in terms of the female energy. Although in this work, three forms are specifically revealed--those of Meenakshi, Durga and Kali--the forms are not specific in terms of deities or icons. They are the qualities represented by those revelations of Devi that fascinate me.”
In the show, you will see traits of Meenakshi--the child goddess--just before she becomes a bride. The subliminal ideas of innocence and purity and how they transfer between mortal and immortal are explored here. Then there will be Durga the Warrior, through which Khoo will examine a dichotomy of attributes from grace to destruction and fury. And last but not least, the dancer will attempt to channel Kali’s qualities.
“Where I’m placing Kali in this work is not how we usually see her, which is fury, anger, darkness,” he explained. “But where she’s seen as a mother.”
There’s little doubt that the subject matter of the solo show is one that deeply intrigues the experienced artiste.

“I’m very fascinated by the female concept,” he revealed. “It’s a very interesting concept for me to use with bharatanatyam. When I’m working on a piece where there’s an abstraction of ideas, it’s very easy for me to fall into my ballet work; but to make myself use bharatanatyam, and to see how bharatanatyam can embrace these sort of ideas ... is exciting and a challenge for me.”
Khoo is also excited about the collaborative aspect of the production. “I am very excited that (Carnatic musician) OS Arun is singing for the show. He rarely sings for dancers so this is a fantastic opportunity for me and I think he brings in musical aspects that will challenge me a lot.”
Rich in experience
Khoo--a La Salle Petaling Jaya and later Methodist College student--began bharatanatyam classes when he was eight years old. After studying in Malaysia for a few years, he became a pupil of maestro Padma Shri Adyar K Lakshman in India at the age of 16. He began classical ballet at age 13 in KL and went on to study with Marian St Claire and Michael Beare in London. In 1996, Khoo studied contemporary dance at the Merce Cunningham Studio in New York.
As a bharatanatyam soloist, Khoo has danced in Britain, the United States, India, Malaysia, Singapore, France, Spain, Japan and Taiwan. Solo performances include Prana (1997), Moksha (1998), Warna: The Colours of Bharata Natyam (1999), Margam: The Path (2001) and Solo (2003).
His own company, mavinkhooDance, was founded in 2003 in London, with its first international touring production Parallel Passions. This was followed by Chandra/Luna (2004-2005), which was also performed in Malta, Devi: the Female Principle (2006) and Strictly Bharata Natyam (2006) which was staged in PJ.
Along the way, he’s received many grand descriptions--from “Chinese Magic” in India to “A gorgeous alien ... blazing a trail of energy” in Britain.
Khoo was the first Malaysian to perform at the Royal Opera House in London. He was the youngest dancer to open the season at the prestigious Shri Krishna Gana Sabha in Chennai for the 1993 Festival of Music and Dance.
There’s a whole lot more that he could fit into a very rich, very impressive résumé.
“I’ve had a wonderful 25 years or so where I received so much information from such great people,” he confessed, shying away from admitting that he has had a successful career despite so much evidence to suggest it.
“One of the things I have been very thankful for is that my journey has always brought me to extremely great artistes. And those are things that money can’t buy.
“I feel grateful that I have experienced so much in life,” he finally admitted. “I don’t think I would trade that for anything.”
Khoo also felt lucky to have performed so much during his career.
“I’ve done up to about 150 shows a year and that’s a lot. And I feel it’s now time for me to move into other areas ... I would like to be more selective in terms of performance. When you do so many shows a year, you get into a momentum that’s sometimes counteractive ... because you get into a drill and you can lose your sense of creativity because of that.”
In the last year, Khoo has started teaching a lot more. Although he never used to enjoy teaching before, he has grown rather fond of it.
“Emotionally, I’ve come to a point where I’m happy to give. I can sit and teach a class and enjoy watching someone else. Whereas even three years ago, I would have very much wanted to be that person dancing.
“Even in teaching you have come to a point where you develop the maturity to let go and give. And it’s very nice now that I feel I can give to those who need it and want it.”
Khoo doesn’t operate from a school, rather dancers come to him for a period of time for coaching and training.
“That’s a very lovely position to be in because you can give so much more in terms of sharing parts of your own experiences on stage, in terms of pieces, in terms of stamina,” he explained.
While he’s spent a lot of time in Malaysia this year, Khoo isn’t quite sure where he will be based in the near future.
His last big overseas commission was from the Canada Dance Festival in June where he worked with two separate dance companies (one ballet, one bharatanatyam) on the piece billed B².
It was a very exciting show for Khoo, and he says it was very well received.
When he’s not teaching, dancing or choreographing (and that leaves precious little time), Khoo enjoys eating, watching TV and socialising.
“I feel grounded when I socialise,” he shared. “Most of my friends are not dancers and I think they bring me back to earth, which is very important for me. I see life in such a different way through them ... it’s almost educational to a certain extent.”
Khoo explained that it would otherwise be so easy to get completely lost in a world that is not real. “I see it a lot with other artistes who just stay within their own small circle. They become very self indulgent. And it’s very important for me to understand that in the big picture, there are much more important things happening around me.”
Brickbats and bouquets
As can be expected with every success story, it hasn’t always been a bed of roses for the accomplished artiste.
“My journey with dance has been very love/hate,” he confessed again. “It’s a gift and it’s a curse as well. It’s (dance) not something that I can just say I want to abandon because I can’t. It has completely become me.”
Khoo shared a tale about going through a tough time when he turned 30 because he wanted to venture into other areas of dance.
“I think for about a year and a half I had a complete identity crisis because I couldn’t decide who Mavin Khoo would be outside of the performer. Dance had dictated my whole life, it had evolved me into becoming who I was. And I completely panicked.”
Khoo explained while the highs have been very high for him, the lows have been many too.
“However wonderful it can be on stage, the reality is that you live in a society that works in a particular rhythm that’s not specifically the same kind of dynamic as when you are on stage. And that’s always been a struggle for me.”
Khoo revealed that the things he is most grateful for are those moments of study with great teachers, and the moments of exposure to great artistes.
“I can’t even put it into words what those times were like,” he said, relishing the journey of study he has had over the years.
Most memorable moments, he shared, would include when (famous bharatanatyam guru) Sharada Hoffman attended a performance.
“I remember my first programme as a soloist in Chennai, she had come to sit and watch, and after the show she immediately wanted to coach me.”
Khoo said working with Marian St Claire was another memorable experience. “Marian was someone that I use to read about in books. And again I’m not sure what she saw in me ... maybe it was a thirst or desire to study but the way she embraced me and started to nurture me ... not just in steps but small qualities that very few people can teach ... that is something that I will be very grateful for forever. It’s almost like destiny.”
Devi: In Absolution is a solo bharatanatyam production conceived, choreographed and danced by Mavin Khoo, with live vocals by world renowned OS Arun in aid of Pusaka (a non-profit organisation set up to research and document indigenous performance traditions in Malaysia).
The show will be staged on Saturday and Sunday at 8.30pm at the Petaling Jaya Civic Centre, Malaysia.