Celebrity TV actress Shobna Gulati, well known for her role in Coronation Street, stars in a bold new theatre work, The Sacred Thread at The Dukes this month (21 October).
Shobna Gulati has teamed up with the acclaimed classical Indian Kathak dance artist and choreographer Sujata Banerjee in a dance/theatre production directed by the award-winning Nona Shepphard.
This thought provoking work incorporates drama, dance, movement, music and storytelling, set in the throbbing desert of Rajasthan, in which Shobna plays a British film-journalist, fed up with “superficial journalism that makes no real difference”. Breaking away from her production crew while on location in Rajasthan, she finds herself in the desert wilderness. Encountering two women, she finds the inspiration to make meaningful work again.
“The Sacred Thread is about the belief that as humans we find joy, meaning and purpose in our lives through our interconnectedness with the lives of others,” Sujata Banerjee explains, “and with our surroundings – even across space and time”.
The Sacred Thread features five other performers and live vocalists/musicians playing a range of Indian and African percussion instruments. Renowned Indian musician Debojyoti Bose has created an original score for this production.
To undertake research for the show, Sujata stayed in the village of Khejri, outside Jodhpur, Rajasthan with the environmentally-conscious descendants of the 18th-century tree-lover Amrita Devi.
• Sujata Banerjee Dance Company presents The Sacred Thread on Tuesday 21 October at The Dukes. Box Office: 01524 62166