How does Bharatanatyam coalesce with mathematics? On its ongoing tour of India, Three Aksha Institute of Performing Arts, a troupe from Philadelphia, USA, sought to provide the answers through a series of choreographies that explored mathematical dimensions like the circle and the line among others. Called Prayog, the performance was organised by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations at Kamani auditorium on Friday evening.

The first piece of the evening highlighted the prevalence of the circle in dance. “Bharatanatyam techniques like the bhramaris, charis and mandalas enable dancers to explore the space in circles. The circle also symbolises the relationship between an emotion, the object that is emoting and the observer. The triangle, on the other hand, has great mythical significance in various aspects of Indian culture,” said Viji Rao, artistic director of Three Aksha. In the piece called Trikona, the dancers demonstrated how Bharatanatyam, with its distinctive half-seated posture, breaks the body into a series of triangles. Samarekha showed how distinctive footwork could represent the line from various angles, creating dynamic bursts of energy.